Lesson 08 · 6 min read
Spanish Question Words and How to Ask Questions
Asking questions is how conversations get going. Spanish has a compact set of question words, and — unlike English — you rarely need a helper verb like "do." Just raise your intonation or invert the order.
1. The question words
Question words always carry a written accent to mark them as questions.
| Spanish | English |
|---|---|
| ¿Qué? | What? |
| ¿Quién? | Who? |
| ¿Dónde? | Where? |
| ¿Cuándo? | When? |
| ¿Por qué? | Why? |
| ¿Cómo? | How? |
| ¿Cuánto? | How much? |
| ¿Cuál? | Which? |
2. Everyday questions
| Spanish | English |
|---|---|
| ¿Qué es esto? | What is this? |
| ¿Dónde está el baño? | Where is the bathroom? |
| ¿Cuánto cuesta? | How much does it cost? |
| ¿A qué hora? | At what time? |
| ¿Cómo se dice… en español? | How do you say… in Spanish? |
| ¿Puedes repetir, por favor? | Can you repeat, please? |