From the lazy "huh?" to the formal inquiry: How to ask for what you want.
The 3 Ways to Ask
In English, we usually use "Do/Does". In French, you have three options depending on how polite you want to be.
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1. Intonation
Informal / Spoken
Just say the sentence... but add a question mark at the end?
"Tu parles français ?"
(You speak French?)
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2. Est-ce que
Standard / Written
Add the magic phrase "Est-ce que" (Is it that) to the start.
"Est-ce que tu parles français ?"
(Is it that you speak French?)
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3. Inversion
Formal / Professional
Switch the Verb and the Subject. Connect them with a hyphen.
"Parles-tu français ?"
(Speak-you French?)
Inversion Note: If the verb ends in a vowel and the subject starts with a vowel (like Il/Elle), you add a -t- in the middle to make it sound nice.
Ex: Aime-t-il le fromage ? (Does he like cheese?)
The W-Words (Mots Interrogatifs)
Combine these with "Est-ce que" or Inversion to ask for specific information.
Qui ?Who?
Quoi / Que ?What?
Où ?Where?
Quand ?When?
Comment ?How?
Pourquoi ?Why?
The "What" Dilemma: Que vs Quoi
Both mean "What", but their placement changes:
Que (/kə/): Used at the start of a sentence. It sounds short, like the 'u' in 'put'.
To hear it: "Que fais-tu ?" (What are you doing?)
Quoi (/kwa/): Used at the end, after a preposition, or alone. It sounds like "Kwa".
To hear it: "Tu fais quoi ?" (You are doing what?)
Note: To answer Pourquoi (Why), use Parce que (Because).
The Interrogator 3000
See how a simple sentence transforms into the 3 question types.
Original Statement:
Tu aimes la pizza
Intonation
Tu aimes la pizza ?
Est-ce que
Est-ce que tu aimes la pizza ?
Inversion
Aimes-tu la pizza ?
Practice Asking
Download the question deck to master the interrogative forms.