FORMING QUESTIONS:

Some Comments

Forming questions in English is especially difficult for many speakers of European languages because they have very little experience of forming questions in their own language.

In saying this I don’t mean that Europeans lack a sense of curiosity and never ask any questions; certainly not. I mean that in the Romance languages of Europe it is hardly necessary to form a question at all because questions can be formed simply by inflection, which means the modulation or intonation or pitch of the voice.

And that means, in the present context, changing the meaning of what you say by changing the way you say it. For example, the affirmative sentence, ‘You have two brothers’ can usually be said as a question simply by the way you say it – where you put the emphasis.

We normally do this by making our voice rise to a higher level at the end of the sentence. This can also happen in English.

But it’s the ability to vary the pitch and emphasis of the voice that can make speakers of other languages a little lazy about constructing a question in English. You can’t get away with this in English: the structure of a question, the correct order of the words, is extremely important.

In my opinion, the ability to ask a question properly is the hallmark of a fluent English speaker. However, I must say that there is no doubt that a spoken question can be formed in English just by the expression of the voice.

For example –

Affirmative: a) I can say this in English.

Question: b) I can say this in English? (with inflection)

instead of the correct: c) Can I say this in English?

If you use method b) people will understand you but they will simply think that you don’t know much English.

We just don’t use inflection very often in regular English. When we use inflection of the voice in English we are usually indicating doubt or disbelief. For example –

Affirmative:  ‘I ate two horses for breakfast.’

You are surely entitled to disbelieve this sentence, so you say,

‘You ate two horses for breakfast?’ quite correctly, and probably in a voice rising higher and higher.

Also,  a question formed by inflection in English can be offensive. Consider this:

Affirmative: ‘You’re a doctor.’  No problem.

But: ‘You’re a doctor?’ Using inflection in this context implies doubt or irony, which may not be what you want to communicate.

The correct way to form questions in English is complicated but not difficult. You need to know about auxiliaries and follow a few simple steps. I have reduced the process to two key points. With a little practice you’ll be able to form questions with the skill of a British barrister.

Forming Questions - Lesson