Everyday Wh-Questions
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Learn basic German wh-questions about people, things, time, reason, quantity, place, and direction.
Explanation
German wh-questions
A question word asks for one specific piece of information. It occupies position 1 and the conjugated verb occupies position 2:
question word + verb + subject + ...?
- Wann beginnt der Kurs?
- Warum lernst du Deutsch?
- Wie kommst du zur Arbeit?
Choosing the right question word
| Question word | Meaning | Typical answer |
|---|
| wann | point in time | am Montag, um acht Uhr |
| warum | reason | ich bin krank |
| wie | manner or condition | mit dem Bus, sehr gut |
| wie lange | duration | zwei Stunden |
| wie oft | frequency | dreimal pro Woche |
| wie viel | amount, price, or uncountable quantity | zehn Euro, viel Zeit |
| wie viele | number of countable things | vier Tickets |
| wo | location without movement | im Büro |
| woher | origin or starting point | aus Polen, vom Bahnhof |
| wohin | destination or direction | nach Hamburg, ins Kino |
Wo, woher, or wohin?
- Wo? asks about a location: Wo bist du? - Zu Hause.
- Woher? asks about the starting point: Woher kommst du? - Aus Köln.
- Wohin? asks about the destination: Wohin fährst du? - Nach Bonn.
These question words do not change their form. Make sure the conjugated verb comes directly after the question word.
Wer, was, or wen?
- Wer asks about a person as the subject: Wer kommt heute? – Mia kommt heute.
- Was asks about a thing or activity: Was kaufst du? – Ich kaufe Brot.
- Wen asks about a person as the direct object: Wen besuchst du? – Ich besuche meinen Bruder.
Compare Wer besucht Paul? – Anna besucht Paul. with Wen besucht Anna? – Anna besucht Paul.
Exercises
- Choose the correct question word from the word bank for each everyday situation. (1)
- Arrange the words to form a complete wh-question. Put the question word first and the conjugated verb directly after it. (13)
- Write a complete question that matches the given answer. (13)
A1 · German · Grammar