QUESTION WORDS 
(WH- questions) Généralités
Les questions dites ouvertes (WH– QUESTIONS), qui portent sur le lieu, la cause, le temps, etc. appellent des réponses variées.
Ces questions commencent par un mot en Wh-, ou par How.
Ce tableau énumère les mots d’interrogations (question-words) employés à cet effet.
(Voir "Question-words" (Tableaux 1& 2))
L’ordre des mots est toujours le même, excepté pour les questions qui portent sur le sujet.
Mot interrogatif + opérateur + sujet + base verbale
*base verbale = infinitif sans to
astuce
Pour poser une question avec les Question-words, il suffit de la poser normalement et mettre le mot d’interrogation devant.
- Avec le verbe 'to be':
Déclaration: His name is Tyler.
Question: Is his name Tyler?
Avec le Question Word: What is his name?
- Avec d’autres verbes:
Déclaration: I like flowers.
Question: Do you like flowers?
Avec le Question Word: Why do you like flowers?
Fonctions diverses
Les Question-words peuvent avoir deux fonctions: sujet ou complément.
Nous retiendrons ici Who (a) et whom (b) [Tableau 1] / WHOSE (c), WHAT (d) et WHICH (e) [Tableau 2]
Who - whom
- Who sujet : Il n’y a jamais d’auxiliaire de remplacement dans les questions où WHO est sujet.
Who keeps the keys? - I do. (Qui garde les clés? – Je les garde)
Who took my gun? - Daniel did. (Qui a pris mon fusil? Daniel l’a pris)
- Who, whom compléments d’objet du verbe:
Normal English:
Who did you see? I saw my friend. (Qui as-tu vu? – J’ai vu mon ami.)
Very formal English:
Whom did the committee appoint? – The committee appointed the chairman. (Qui le comité a-t-il nommé? – Il a nommé le président)
Whose - Which - What
De même que “whom” et “who”, WHOSE, WHICH et WHAT peuvent avoir deux fonctions: sujet ou complément.
- En tant que sujets :
Whose
Whose car broke down? – John’s car broke down.
Whose eyes are blue? – Shelly’s are.
Which
Which pigeon arrived first? – The white pigeon did.
Which of them is the eldest? – The boy is (the eldest).
What
What caused the explosion? – A bomb did.
What makes you think she’s wrong? – Her story does.
- En tant que compléments
Whose
Whose umbrella did you borrow? - I borrowed Lily’s.
Whose books are these? –They’re mine.
Which
Which hand do you use? - I use the right hand.
Which of these dresses do you prefer? - I prefer the blue one.
What
What paper do you read? - I read the New York Times.
What did they eat? – They ate fruit.
What did you make? – I made a cake.
Avec des verbes à particules
Si le pronom interrogatif doit être précédé d’une préposition, il est placé seul au début de la question, la préposition se place à la fin de la phrase interrogative.
Mot interrogatif + opérateur + sujet + base verbale + Préposition
Exemples
Who…with (avec qui?)
Who did you go out with? – I went out with my friend.
Who…to (à qui?)
Who did Gerald show the books to? – He showed them to his friend.
What…for (Pourquoi?)
What did he go to the beach for? – He went to the beach to swim.
Who / what…at
Who / what are you looking at? – I’m looking at that girl / that picture.
Where…from (d’où?)
Where does John come from? – He comes (is) from England.
QUESTION WORDS (1)
Question word
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Examples
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Required answers
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Explanations
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WHEN
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When did they arrive?
When will you come?
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Yesterday.
Next Monday.
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Questions portant sur le temps, une date précise. (Quand)
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WHERE
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Where is she?
Where can I find a pen?
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At home.
In that drawer.
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Questions portant sur le lieu.
(Où)
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WHY
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Why did he leave early?
Why aren’t you coming with us?
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Because he’s ill.
I’m tired.
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Questions sur une cause, une raison. (Pourquoi)
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HOW
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How did you come to school?
How does he drive?
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By bus.
Carefully.
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Questions sur la manière.
(Comment)
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How much money does it cost?
How many people came?
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Ten dollars.
Fifteen.
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Questions sur la quantité.(Combien)
How much : indénombrables
How many: dénombrables
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How old are you?
How cold is it?
How soon can you get here?
How fast were you driving?
How long has he been here?
How often do you write home?
How far is it to Miami from here?
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Twelve.
3°C
In ten minutes.
50 miles an hour.
Two years.
Every week.
500 miles.
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How + adjectifs et adverbes.
How long = durée
How often = fréquence.
How far = distance.
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WHO
(a)
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Who can answer that question?
Who came to visit you?
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I can.
Jane and Eric.
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Who = sujet d’une question. Se réfère aux personnes.
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Who is coming to dinner tonight?
Who wants to come with me?
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Ann, Bob, and Al.
We do.
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Who est suivi d’un verbe au singulier meme si le locuteur demande après plusieurs personnes.
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WHOM
(b)
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Who(m) did you see?
Who(m) are you visiting?
Who(m) should I talk to?
To whom should I talk? (formal)
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I saw John.
My relatives.
To the secretary.
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Whom est employé comme complément d’objet du verbe ou la préposition.
A l’oral, on emploie who au lieu de whom. Whom est très formel.
Note: Whom, et non who est utilisé s’il est précédé d’une préposition.
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QUESTION WORDS (2)
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Question word
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Examples
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Required answer
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Explanations
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WHOSE
(c)
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Whose book did you borrow?
Whose key is this?
(Whose is this?)
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David’s.
It’s mine.
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Possession
(A qui)
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WHAT
(d)
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What made you angry?
What went wrong?
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His rudeness.
Everything.
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Sujet d’une question. What se réfère ici aux choses et substances.
(Qu’est-ce qu’)
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What do you need?
What did Alice buy?
What did he talk about?
About what did he talk? (formal)
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I need a pencil.
A book.
About his vacation.
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Complément d’objet.
(Que – qu’est-ce que)
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What kind of soup is that?
What kind of shoes did he buy?
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It’s bean soup.
Sandals.
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Variété ou type particulier d’une chose.
(Quelle sorte de - quel genre de)
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What did you do last night?
What is Mary doing?
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I studied.
Reading a book.
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What + a form of do = Questions sur une activité. (Que )
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What countries did you visit?
What time did she come?
What colour is his hair?
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Italy and Spain.
Seven o’clock.
Dark brown.
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What peut précéder un nom. (Quel)
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What is Ed like?
What is the weather like?
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He is kind and friendly.
It's hot and humid.
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What + be like = pour une description générale.
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What does Ed look like?
What does her house look like?
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He’s tall and has dark hair.
It’s a two-storey, red brick house.
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What + look like = pour une description physique.
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WHICH
(e)
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I have two pens.
Which pen do you want?
Which one do you want?
Which do you want?
Which book should I buy?
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The blue one.
That one.
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Which utilisé à la place de what quand la question concerne un choix à faire.
(quel, lequel)
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Which countries did he visit?
What countries did he visit?
Which class are you in?
What class are you in?
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Peru and Chile.
In this class.
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Dans certains cas, il y a une légère différence entre les sens de which et what quand il accompagne un nom.
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