AtaraxiaSpanish
LearnPathMethodPricingTeacher
Book Lesson
Level A115 minutes

Spanish Question Words: Who, What, Where, When, Why

A complete guide to asking questions in Spanish with the essential interrogative words.

Learning ObjectiveMemorize and correctly use all major Spanish question words, and remember to use accent marks.

Spanish Question Words (Los Interrogativos)

Asking questions is one of the most important skills for a beginner. If you can ask questions, you can navigate conversations, ask for directions, and learn more vocabulary from native speakers.

The Accent Mark Rule

Before we look at the words, there is one very important rule to remember: All Spanish question words have an accent mark.

This accent mark doesn’t change how the word is pronounced, but it tells the reader that it is a question word, not a connecting word (like “who” vs. “the man who called”).

The Essential Question Words

Here are the most common question words you need to know:

1. ¿Qué? (What?)

Used to ask for definitions or before a noun.

  • ¿Qué es esto? (What is this?)
  • ¿Qué quieres? (What do you want?)

2. ¿Quién? / ¿Quiénes? (Who?)

Matches the number of people you are asking about.

  • ¿Quién es ella? (Who is she?)
  • ¿Quiénes son ellos? (Who are they?)

3. ¿Dónde? (Where?)

Used to ask about location.

  • ¿Dónde está el baño? (Where is the bathroom?)
  • (Note: Use ¿De dónde? to ask “From where?” -> ¿De dónde eres?)
  • (Note: Use ¿Adónde? to ask “To where?” -> ¿Adónde vas?)

4. ¿Cuándo? (When?)

Used to ask about time.

  • ¿Cuándo es tu cumpleaños? (When is your birthday?)
  • ¿Cuándo llegas? (When do you arrive?)

5. ¿Por qué? (Why?)

Notice it is two words and has an accent. (Because = porque, one word, no accent).

  • ¿Por qué estudias español? (Why do you study Spanish?)

6. ¿Cómo? (How?)

Used to ask about manner, condition, or sometimes “what” (when asking someone to repeat themselves).

  • ¿Cómo estás? (How are you?)
  • ¿Cómo se dice “apple”? (How do you say “apple”?)

7. ¿Cuánto? (How much/How many?)

This word must match the gender and number of the noun it describes.

  • ¿Cuánto cuesta? (How much does it cost?) - general
  • ¿Cuántos años tienes? (How many years do you have? / How old are you?) - masculine plural
  • ¿Cuántas personas hay? (How many people are there?) - feminine plural

Practice

Choose the correct question word for the blank.

  1. ¿_______ vives? (Where do you live?)
  2. ¿_______ años tienes? (How many years do you have?)
  3. ¿_______ es él? (Who is he?)
  4. ¿_______ no comes carne? (Why don’t you eat meat?)

Answers

  1. Dónde
  2. Cuántos (Because años is masculine plural)
  3. Quién
  4. Por qué