Advanced Grammar 11.

1
QUESTIONS INFORMATION QUESTIONS (Review and Expansion)
Information Questions (also called Wh-questions) are used to ask about specific information
involving time, people, places, etc. Here is a list of wh-question words.
What? (things)

How? (manner)

What(do)? (actions)

How + adjective? (degree)

Who? (people-subject)

How + adverb? (intensity)

Who/Whom? (people-object)

How old? (age)

Where ? (places)

How often? (frequency)

When ? (time)

How many? (number)

What time? (hour)

How much? (price)

What color? (color)

How much? (amount)

Why...? (reason)

What kind/type/sort of? (class)

Whatfor? (reason)

What size? (size)

Whose...? (possession)

How long? (length of time)

Which? (choice)

How long ago? (point of time in the past)

SUBJECT QUESTIONS: To ask about the subject, we follow this pattern:

WH-WORD + (NOUN) + VERB (PHRASE) + (OBJECT) + (COMPLEMENT) + ?
QUESTION
Who has bitten you?
How many girls will graduate?
How much wine was sold today?

ANSWER
My own dog has (bitten me).
42 girls will (graduate).
Around 200 bottles were (sold).

Keep in mind that whenever we ask about the subject, the verb always goes in third-personsingular. It doesnt matter whether the answer is singular or plural.
QUESTION
Who is going to come?
What was wrong there?
Who has broken the window?

A 11.1 QUESTIONS Information questions

ANSWER
Peter is (going to come).
Nothing was wrong.
The children have (broken it).

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Advanced Grammar 11.1

OBJECT QUESTIONS: To ask about objects, we follow this pattern:
WH-WORD + (NOUN) + AUX + SUBJECT + VERB + (OBJECT) + (COMPLEMENT) + ?

QUESTION
What is John studying now?
How many books can you get?
Which blouse did she wear?

ANSWER
Hes studying economics.
I can get twelve.
She wore the brown one.

In the case of people, who is preferred to whom, which is considered too formal:
(Normal case) Who will you invite?
(Formal case) Whom will you invite?

Ill invite Donna.

Ill invite Donna.

QUESTIONS WITH PREPOSITIONS: To ask about objects of prepositions, we have a

formal case and a colloquial (normal) case:

Formal Case:
PREPOSITION + WH-WORD + AUX + SUBJECT + VERB + (OBJECT) +
(COMPLEMENT) + ?
QUESTION
With what did you open the door?
About what will he speak?
From where is she coming now?

ANSWER
I opened it with this crowbar.
Hell speak about black holes.
Shes coming from the club.

Colloquial (Normal) Case:

WH-WORD + AUX + SUBJECT + VERB + (OBJECT) + PREPOSITION +
(COMPLEMENT) + ?
QUESTION
What did you open the door with?
What will he speak about?
Where is she coming from now?

A 11.1 QUESTIONS Information questions

ANSWER
I opened it with this crowbar.
Hell speak about black holes.
Shes coming from the club.

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Advanced Grammar 11.1

In the case of people as objects of prepositions, we have three possibilities:

Very Formal Case:

PREPOSITION + WHOM + AUX + SUBJECT + VERB + (OBJECT) +
(COMPLEMENT) + ?
QUESTION
To whom did you give the letter?
With whom does he work there?
For whom is she buying that?

ANSWER
I gave it to the secretary.
He works with Mr. Kim.
Shes buying it for her son.

Formal case:
WHOM + AUX + SUBJECT + VERB + (OBJECT) + PREPOSITION +
(COMPLEMENT) +?
QUESTION
Whom did you give the letter to?
Whom does he work for there?
Whom is she buying that for?

ANSWER
I gave it to the secretary.
He works for Mr. Kim.
Shes buying it for her son.

Colloquial (Natural) Case:

WHO + AUX + SUBJECT + VERB + (OBJECT) + PREPOSITION +
(COMPLEMENT) +?
QUESTION
Who did you give the letter to?
Who does he work for there?
Who is she buying that for?

ANSWER
I gave it to the secretary.
He works for Mr. Kim.
Shes buying it for her son.

ADVERBIAL QUESTIONS: To ask about adverbs, we use the following formula:

WH-WORD + AUX + SUBJECT + VERB + (OBJECT) + (COMPLEMENT) + ?
QUESTION
Where should he have gone?
When might they be here?
How much sugar do we need?
What time did you get up?
How long has he been sick?

A 11.1 QUESTIONS Information questions

ANSWER
He should have gone to the bank.
They might be here on Monday.
We need three more pounds.
I got up at 6:00.
Hes been sick for a week.

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Advanced Grammar 11.1

PRACTICE: INFORMATION QUESTIONS
I. Write questions for these sentences. The underlined words are the
answers. Use the cues in parentheses.
1. She might have bought a dress. (Judy)
What might Judy have bought?......
2. Hes gone to the grocery store. (Bill)
...................................................................
3. It caught five mice. (the cat)
...................................................................
4. Everybody must come. (to the conference)
...................................................................
5. They have been working out at the gym. (the girls)
...................................................................
6. She became a doctor three months ago. (Janet)
...................................................................
7. Ill use my brothers. (camera)
...................................................................
8. We should have been there at midnight. (you and Helen / at the meeting)
...................................................................
9. Shes going to wear the light blue one. (dress / Lucy / to the wedding)
...................................................................
10. He has to come three times a week. (Ben / to therapy)
...................................................................
11. They work for Ms. Evans. (your sisters)
...................................................................
12. He will have finished it by March. (Patrick / the project)
...................................................................
13. Clark and Jonathan were there. (at the seminar)
...................................................................
14. She was living in Miami. (Maude / when you met her)
...................................................................

A 11.1 QUESTIONS Information questions

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Advanced Grammar 11.1

15. I worked for him for two years. (you / your uncle)
...................................................................
16. She was from Denmark. (your great-grandmother)
...................................................................
17. It takes me around twenty minutes. (to get to work)
...................................................................
18. We saw it last Sunday. (you and your friends / that film)
...................................................................
19. Im going to stay with a cousin of mine. (on your trip to Paris)
...................................................................
20. There must have been around 300. (people / at the lecture)
...................................................................
21. She dances very well. (your sister)
................................................................
22. We paid a hundred dollars for them. (you and Gary / those shoes)
...................................................................
23. They were yellow. (the walls before you painted them)
...................................................................
24. Shes good at basketball. (sport / Jenny)
...................................................................
25. Hell be twenty-two. (your son / when he graduates from college)
...................................................................
26. It consists of two plane tickets to Hawaii. (the prize)
...................................................................
27. Theyve been there for ten days. (your parents / in Aruba)
...................................................................
28. I stayed until everyone else was gone. (at the party)
...................................................................
29. She called him because she needed his help. (Selma / Peter)
...................................................................
30. It was about the consequences of global warming. (the speech)
...................................................................

A 11.1 QUESTIONS Information questions

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Advanced Grammar 11.1

ANSWERS: Practice A 11.1
Exercise:
1. What might Judy have bought?
2. Where has Bill gone?
3. How many mice did the cat catch?
4. Who must come to the conference?
5. What have the girls been doing?
6. When / How long ago did Janet become a doctor?
7. Whose camera will you use?
8. What time should you and Helen have been at the meeting?
9. Which dress is Lucy going to wear to the wedding?
10. How often does Ben have to come to therapy?
11. Who do your sisters work for?
12. When will Patrick have finished the project?
13. Who was at the seminar?
14. Where was Maude living when you met her?
15. How long did you work for your uncle?
16. Where was your great-grandmother from?
17. How long does it take you to get to work?
18. When did you and your friends see that film?
19. Who are you going to stay with on your trip to Paris?
20. How many people must there have been at the lecture?
21. How (well) does your sister dance?
22. How much did you and Gary pay for those shoes?
23. What color were the walls before you painted them?
24. What sport is Jenny good at?
25. How old will your son be when he graduates from college?
26. What does the prize consist of?
27. How long have your parents been in Aruba?
28. How late did you stay at the party?
29. Why did Selma call Peter?
30. What was the speech about?

A 11.1 QUESTIONS Information questions

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