Questions in English: Direct, Indirect, Yes/No, Wh and Tag

Yes / No Questions

Yes or No questions are questions that are asked with auxiliary verbs such as be, have, do, or modal auxiliaries like can, may, must, shall, will, would, should. The expected answer is yes or no. These are called closed questions.

To say yes, use: Yes + subject + auxiliary
To say no, use: No + subject + auxiliary + not

Examples by auxiliary

• Be
  Present: Are you ready? — Asking if someone is prepared to start or do something.
  → Yes, I am. / No, I am not.
  Past: Were they happy? — Asking if someone felt good or pleased before.
  → Yes, they were. / No, they were not.
• Have
  Present: Have you eaten? — Asking if someone has already eaten food.
  → Yes, I have. / No, I haven’t.
  Past: Had she left? — Asking if someone went away before now.
  → Yes, she had. / No, she hadn’t.
• Do
  Present: Do you like coffee? — Asking if someone enjoys drinking coffee.
  → Yes, I do. / No, I don’t.
  Past: Did he call you? — Asking if someone made a phone call before.
  → Yes, he did. / No, he didn’t.
• Can
  Present: Can you swim? — Asking if someone is able to swim.
  → Yes, I can. / No, I can’t.
  Past: Could they help? — Asking if someone was able to help before.
  → Yes, they could. / No, they couldn’t.
• Will
  Will you come tomorrow? — Asking if someone plans to come the next day.
  → Yes, I will. / No, I won’t.
• Would
  Would she agree? — Asking if someone might say yes or accept something.
  → Yes, she would. / No, she wouldn’t.

Exercises

Complete each sentence with “Yes...” or “No...” as appropriate.

• 1. Is he your brother?
• 2. Did you go to school yesterday?
• 3. Have they finished the project?
• 4. Can she play the piano?

Wh- Questions

Wh- questions are questions formed with the following interrogative words:

• what — used to ask about things or to identify something
• when — used to ask about time
• where — used to ask about place or location
• which — used to ask about a choice between options
• who — used to ask about a person (subject or object)
• whose — used to ask about possession or ownership
• why — used to ask for a reason or explanation
• how — used to ask about manner or method

In addition to those, there are common expressions built with how:

• how old — used to ask about someone's age
• how often — used to ask about frequency
• how far — used to ask about distance
• how long — used to ask about duration of time
• how much — used to ask about quantity of uncountable things
• how many — used to ask about quantity of countable things

These are called open questions because they require a longer answer than just “yes” or “no.”

Examples of Wh- Questions:

• What do you want to eat? — Asking about the thing you want to eat.
  ➤ I want to eat pasta. — Saying the food you want.
• When is your birthday? — Asking about the date or time of your birthday.
  ➤ My birthday is in June. — Giving the month when you were born.
• Where do they live? — Asking about the place where they live.
  ➤ They live in London. — Saying the city where they live.
• Which book do you prefer? — Asking about a choice between books.
  ➤ I prefer the blue one. — Saying which book you like more.
• Who is calling me? — Asking about the person who is calling.
  ➤ It’s your brother. — Naming the person calling.
• Whose bag is this? — Asking who owns the bag.
  ➤ It’s Sarah’s bag. — Saying who the bag belongs to.
• Why are you crying? — Asking the reason for crying.
  ➤ Because I’m sad. — Giving the reason for feeling sad.
• How do you travel to work? — Asking about the way you go to work.
  ➤ I go by bus. — Saying the mode of transport.
• How old is your sister? — Asking about your sister’s age.
  ➤ She is ten years old. — Giving her age.
• How often do you go to the gym? — Asking about the frequency of going to the gym.
  ➤ I go twice a week. — Saying how many times per week.
• How far is the station? — Asking about the distance to the station.
  ➤ It’s five kilometers away. — Giving the distance.
• How long did you stay in Paris? — Asking about the duration of stay in Paris.
  ➤ I stayed for three days. — Saying how many days you stayed.
• How much does it cost? — Asking about the price or amount of money needed.
  ➤ It costs 10 euros. — Saying the price.
• How many students are in the class? — Asking about the number of students.
  ➤ There are twenty students. — Saying the number of students.

Exercises

Complete each question with the correct interrogative word.

• 1. __________ do you live?
• 2. __________ is your best friend?
• 3. __________ do you study English?
• 4. __________ books do you have?

Note: Functions of what and who

When what or who is the subject of the question, there is no auxiliary verb used in the sentence.

Examples:

• What happened here? — Asking about the event or action that took place in this place.
  ➤ Nothing happened here. — Saying that no event or action took place here.
• Who told you my name? — Asking which person gave you the information about my name.
  ➤ Your father. — Naming the person who shared the information.

Tag Questions

Tag questions are small questions added to the end of a sentence to ask for confirmation, an opinion, or a reaction. They work like “isn’t it?” or “right?” in French.

The structure is simple: affirmative sentence + negative tag or negative sentence + affirmative tag.

Formula: sentence + auxiliary (or modal) + subject pronoun

Examples:

• You are French, aren't you? — Asking for confirmation about nationality.
  ➤ Yes, I am. — Confirming the statement is true.
• He didn’t call, did he? — Asking for confirmation that he did not call.
  ➤ No, he didn’t. — Denying that he called.
• She can drive, can’t she? — Asking for confirmation about her ability to drive.
  ➤ Yes, she can. — Confirming she can drive.
• We won’t be late, will we? — Asking for reassurance about being on time.
  ➤ No, we won’t. — Confirming we will not be late.
• It was a great movie, wasn’t it? — Asking for agreement about the quality of the movie.
  ➤ Yes, it was. — Agreeing the movie was great.
• They have arrived, haven’t they? — Asking for confirmation that they have arrived.
  ➤ Yes, they have. — Confirming their arrival.
• Tom shouldn’t be late, should he? — Asking for reassurance that Tom will not be late.
  ➤ No, he shouldn’t. — Confirming Tom should be on time.
• You like coffee, don’t you? — Asking for confirmation about liking coffee.
  ➤ Yes, I do. — Confirming liking coffee.

Exercises

Complete with the correct tag question.

• 1. It’s cold today, __________?
• 2. You didn’t eat anything, __________?
• 3. She will come to the party, __________?
• 4. They aren’t ready yet, __________?

Direct and Indirect Questions

In English, there are two main types of questions: direct questions and indirect questions.

➤ A direct question is asked plainly and starts with an auxiliary verb:
Where is she? — Asking about the location of a person directly.

➤ An indirect question is more polite, more formal, or part of a larger sentence. It usually follows the affirmative word order (subject + verb) and begins with expressions like:

• Do you know... — Asking if someone has knowledge about something.
• Can you tell me... — Requesting someone to provide information.
• I wonder... — Expressing curiosity or doubt about something.
• I’d like to know... — Expressing a desire to learn some information.

Examples:

• Direct: Where is she? — Asking directly about her location.
  Indirect: Can you tell me where she is? — Requesting information about her location politely.
• Direct: What time does the train leave? — Asking directly about the train’s departure time.
  Indirect: Do you know what time the train leaves? — Asking politely if someone knows the train’s departure time.
• Direct: Why did he leave? — Asking directly the reason for his departure.
  Indirect: I wonder why he left. — Expressing curiosity about his reason for leaving.
• Direct: Is she at home? — Asking directly if she is at home.
  Indirect: I'd like to know if she is at home. — Politely asking to find out if she is at home.

Important rules:

• In indirect questions, the word order becomes subject + verb (as in a statement).
• There is no question mark in the subordinate clause.
• If the direct question starts with an auxiliary (is, do, can...), it disappears in the indirect version.
• If there is no interrogative word, use if or whether.

Exercises

Turn each direct question into an indirect one.

• 1. Where does she live?
• 2. Is your friend coming?
• 3. What did he say?
• 4. Does she like tea?

Conclusion & Summary

Knowing how to ask questions in English is essential for effective communication both in speaking and writing. Through this lesson, you have discovered the different types of questions: Yes/No, Wh-, Tag, and Indirect, along with the rules that govern them.

With some practice, you’ll be able to ask clear, polite, and well-structured questions in any context — travel, school, work, or casual conversation.

Summary Sheet

• Yes/No questions → Begin with an auxiliary (do, be, have, can...)
• Wh- questions → Begin with a question word (what, where, when, how...)
• Tag questions → Sentence + short question at the end: “You’re tired, aren’t you?”
• Indirect questions → More polite, embedded in another sentence: “Can you tell me where she is?”

Final Exercise: Mixed Questions

Identify the type of question (Yes/No, Wh-, Tag, Indirect) and answer each one.

• 1. Where did you go yesterday?
• 2. You’re from Canada, aren’t you?
• 3. Has she finished her work?
• 4. Could you tell me what time it is?