Interrogative Sentences: Examples and Definition

Learning the English grammar is a bit challenging for ESL learners because of its complexities. There a lot of aspects that need to be concentrated on. English sentences, for example, are not just sentences that we learn from elementary. Before knowing or analyzing the content of each sentence, we should know that how we form them has a corresponding type.

The sentences in English have four kinds: declarative sentence, interrogative sentence, imperative sentence, and exclamatory sentences. Of all these four types, the interrogative sentence makes a difference.

In this article, we will talk about interrogative sentences, meanings, forms, and examples. If you are not yet familiar with everything about interrogative sentences, then this article is for you!

What are interrogative sentences?

Interrogative sentences are types of sentences that ask questions or request for information. They differ from other types of sentences because they end in a “question mark (?),” and the tone usually rises.

We may not notice it, but when we inquire about something, we use the interrogative sentences. Once we ask a question in conversations or write a query, that is a form of interrogative sentences.

In interrogative sentences, there are a lot of aspects of the English grammar to consider. Question forms, verb forms, patterns, and tenses in English are some of these aspects. Just like any other types of sentences, interrogative sentences start with a capital letter and still follow the correct grammar structure to convey a clear meaning.

Types of interrogative sentences with examples

WH-questions are the best examples of interrogative sentences. The “wh-questions” are what, who, when, why, where, and how and they don’t just ask to elicit a yes or a no answer. These questions look for a more specific answer.

Examples:

What are you doing?
Who painted these walls?
When is the party?
Why did you send the parcel to a different person?
Where is the team building venue?
How do I get to the train station?

What is used to ask about a specific information; who is used to ask about a person; when is used to ask about time or date of an event; why is used to ask for reasons; where is used to ask for a place or location of someone or something; and how is used to ask about the process of doing something.

Indeed, the “wh-questions” are the simplest forms of interrogative sentences.

Yes/No questions are interrogative sentences that elicit a “yes” or “no” answer. They don’t look for specific answers, just a yes or a no.

Examples:

            Do you like swimming?
            Can you paint?
            Are you going to the party?
            Did she receive my email?
            May I come in?
            Have you ever been to Canada?

Notice that the examples above use auxiliary verbs to ask a question.

Tag questions are also interrogative sentences that state a positive and a negative idea. An example of this is “They watched a movie, didn’t they?” The structure is positive statement, negative statement. Notice that there is a main declarative sentence and a tag question.

Examples:

She is so pretty, isn’t she?
You are so proud of her, aren’t you?
Mom can’t visit her friend, can she?
You didn’t go to the doctor, did you?

Interrogative sentences using tag questions follow a structure and we can easily identify them because of they are formed. Tag questions use auxiliary or modal verbs in English to ask the question.

Choice questions ask about something using options. The conjunction “or” is present in all choice questions. You can answer either Yes or No or a specific choice from the question.

Examples:

Do you like banana or apple?
Is she coming with us or not?
Where do you want to go on your next holiday: Hawaii or Singapore?
Who presented during the meeting? Mark, John, Sheila, Emmy, or Michelle?

In continuous tenses, interrogative sentences follow this structure: be verbs (am/is/was/are/were) + subject (noun/pronoun) + present participle.

Examples:

Am I giving you a headache?
Is he delivering his speech today?
Are you listening to me?
Was Mr. Johnson checking the files when the clients arrived?
Were they claiming their pay before the president came?

Notice that these sentences are answerable by a Yes or a No.

Interrogative sentences are purely asking questions but they also have to follow the correct grammar structure in sentences.

Rules of Interrogative Sentences

Interrogative sentences always end with a question mark (?).
Interrogative sentences have different orders compared to other types of sentences.
Use the auxiliary verb “do” when there is no auxiliary verb or be-verb.
The auxiliary or be-verb always comes first before the subject.
To elicit a specific information, always use question words.

Uses of the Interrogative Sentences

to gather information

How did you process your visa application?
May I ask about the new tasks the manager assigned us?

to request for specific information

What are the steps in applying for a passport?
When did you join the company?

to ask a direct question

What do you plan to do this weekend?
What are you doing?

to confirm something

Have you received the package Mr. Myers sent you?
He is the newly elected mayor, isn’t he?

to ask for clarification

By management, do you mean the managers and supervisors?
Is it final that the team building venue is at the beach?

Interrogative sentences are special, so it’s better to be aware of the correct usage in sentences. As long as you know the rules, you are confident that you are asking a question correctly.

Why is learning interrogative sentences important?

Learning interrogative sentences is easy. Using them in sentences is easy. Simply, language learners like you need to learn interrogative sentences because it is part of improving your sentence construction skills as well as enhancing your art of questioning techniques.

Practice Time!

Make some sentences in the interrogative form. You can base your sentences from the uses, or at least observe the question forms and tenses in your examples.

You can do it!