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Questions (Fragesätze)

There are two main ways to ask a question in German, and each has its own simple word order rule.

1. Yes/No Questions (Ja/Nein-Fragen)

These are questions that can be answered with a simple "yes" or "no."

Rule: V1 (Verb-First). The conjugated verb moves to Position 1, in front of the subject.

Examples: * Statement: Du kommst aus Deutschland. (You come from Germany.) * Question: Kommst du aus Deutschland? (Do you come from Germany?)

  • Statement: Er hat ein Auto. (He has a car.)

  • Question: Hat er ein Auto? (Does he have a car?)

  • Statement (Modal): Wir können heute Abend helfen. (We can help tonight.)

  • Question: Können wir heute Abend helfen? (Can we help tonight?)

2. W-Questions (W-Fragen)

These are informational questions that require an answer other than "yes" or "no." They begin with a "W-word" (question word).

Rule: The W-word is in Position 1, and the rest of the sentence follows the standard V2 (Verb-Second) rule, with the verb in Position 2.

Common W-Words: * Wer? (Who? - Nominative) * Wen? (Whom? - Accusative) * Wem? (Whom? - Dative) * Wessen? (Whose? - Genitive) * Was? (What?) * Wann? (When?) * Wo? (Where?) * Wohin? (Where to?) * Woher? (Where from?) * Warum? / Wieso? (Why?) * Wie? (How?) * Wie viel? (How much?) * Wie viele? (How many?) * Welche(r/s)? (Which?)

Examples: * Wann* (1) gehst (2) du ins Kino? (When are you going to the cinema?) * Wo (1) ist (2) mein Schlüssel? (Where is my key?) * Warum (1) lernst* (2) du Deutsch? (Why are you learning German?)

Questions with Case: * Wer* (1) hat (2) das gesagt? (Who said that? - Wer is the subject) * Wen (1) hast (2) du gesehen? (Whom did you see? - Wen is the accusative object) * Wem (1) hast (2) du geholfen? (Whom did you help? - Wem* is the dative object)