Types of questions

There are two types of questions:

Yes or no questions
Wh questions
YES-NO QUESTIONS
Yes or no questions are questions whose expected answer is either "yes" or "no".
How to form yes-no questions
In English, a special word order (Verb Subject Object) is used to form yes-no questions.
Examples:
Affirmative

Yes or No Question

They are American Are they American?

She is nice

Is she nice?

The rules
1. If the main verb of the sentence is "to be", simply invert the subject and the verb to be:
Examples:
They are American. Are they American?
They are nice. Are they nice?
2. If the sentence includes a main verb and another or other helping (auxiliary) verb(s), invert the subject and the
(first) helping (auxiliary) verb.
Examples:
They are visiting Paris. Are they visiting Paris?
She has done the housework. Has she done the housework
Nancy has been working all night long. Has Nancy been working all night long?
He will be reading the book. Will he be reading the book?
3. If the sentence includes a verb which is not the verb "to be" and doesn't include a helping (auxiliary) verb, the
transformation is more complex.
a. If the verb is in the present tense, add either do or does and put the main verb in its base form:
do if the subject is the first person singular, second person singular, first person plural,
second person plural and third person plural (I, you, we, they)
Examples:
I like apples. Do you like apples?
They go to a high school. Do they go to a high school?
does if the subject is the third person singular (he, she, it).
Examples:
Nancy reads a lot. Does Nancy read a lot?
He hates basketball. Does he hate basketball?
b.If the verb is in the past tense, add did and put the main verb in its base form:
Examples:
He discovered the truth. Did he discover the truth?
She wrote a nice essay. Did she write a nice essay?
They did the homework. Did they do the homework?
Transform these sentences into a yes or no question
1.
He loves this town.
2.
They like soccer.
3.
She can drive a lorry.
4.
They are nice.
5.
They went to the swimming pool.
6.
She wastes her money on jewelry.
7.
He decided to leave his wife.
8.
She wakes up early.
9.
They should revise their lessons.
10.
He was born in this town.

WH QUESTIONS

Question words

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Question words are also called wh questions because they include the letters 'W' and 'H'.
Question words
who

Meaning

Examples

person

Who's that? That's Nancy.

place

Where do you live? In Boston

reason

Why do you sleep early? Because I've got to get up early

when

time

When do you go to work? At 7:00

how

manner

How do you go? By car

what

object, idea or action

What do you do? I am an engineer

which

choice

Which one do you prefer? The red one.

whose

possession

Whose is this book? It's Alan's.

whom

object of the verb

Whom did you meet? I met the manager.

what kind

description

What kind of music do you like? I like quiet songs

where
why

what time

time

What time did you come home?

how many

quantity (countable)

How many students are there? There are twenty.

how much

amount, price (uncountable) How much time have we got? Ten minutes

how long

duration, length

How long did you stay in that hotel? For two weeks.

how often

frequency

How often do you go to the gym? Twice a week.

how far

distance

How far is your school? It's one mile far.

how old

age

How old are you? I'm 16.

reason

How come I didn't see you at the party?

how come

Asking questions
1.If you ask about the subject of the sentence, simply add the question word at the beginning:
Example:
James writes good poems. Who writes good poems?
2.If you ask about the predicate of the sentence (the part of a sentence which contains the verb and gives
information about the subject), there are three options:

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If there is a helping (auxiliary) verb that precedes the main verb ( for example: can, is, are, was,
were, will, would...), add the question word and invert the subject and the helping (auxiliary) verb.
Examples:
He can speak Chinese. What can he speak?
They are leaving tonight. When are they leaving?
If you ask about the predicate and there is no helping (auxiliary) verb and the verb is "to be", simply
add the question verb and invert the subject and the verb.
Example:
The play was interesting. How was the play?
If there is no helping (auxiliary) verb in the the predicate and the main verb is not "to be", add the
auxiliary "do" in the appropriate form.
Examples:
They go to the movies every Saturday. Where do they go every Saturday?
He wakes up early. When does he wake up?
They sent a letter. What did they send?

Write the correct question word

1 ___________.are you going tomorrow?
2 ___________.are you traveling?
3. ___________would you like to have for dessert?
4. ___________are you crying ?
5. ___________one do you like?
6. ___________do you feel today?
7. ___________time are leaving?
8. ___________book is this?
9. ___________has broken this vase?
10. ___________don't you see a doctor?

Write the correct question word

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

__________do you live? - I live in London.

__________'s that girl? - She's my sister.
__________do you go to school? - By bus.
__________do banks open? - At eight O'clock.
__________are you wearing that coat? - Because it's hot!

Write question about the words in bold.

Example:
He drank juice. - What did he drink?
1. They went to Spain.
2. He writes novels.
3. Lacy likes soccer
4. The girls watched a serial.
5. He discovered the truth.

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What is a collocation?
A collocation is two or more words that often go together. These combinations just sound
"right" to native English speakers, who use them all the time. On the other hand, other
combinations may be unnatural and just sound "wrong". Look at these examples:
Natural English... Unnatural English...
the fast train
fast food

the quick train

quick food

a quick shower a fast shower

a quick meal
a fast meal
Why learn collocations?
Your language will be more natural and more easily understood.
You will have alternative and richer ways of expressing yourself.
It is easier for our brains to remember and use language in chunks or blocks rather
than as single words.
How to learn collocations
Be aware of collocations, and try to recognize them when you see or hear them.
Treat collocations as single blocks of language. Think of them as individual blocks or
chunks, and learn strongly support, not strongly + support.
When you learn a new word, write down other words that collocate with it (remember
rightly, remember distinctly, remember vaguely, remember vividly).
Read as much as possible. Reading is an excellent way to learn vocabulary and
collocations in context and naturally.
Revise what you learn regularly. Practise using new collocations in context as soon as
possible after learning them.
Learn collocations in groups that work for you. You could learn them by topic(time,
number, weather, money, family) or by a particular word (take action,take a
chance, take an exam).
You can find information on collocations in any good learner's dictionary. And you can
also find specialized dictionaries of collocations.
Types of Collocation
There are several different types of collocation made from combinations of verb, noun,
adjective etc. Some of the most common types are:
Adverb + Adjective: completely satisfied (NOT downright satisfied)
Adjective + Noun: excruciating pain (NOT excruciating joy)
Noun + Noun: a surge of anger (NOT a rush of anger)
Noun + Verb: lions roar (NOT lions shout)
Verb + Noun: commit suicide (NOT undertake suicide)
Verb + Expression With Preposition: burst into tears (NOT blow up in tears)
Verb + Adverb: wave frantically (NOT wave feverishly)
In this lesson we look at some sample collocations, and end with quizzes to check your
understanding:
Sample Collocations
There are several different types of collocation. Collocations can be adjective + adverb, noun
+ noun, verb + noun and so on. Below you can see seven main types of collocation in
sample sentences.
1. adverb + adjective
Invading that country was an utterly stupid thing to do.
We entered a richly decorated room.
Are you fully aware of the implications of your action?
2. adjective + noun
The doctor ordered him to take regular exercise.
The Titanic sank on its maiden voyage.
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He was writhing on the ground in excruciating pain.

noun + noun
Let's give Mr Jones a round of applause.
The ceasefire agreement came into effect at 11am.
I'd like to buy two bars of soap please.
noun + verb
The lion started to roar when it heard the dog barking.
Snow was falling as our plane took off.
The bomb went off when he started the car engine.
verb + noun
The prisoner was hanged for committing murder.
I always try to do my homework in the morning, after making my bed.
He has been asked to give a presentation about his work.
verb + expression with preposition
We had to return home because we had run out of money.
At first her eyes filled with horror, and then she burst into tears.
Their behaviour was enough to drive anybody to crime.
verb + adverb
She placed her keys gently on the table and sat down.
Mary whispered softly in John's ear.
I vaguely remember that it was growing dark when we left.

3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

Choose the best verb or adjective from the table below to go with the nouns and
complete the sentences.
caught
deprived
grants
overnight
living
break
sheer
labor-saving
checkered
imposed
call
social
fill
stamp out
1. If the local council____________ permission, building work can begin immediately.
2. The child came from a very ____________ background and many of his problems at school could be
understood.
3. Police said they were surprised that the bank robbers allowed themselves to be____________ on camera
during the robbery.
4. Modern houses today are filled with____________ devices such as the washing machine and food
mixers.
5. With recent opinion polls showing the government doing well, many expect them to____________ a
quick election.
6. After the release of her first record, she achieved ____________ fame and her life was never the same
again.
7. His life has been a mix of personal misery and huge business success. All in all, he can be said to have a
very ____________ history.
8. Trying to keep up with the constant changes and irregularities in a ____________ language can be
difficult for both students and native speakers.
9. There is no way you can quit your job just because you don't like getting up early!! That is____________
nonsense!
10. If we want to____________ this post by the start of the month, we have to start advertising
immediately.
11. Despite many attempts to____________ racism in the workplace, it still exists unfortunately.
12. The international community____________ sanctions on South Africa in the 1980s in an attempt to
bring about political change.
13. The industrial revolution began in Britain and caused great____________ upheaval, especially in the
form of urbanization.
14. One of my favorite sounds of summer is the sound as waves____________ on the beach.
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