Unit 8.1
Interrogative Pronouns
Advertising
Introduction
Pronouns [pronombres] replace nouns (people, animals, facts, or things) to avoid repetition.
Interrogative pronouns [pronombres interrogativos] are used to ask for information about objects, actions, people, or quantity.
Form
Interrogative pronouns are written with an accent mark, and in speech, they are tonic (accented).
The main interrogative pronouns are ¿qué?, ¿quién/-es?, ¿cuánto/-a/-os/-as?
¿Qué?
The interrogative pronoun ¿qué? is invariable in gender and number (always the same).
It is placed at the beginning of the sentence/question and stands alone, followed by a verb or noun.
¿Quién/-es?
The interrogative pronoun ¿quién/-es? is variable only in number in agreement with the noun but invariable in gender.
Its forms according to gender and number are:
| Singular | Plural | |
| Masculino | ¿Quién? | ¿Quiénes? |
| Femenino | ¿Quién? | ¿Quiénes? |
It is placed at the beginning of the sentence/question and is either isolated or followed by a verb.
¿Cuánto/-a/-os/-as?
The interrogative pronoun ¿cuánto/-a/-as/-os? is variable in gender and number in agreement with the noun.
Its forms according to gender and number are:
| Singular | Plural | |
| Masculino | ¿Cuánto? | ¿Cuántos? |
| Femenino | ¿Cuánta? | ¿Cuántas? |
It is placed at the beginning of the sentence/question and is isolated or followed by a verb or noun.
Example
- ¿Qué es más interesante, el libro o la película?
- ¿Qué deportes te apasionan?
- ¿Quién es más guapo, él o yo?
- ¿Quiénes gastan más dinero, los turistas o los de aquí?
- ¿Cuánto cuesta solicitar información por teléfono?
- ¿Cuántas monedas de un euro me darían por doscientas pesetas?
Use
Interrogative pronouns replace the noun we are asking about and are used in direct and indirect questions.
The main ones are used as follows:
- ¿Qué?: to ask questions about things or actions;
- ¿Quién/es?: to ask questions about people;
- ¿Cuánto/-a/-os/-as?: to ask questions about quantity.
Summary
In Spanish, interrogative pronouns are used to ask direct or indirect questions. These pronouns vary in gender (masculine, feminine) and number (singular, plural).
For example:
— «¿Qué vas a hacer esta noche?» = Refers to things.
— «¿Quién más viene con nosotros?» = Refers to people.
— «¿Cuántas naranjas nos quedan?» = Asks about quantity (femenine plural).
Check the contents of the {Form} section. Then move on to the {Example} section, which shows you the usage in context.
Exercises
The exercises are not created yet. If you would like to get involve with their creation, be a contributor.
Ambassadors
Open TextBooks are collaborative projects, with people from all over the world bringing their skills and interests to join in the compilation and dissemination of knowledge to everyone and everywhere.
Become an Ambassador and write your textbooks.
Online Teaching
Become a Books4Languages Online tutor & teacher.
More information here about how to be a tutor.
