French has three main ways to ask a question, ranging from casual to formal. All three are correct — the choice depends on the situation.
1. Intonation (casual)
Keep the sentence as it is and just raise your voice at the end. This is the most common way in spoken French.
- Tu parles français ? — You speak French?
- Il habite ici ? — He lives here?
2. Est-ce que (neutral)
Add 'est-ce que' at the beginning. It works in any situation, spoken or written.
- Est-ce que tu parles français ? — Do you speak French?
- Est-ce qu'il habite ici ? — Does he live here?
3. Inversion (formal)
Flip the subject and verb, joined by a hyphen. Used in writing and formal speech.
- Parlez-vous français ? — Do you speak French?
- Habite-t-il ici ? — Does he live here?
Question words
Combine with any of the three structures above.
| French | English |
|---|---|
| qui | who |
| que / qu'est-ce que | what |
| où | where |
| quand | when |
| pourquoi | why |
| comment | how |
| combien | how much / many |
| quel / quelle | which / what |
Make it a question with 'est-ce que'
Tu aimes le café.
Make it a question with inversion
Vous parlez anglais.
___ tu habites ? — À Lyon.
___ est-ce que tu rentres ? — À 18 heures.
___ ça coûte ? — 10 euros.
___ t'appelles-tu ? — Je m'appelle Léa.
Which means 'Why'?
Which inversion is correct?
Make it a question (any way)
Elle travaille à Paris.