There are three ways of asking questions in French: by using subject-verb inversion (the most formal), by using the expression est-ce que, or by using the same word order as an affirmative sentence (informal). Here’s an example of each:
Formal question with subject-verb inversion
Do you want some coffee? (formal)
lit. (lit.) Want you some coffee?
Question using est-ce que
Est-ce que vous voulez du café ?
Do you want some coffee?
lit. (lit.) Is it that you want some coffee?
Informal question stemming from affirmative sentencesNo definition set for affirmative sentencesLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum.
Do you want some coffee? (informal)
lit. (lit.) You want some coffee?
In this post, I’ll explain when to use and how to form each type of question, talk about how the negative form works for each question type, and much more. We’ll also discuss the interrogative word quel and its variations in the three types of French questions.
French questions come in two types. They can be either closed or open.
“Closed questions” are those questions where the answer can only be yes or no
“Open question” the answer might be anything except yes or no! In other words, open questions are WH-questions (“who,” “what,” “where,” “when,” “why”). In French, just like in English, the interrogative word will start the question.
Before reading this article, it might be a good idea to familiarize yourself with the French versions of the English “WH” question words, as well as the French interrogative pronouns qui, que, quoi, and lequel. But, if you know them very well, start reading this article!
⤷ Punctuation TIP When typing a question in French, remember to add a space before the question mark!
French questions with subject-verb inversion: When to use them and how to form them?
In French, subject-verb inversion questions are used in formal circumstances, like in restaurants, interviews, or in literature and newspapers. It can sound odd to use this kind of question in informal contexts!
To form these questions you will “invert” (or switch) the position of the subject and the verb. Remember that the usual word order for a French sentence is subject + verb + everything else, so in a subject-verb inversion question the order is, instead, verb + subject + everything else.
subject + verb
↓
verb + subject
In closed (yes-no) questions the subject-verb inversion is all you need to do to make a statement a question. In open questions, you’ll need to put an interrogative word or phrase at the beginning of the question.
Other than that, here are the four main things to know about questions formed with subject-verb inversion:
In the question, the subject that follows the verb must be a subject pronounNo definition set for subject pronounLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum.. This subject pronoun will be attached to the verb by a hyphen, as in:
Recall that the French subject pronouns are: je(I), tu(you), il(he), elle(she), on(one, we) , nous(we), vous(you), and ils(they) and elles(they f.)
The verb that changes position with the subject is the conjugated verb. If the conjugated verb is an auxiliary, that means that the subject will come between the auxiliary verb and the past participle.
subject + auxiliary verb + past participle
↓
auxiliary verb + subject + past participle
If the verb ends in a vowel and the subject pronoun starts with a vowel (il, elle, on, ils, elles), a -t- is added between the verb and the pronoun to aid in pronunciation. This is called the “euphonic t.”
Even though the subject that follows the verb must be a subject pronoun, you can still add a more specific subject (like a noun phrase or emphatic pronoun) as well. The noun phrase subject will come before the verb as in the example below:
Jules et lui, veulent-ils dîner ?
Would he and Jules want to dine?
Les Français voyageront-ils à l’étranger ?
Will French people travel abroad?
Le voyage pourra-t-il se faire ?
Will the trip happen?
lit. ⤷ Don’t forget the euphonic t between the end of the verb and il!
TONE: You don’t need to raise the pitch of your voice at the end of a subject-verb inversion question, because the change in word order is enough to communicate that a question is being asked!
How to negate subject-verb inversion questions?
To negate a closed (yes/no) subject-verb inversion question, place ne before the first conjugatedNo definition set for conjugatedLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum. verb, including before French reflexive pronouns. The second part of the French negation (most often pas) follows after the subject pronoun.
Ne lit-il jamais les nouvelles ?
Doesn’t he ever read the news?
Ne vous demandez-vous pas pourquoi ?
If a secondary subject noun phrase is added, that will come before ne.
Le voyage ne pourra-t-il pas se faire ?
Won’t the trip happen?
lit. (lit.) The trip, won’t it happen?
In open subject-verb inversion questions, we use the same negation structure, but the interrogative wordNo definition set for interrogative wordLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum. comes first, before ne:
Pourquoi n’avons-nous pas reçu notre courrier ?
Why didn’t we get our mail?
Which verbs change their forms in formal French questions?
Certain verbs will change their forms when they become attached to a subject pronoun in formal subject-verb inversion questions. These changes affect the present tense je(I) form of the verb pouvoir(to be able to/can) and of -er verbs. Let’s have a look at a couple of examples!
The verb pouvoir(to be able to, can)
Pouvoir turns into puis instead of peux when it comes before je(I) in a question.
Puis-je ouvrir la fenêtre ?
-er verbs
For -er verbs, acquire an accent on the final é, when they’re followed by the je(I) pronoun in subject-verb inversion questions. For example:
The accent is purely for pronunciation purposes. Indeed, a French native would find it very odd to pronounce the questions above without the accented é, as in: /ozeuhj(euh)/ or /pa(n)seuhj(euh)/.
How to use object and prepositional pronouns in formal questions?
In formal questions, direct and indirect object pronouns, as well as prepositional pronouns like en(some, of it) and y(there, to it) , go before the verb. However, they still fall after the interrogative wordNo definition set for interrogative wordLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum. if the question is open.
pronoun
Do you go there regularly?
pronoun
Quand lui en as-tu parlé ?
When did you mention it to her?
Watch out for this common mistake!
Prepositions in French always go before interrogative words, not at the end of a question, like they can in English.
❌ Qui habites-tu avec ?
✅ Avec qui habites-tu ?
Let’s now have a look at another type of question you can use in all circumstances, whether formal or informal!
French questions with ‘est-ce que’: When to use them and how to form them?
The expression est-ce que(lit. is it that?) is a very versatile and simple way to form a French question. If you had to learn one way to ask a question in French,est-ce que would be the one to learn!
All you need to do is add est-ce que to the beginning of an affirmative sentence and you have a question! When asking an open question, you will still need to add an interrogative question word (like “where”) before est-ce que, but that’s the only different.
Here are the formulae:
Closed Question
Open Question
Quand est-ce que toi et Marie arrivez ?
When are you and Mary coming?
With the interrogative pronoun que, the question phrase becomes Qu’est-ce que/qui:
Qu’est-ce qu’ils font ce soir ?
What are they doing this evening?
TONE: You can pronounce these kinds of questions just like affirmative sentences, as est-ce que already indicates it is a question.
How to use the negative form of questions with ‘est-ce que’?
Closed questions (yes/no questions) with est-ce que do not have a negative form! You’ll need to use either a formal question with subject-verb inversion or an informal one:
❌ Est-ce que tu n’aimes pas le sport ? ✅ N’aimes-tu pas le sport ? → formal question
✅ Tu n’aimes pas le sport ? → informal question
Please note, however, that open questions with est-ce que do have a negative form:
✅ Pourquoi est-ce que tu ne veux pas venir ?
Why don’t you wanna come?
Let’s now see how most natives ask questions in everyday life — with informal questions!
Informal questions in French: What are they and how to form them?
Informal questions are very popular among native French speakers, because they are quick and easy. They are basically affirmative sentences with a specific tone (for closed questions) or with an interrogative word at the end (for open questions). For example:
Closed Question
(just like an affirmative sentence)
↳ TONE: The last word, and to be precise, the last phonetic syllableNo definition set for phonetic syllableLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum. is pronounced with a high pitched tone to indicate it is a question.
Open Question
(affirmative, but ends in an interrogative word)
↳ TONE: The interrogative word/pronoun at the end indicates it is a question, so no special tone is required.
A few interrogative words come at the beginning instead.
Pourquoi can either go at the beginning or the end of an informal question. I personally use it at the beginning most of the time!
When qui is the subject, it always goes at the beginning of the sentence in an informal question, since it acts as the subject of the verb.
However, a lot of French natives say, “C’est qui qui a fait ça ?”(It is who who did that?), which sounds a bit clunky!
How to form negative informal questions?
For the negative form of both closed and open informal questions, the negation ne … pas(not) goes around the first conjugated verb, just like in affirmative sentences.
Il ne rentre pas aujourd’hui ?
Pourquoi elles ne l’avaient pas dit ?
How to use ‘quel’ (what, which) in French questions?
Quel is an interrogative word that is the equivalent of “what” and “which” in French questions. It agrees in gender and number with the noun it refers to.
Singular | quel | quelle |
|---|
Plural | quels | quelles |
|---|
Quel can be used in a few different ways, depending on the question structure. Before we start reviewing, keep the following tips in mind. The examples are of formal French questions, but as you’ll see below, you can use quel in other kinds of questions as well.
Quel can be used to ask what something is and also to offer a choice between two or more elements, whose equivalent in English is “which one(s).”
Quelle est votre adresse ? | Quel voisin est bruyant ? |
When used with être(to be), the interrogative word quel can only refer to the subject of a sentence, but when combined with any other verb it can refer to either the subject or the object.
Quelles chaussures voulez-vous essayer ?
What/which shoes would you like to try?
↳ Quelles chaussures is the object of essayer(try).
Quel fromage sent le plus fort ?
Which cheese smells the strongest?
↳ Quel fromage is the subject of sent(smells).
Don’t add a subject pronoun after the verb with quel
❌ Quel fromage sent-il le plus fort?
How to use ‘quel’ in a French ‘est-ce que’ question?
You can use quel in est-ce que questions to mean “what” or “which,” but in an est-ce que question quel can only refer to an object. So the word quel cannot reference the subject of an est-ce que question.
❌ Quelle est-ce qu’est votre adresse ?
❌ Quel voisin est-ce qui est bruyant ?
→ quel voisin is the subject
❌ Quel fromage est-ce qui sent le plus fort ?
Which cheese smells the strongest?
→ quel fromage is the subject
✅ Quelles chaussures est-ce que vous voulez essayer ?
Which/What shoes would you like to try?
→ quelles chassures is the object
Because quel can only refer to the subject of être(to be), if the verb in your sentence is être, you can’t ever use an est-ce que question with quel.
How to use ‘quel’ in an informal French question?
Quel can also be used in informal questions in French to refer to both objects and subjects.
When asking about an object, you can simply use quel( what) or quel + noun (which + noun) at the end of the question.
Vous voulez essayer quelles chaussures ?
What/which shoes would you like to try?
↳quelles chaussures is the object
When you’re asking about the subject of a sentence, quel changes its form a bit:
When the subject is quel + noun (which + noun + verb?) Use:
C’est + [quel + noun] + qui
C’est quel fromage qui sent le plus fort ?
Which cheese smells the strongest?
When the subject is quel by itself (what + verb?)
Use c’est quoi
C’est quoi votre adresse ?
How to use ‘quel’ with prepositions in French questions?
Quel can also modify the object of a prepositionNo definition set for object of a prepositionLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum. (or the noun that follows a preposition). In every type of French question, when quel modifies the object of a preposition . quelcomes between the preposition and the noun.
C’est à quel livre que vous faites référence ? | À quel livre est-ce que vous faites référence ? Which book are you referring to?
To which book are you referring? | À quel livre faites-vous référence ? |
⤷ Here, the verb faire référence à(to make reference to) takes an object with the preposition à. So, quel(which) and the object of the preposition, livre(book) are preceded by the preposition à.
Watch out for this common mistake! French prepositions go before quel, not at the end of a question like in English.
❌ Quel livre tu fais référence à ?
✅ À quel livre est-ce que tu fais référence ?
Which book are you referring to?
You could also ask which book someone is referring to by using the interrogative pronoun lequel:
C’est quel livre auquel vous faites référence ?
Which book are you referring to?
Remember: The pronoun lequel must agree in gender and number with the noun it refers to. The forms lequel, lesquels, and lesquelles contract with the prepositions à and de.
All done! For a study resource, check out our summary of rules for French questions, or, if you’re ready to practice, check out our fun French question activities!
In brief: Best tips on French questions
When forming questions in French, remember what we learned in this post:
Questions with the subject-verb inversion are used in formal contexts = (interrogative word or pronoun) + verb + subject.
Questions with est-ce que are for any context = (interrogative word or pronoun) + est-ce que + subject + verb.
Affirmative sentences whose final word is pronounced with a high pitched voice are informal. Interrogative words or pronouns go at the end, except qui(who).
In writing, there is a space before question marks.
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