Turning a statement into a question may seem really difficult at first, but it may be easier than you think. Use a statement to express a fact, opinion, or point of view on an issue. On the other hand, ask questions to get information from others. You can easily change a statement to a question by moving the auxiliary verb, the verb to be or adding a verb with the auxiliaries do, does and did. Also, you can add a question word or question tag to get the specific information.
Steps
Method 1 of 4: Move the Auxiliary Verb
Step 1. Find the auxiliary verb in the sentence
Common auxiliary verbs include have, has, and had. Also, words like “should”, “would”, “could”, “might” (power), “may” (power) and “will” (future) are auxiliary verbs. Reread the sentences to see if they have auxiliary verbs. Here are some examples of sentences with auxiliary verbs in bold:
- The teachers have treated us kindly. (The teachers we they have kindly treated).
- They had already eaten. (They already they have Eaten).
- She will win the fight. (She will win the fight).
- My cat would climb that tree. (My cat would climb that tree).
- Walking dog feed eight people. (A foot may feed eight people).
- We shall meet again. (Us we will gather again).
- I was standing. (Was standing).
Tip:
Check the auxiliary verbs in the contractions. For example, in the sentence: “We’ll go to school”, “we’ll” is a contraction of “we will”. "Will" is an auxiliary verb. Similarly, “hasn’t” is a contraction of “has not” and “has” is an auxiliary verb.
Step 2. Move the auxiliary verb to the beginning of the sentence to ask it a question
Rewrite the sentence with the auxiliary verb as the first word. Leave the other words in the same place and write them exactly as they appear in the statement. This will turn the statement into a question. Here are some examples:
- The teachers have treated us kindly. → Have the teachers treated us kindly? (Us they have treated kindly the teachers?).
- They had already eaten. → Had they already eaten? (They have eaten already?).
- She will win the fight. → Will she win the fight? (Will win does she fight her?).
- My cat would climb that tree. → Would my cat climb that tree? (Would climb that tree my cat?).
- That pie dog feed eight people. → Dog that pie feed eight people? (May the foot feed eight person?).
- We shall meet again. → Shall we meet again? (Us we will gather again?).
- I was standing. → Was I standing? (Was me standing?).
Step 3. Use the first auxiliary verb if the sentence has more than 1 auxiliary verb
Sometimes you will have a sentence that includes more than 1 auxiliary verb to describe an action. For example, you could say "will have taken" or "could have been". In this case, just move the first auxiliary verb to the front of the sentence. Leave the remaining words where they are. Look at these examples:
- Your brother have you been growing quickly. (My brother has been growing fast) → Have you your brother been growing quickly? (Has been growing up fast your brother?).
- I could have been studying. (Me could have been studying) → Could I have been studying? (Could have been I, studying?).
Method 2 of 4: Change a verb "to be"
Step 1. Look for a verb "to be" in the sentence
The verbs ser or estar are the verbs “be”, such as “am”, “is”, “are”, “were” and “was”. These verbs tell you the current state of a person or what they are doing. Check the sentence to see if it has a verb ser or estar. Here are some examples with the verb ser or estar in bold:
- Item is raining. (Is raining).
- We are hungry. (U. S we're hungry).
- I A. M going home. (Me am going home).
- You were there last night. (You you were there last night).
- The cat was playing with that toy. (The cat he was playing with that toy).
Step 2. Move the verb “to be” at the beginning of the sentence to form a question
Rewrite the sentence with the verb "to be" at the beginning. Don't change any words in the sentence. This will change the statement to a question. Look at these examples:
- Item is raining. → Is it raining? (Is raining?).
- We are hungry. → Are we hungry? (We are hungry?).
- I A. M going home. → A. M I going home? (Am going home?).
- You were there last night. → Were you there last night? (You were there last night?).
- The cat was playing with that toy. → Was the cat playing with that toy? (He was the cat playing with that toy?).
Step 3. Look for an auxiliary verb if you see the word “been”
The word “been” is a verb “to be”, but it is usually used with an auxiliary verb. Don't move "been" at the beginning of the sentence to form a question. Use the auxiliary verb instead of "been."
- For example, the word “been” appears in this sentence: “We have been going to school for ten weeks”(We we have been going to school for ten weeks). Note that "have" is used as an auxiliary verb. That means you would form a question when writing: Have we been going to school for ten weeks? " (We have been going to school for ten weeks?).
Method 3 of 4: Add Does, Do, or Did
Step 1. Add “does” to the beginning of the sentence if the verb is in the present tense
Check to see if the subject of the sentence is third person. Then make sure the verb is in the present tense. If both are like this, add the word “does” to the beginning of the sentence to make it a question. Then, return the verb to its base form by removing the "s" from the end.
- My cat plays with a toy. → Does my cat play with the toy? (Does my cat play with the toy?).
- My friend takes the bus. → Does my friend take the bus? (Does my friend take the bus?).
Step 2. Use "do" for plural subjects or "you
” Look at the subject to see if it is plural or "you", then check to see if the verb is in the present tense. If so, add the word "do" to the beginning of the sentence to change the statement to a question.
- They greet their teacher. → Do they greet their teacher? (Do they greet their teacher?).
- The protesters call for change. → Do the protesters call for change? (Are the protesters calling for a change?).
- You throw stones at my window. → Do you throw stones at my window? (Do you throw rocks at my window?).
Step 3. Put "did" at the beginning of the sentence for verbs in the past simple
Check to see if the verb is in the past tense. If so, use the word “did” to transform the statement into a question, whether the subject is singular or plural. Add the word "did" to the beginning of the sentence and change the verb back to its base, in the present tense.
- I have saved the cat (He except to the cat). → Did i have save the cat? (Except him to the cat?).
- The sheep jumped over the fence jumped over the fence). → Did the sheep jump over the fence? (Jumped the sheep over the fence?).
- I have broke my oven (He broke my oven). → Did i have break my oven? (Broke him my oven?)
Tip:
If the verb has an auxiliary verb, use the auxiliary verb technique.
Method 4 of 4: Try other methods
Step 1. Add a question word to start a sentence to make it more specific
Question words include "who," "what," "where," "why," "when," and "how." Use these words when you want the answer to the question to include specific details. First, change the statement to a question using an auxiliary verb, verb “to be” or verb “do, does, did”. Then add a word to the beginning of the question to make it more specific.
- You are going home (You you go to go home). → When are you going home? (When are you going home?).
- The cat caught the mouse caught mouse). → How did the cat catch the mouse? (How Did the cat catch the mouse?).
Step 2. Use a question label to easily form a yes and no question
Question labels go to the end of the statement to make it a question. Make a question label using the word “right”, an auxiliary verb, or a do, does, did verb. To turn the statement into a question, put a comma, then add the question tag. Leave the rest of the sentence the same. Here are some examples:
-
She bought a new scooter. → She bought a new scooter, right?
(She bought a new skateboard, certain?
-
He was at the party. → He was at the party, wasn’t he?
(He was at the party, It is not like this?).
-
They went to the store yesterday. → They went to the store yesterday, didn’t they?
(They went to the store yesterday, no?
Step 3. Add a question mark to the statement to express disbelief
Adding a question mark at the end of the statement instantly turns it into a question. Change the point of the question mark when you don't know what happens. These questions usually have "yes" or "no" answers. Here are some examples:
- You are going home. → You are going home? (You go home?).
- She's a scientist. → She's a scientist? (Is she a scientist?).
- We have school tomorrow. → We have school tomorrow? (Do we have classes tomorrow?).