How To Use Spanish Interrogative Pronouns

How To Use Spanish Interrogative Pronouns Interrogative pronouns are those pronouns that are used almost exclusively in questions. In both Spanish and English, interrogative pronouns are typically placed at or very near the beginning of a sentence. The Spanish Interrogatives Following are the interrogative pronouns in Spanish with their translations and examples of their usage. Note that in some cases the pronouns can vary in translation when they follow a preposition. Also, some of the pronouns exist in singular and plural forms and (in the case of cunto) masculine and feminine forms that should match the noun they stand for. quià ©n, quià ©nes - who, whom -  ¿Quià ©n es tu amiga? (Who is your friend?)  ¿Quià ©n es? (Who is it?)  ¿A quià ©nes conociste? (Whom have you met?)  ¿Con quià ©n andas? (Whom are you walking with?)  ¿De quià ©n es esta computadora? (Whose computer is this?)  ¿Para quià ©nes son las comidas? (Whom are the meals for?)quà © - what (The phrases por quà © and para quà © are usually translated as why. Por quà © is more common than para quà ©. They are sometimes interchangeable; para quà © can be used only when asking about the intent or purpose of something happening and can be thought of as meaning what for.) -  ¿Quà © es esto? (What is this?)  ¿Quà © pasa? (Whats happening?)  ¿En quà © piensas? (What are you thinking about?)  ¿De quà © hablas? (What are you talking about?)  ¿Para quà © estudiaba espaà ±ol? (Why did you study Spanish? What did you study Spanish for?)  ¿Por quà © se rompià ³ el coche? (Why did the car break down?)  ¿Qu à © restaurante prefieres? (What restaurant do you prefer?)dà ³nde - where -  ¿Dà ³nde est? (Where is it?)  ¿De dà ³nde es Roberto? (Where is Roberto from?)  ¿Por dà ³nde empezar? (Where do we begin?)  Ã‚ ¿Dà ³nde puedo ver el eclipse lunar?  (Where can I see the lunar eclipse?) Note that adà ³nde should be used when where can be substituted with where to with no change in meaning. adà ³nde  - where to, to where  -   Ã‚ ¿Adà ³nde  vas?  (Where are you going to? Where are you going?)  Ã‚ ¿Adà ³nde podemos ir con nuestro perro? (Where can we go to with our dog?)cundo - when -  ¿Cundo salimos? (When are we leaving?)  ¿Para cundo estar listo? (By when will it be ready?)  ¿Hasta cundo quedan ustedes? (Until when are you staying?)cul, cules - which one, which ones (This word also can often be translated as what. Generally speaking, when cul is used it suggests the making of a selection from more than one alternative.) -  ¿Cul prefieres? (Which one do you prefer?)  ¿Cules prefieres? (Which ones do you like?)cà ³mo - how -  ¿Cà ³mo ests? (How are you?)  ¿Cà ³mo lo haces? (How do you do it?)cunto, cunta, cuntos, cuntas - how much, how many -  ¿Cunto hay? (How much is there?)  ¿Cuntos? (How many?) - The masculine form is used unless in context it is known you are referring to an object or objects that are grammatically femini ne. For example,  ¿cuntos? might mean how many pesos? because pesos is masculine, while  ¿cuntas? might mean how many towels? because toallas is feminine. Using Interrogative Pronouns As you may have noticed, the interrogative pronouns are all spelled with accent marks that do not affect the pronunciation. Many of the interrogative pronouns also can be used in indirect questions  (as opposed to questions) while retaining  the accent mark. Note also that many of the interrogative pronouns can be used as other parts of speech, including adjectives and adverbs, either with or without the accent marks, depending on the context.