Purpose

By the end of this lesson, you will be able to form basic yes/no questions and wh- questions in German.

Lesson Explanation

German yes/no questions are formed by simply placing the conjugated verb first, before the subject — genuinely simpler than French’s multiple question-formation options:

Sprichst du Deutsch?  (Do you speak German? — literally "Speak you German?")

Common question words: wer (who), was (what), wo (where), wann (when), warum (why), wie (how).

Wh- questions place the question word first, immediately followed by the conjugated verb, then the subject: Wo wohnst du? (Where do you live?), Warum bist du spät? (Why are you late?) — this verb-second placement directly previews the important V2 word order rule covered in depth in Part 4, Lesson 5.

Practice Questions