Answering questions correctly (and politely) is difficult in English. However, there is good news! The first word in a question tells you how to answer the question.
Question Word | Answer | Example |
---|---|---|
Who | Person |
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What | Thing |
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Where | Place |
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When | Time |
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Why | Reason “because …” |
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How + be | Adjective |
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How + do | By + noun |
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How long | Period of time |
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How long + have | For + period of time / Since + start time |
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How much/many + noun | Quantity |
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If your first word is an auxiliary verb (do, be, have, can, will, etc.), you answer “yes” or “no.”For a full answer, add the subject and then repeat the auxiliary verb (+ “not” for negatives)
Auxiliary Verb | Questions | Short Answers | Full Answers |
---|---|---|---|
Be |
|
Yes / No |
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Do |
|
Yes / No |
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Have |
|
Yes / No |
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Can / Will / etc. |
|
Yes / No |
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Exercise
Please open the exercise to continue.