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Adverbes interrogatifs
When, where, why, how? Use interrogative adverbs to ask these informational questions.
Par exemple…
| Où est-ce qu’il travaille ? | Where does he work? | |
| Quand vas-tu partir ? | When are you going to leave? |
Characteristics of Interrogative Adverbs
- Ask for specific information
- May be used with est-ce que or with inversion
- Can be used in indirect questions
- Are invariable
French Interrogative Adverbs
In everyday French, there are five interrogative adverbs.
1) Combien (de)
Combien means "how many?" or "how much?" When followed by a noun, it requires the preposition de.
Par exemple…
| – Je vais acheter des pommes ? – Combien ? |
– I’m going to buy some apples. – How many? |
|
| Combien de temps avez-vous ? | How much time do you have? |
2) Comment
Comment usually means "how?"
Par exemple…
| Comment va-t-il ? | How is he doing? | |
| Comment va Pierre ? | How is Pierre doing? | |
| Comment as-tu fait ça ? | How did you do that? |
In certain situations, comment means "what?"
Par exemple…
| Comment ? Je ne vous ai pas entendu. | What? I didn’t hear you. | |
| Comment vous appelez-vous ? | What’s your name? |
3) Où
As an interrogative adverb, où means "where?"
Par exemple…
| Où veux-tu manger ? | Where do you want to eat? | |
| Où est-ce qu’elle a trouvé ce sac ? | Where did she find this bag? | |
| Où vont les enfants ? | Where are the children going? |
4) Pourquoi
Pourquoi means "why?"
Par exemple…
| Pourquoi êtes-vous partis ? | Why did you leave? | |
| Pourquoi est-ce qu’ils sont en retard ? | Why are they late? |
5) Quand
Quand means "when?"
Par exemple…
| Quand veux-tu te réveiller ? | When do you want to wake up? | |
| Quand est-ce que Paul va arriver ? | When is Paul going to arrive? |
To be more specific, you can ask À quelle heure ? meaning “(At) what time?”
Indirect Questions
Interrogative adverbs can also be used in indirect questions, where the desire for information is found within a statement or command.
Par exemple…
| Je ne sais pas combien il travaille. | I don’t know how much he works. | |
| Je veux savoir comment il va. | I want to know how he’s doing. | |
| J’ai oublié où tu vas. | I forgot where you’re going. | |
| Je me demande pourquoi il a menti. | I wonder why he lied. | |
| Dis-nous quand tu veux commencer. | Tell us when you want to start. |
N’importe …
Comment, où, and quand can be used after n’importe to form indefinite adverbial phrases – learn more.
Prepositions
Combien, où, and quand can be preceded by prepositions.
Par exemple…
| Pour combien de temps serez-vous en France ? | How long will you be in France? | |
| Par où est-il venu ? | Which way did he come? | |
| Depuis quand est-ce que tu travailles ici ? | Since when have you worked here? |
Literary Interrogative Adverb
In formal French, such as literature, there’s a sixth interrogative adverb, que, meaning "why?"
Par exemple…
| Que m’en serais-je étonné ? (M. Thiry, Romans, nouvelles, contes, récits, p. 386) |
Why would I be surprised about it? | |
| Qu’avait-elle besoin d’une casserole aussi grande, elle qui vivait toute seule ? (Aymé, Gustalin, VI) |
Why did she need such a big pot, when she lived all alone? |
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