This document provides an overview of a group project to compare the structure of WH questions in Arabic and English. The 11-member group plans to discuss: 1) Translating the structure of WH questions in both languages. 2) The English question structure with examples. 3) Summarizing their research findings. 4) Using APA style for references. Various WH question words are then analyzed in both languages, including what, when, which, who, why, and how/how many. Examples are provided to illustrate the typical structure of questions using each word in English and Arabic.

1. How we translate WH Questions in
Arabic & English.
Group members:
1-Afaf Mohammed Kaabi.
2- Montaha Awadh Alamri.
3- Asmaa Ahmad Alqarni.
4- Nadia Abdullah Alshammri.
5-Fatimah Yehya Alshehri.
6- Shoaa Ibrahim Zubni.
7- Ghadah Suleman Alblwi.
8- Asmaa Salman Alblwi.
9- Khloud Mosa Aljehani.
10- Manal Fleih Alenzi.
11- Albandri Fleih Alenzi.
Group No:
362

3. Wh-questions are questions that begin with one of the eight
‘wh-words’
( who, whose, what, when, which, why, where and how).
Questions formed with ’wh- words’ ask about the word or
phrase the ‘wh-word ‘ replaces. Who replaces pronouns and
the names of people. When the question word is the subject,
the word order doesn't change . First, In this project we will
discuss the way of translating the structure of WH Questions
In both Arabic and English. Then, We will start discussion
English structure, complete with Arabic and support our
discussions with examples. Third, we will conclude our project
by summarizing what we have done in our researches .
Finally, we will use APA style for writing references for
translation.

4. Discussion:
WH Question words
We use WH question words to ask a certain type of questions. We
often refer to them as WH words because they include the letters
WH.
WH questions begins with what ,when ,where ,who ,whom , witch ,
Whose, why and how.
TYPES Of QUESTIONS,
• YES or NO questions / WH questions: here the answer cannot be
yes or no.
QUESTION WRDS CAN BE BOTH DIRECT AND INDIRECT ;
DIRECT : He said to me, "Where do you live?"
INDIRECT: He asked me where I lived?
This is a comparison on how to use what in Arabic and English
questions, what is the correct structure and examples on each of
them:

5. WH QUESTIONS WORD (WHAT)
This is a comparison on how to use what in Arabic and English
questions, what is the correct structure and examples on each of them
THE STRUCTURE IN English:
QUESTION WORD + AUXILARYVERB + SUBJECT +MAIN VERB.
Ex:
Simple present: what does Sarah think about the project?
Simple past: what did the manager think about your idea?
Present continuous: what are you reading at the moment?
USING WHAT WITH THE PREPOSITIN (at) we put it at the end of the
question
Ex: WHAT are you looking at?

6. WHAT: specific thing, object
Used to ask about an information about something
Ex:
What is her favorite color ? ‫المفضل؟‬ ‫لونها‬ ‫هو‬ ‫ما‬
USED FOR A THING
Ex:
What do you call a "bicycle" in Spanish?
‫االسبانية؟‬ ‫باللغة‬ ‫الدراجة‬ ‫تسمي‬ ‫ماذا‬
What kind is used for a description
Ex:
What kind of food do you like?
‫تحبه؟‬ ‫الذي‬ ‫الطعام‬ ‫نوع‬ ‫هو‬ ‫ما‬
What…for is used to ask for a reason(asking why)
Ex :
What did you do that for?
‫ذلك؟‬ ‫فعلت‬ ‫لماذا‬

7. What language can he speak? ‫بها؟‬ ‫التكلم‬ ‫يستطيع‬ ‫التي‬ ‫اللغة‬ ‫ما‬
What happened after I left? ‫رحيلي؟‬ ‫بعد‬ ‫حدث‬ ‫ماذا‬
What is wrong with you? ‫خطبك؟‬ ‫ما‬
What is the capital of Egypt? ‫مصر؟‬ ‫عاصمة‬ ‫هي‬ ‫ما‬
what did you say to her? ‫؟‬ ‫لها‬ ‫قلت‬ ‫ماذا‬
what kind of car do you own? ‫تملكها‬ ‫التي‬ ‫السيارة‬ ‫نوع‬ ‫ما‬‫؟‬

8. The STRUCTURE IN ARABIC :
In standard Arabic "what" comes at the beginning of a
question
We translate it ( ‫ما,ماذا‬ ), (‫)ما‬ is used in questions that do
not have verbs, while (‫)ماذا‬ is used in questions that do
have verbs.
Ex:
‫اسمك؟‬ ‫ما‬
‫اليوم‬ ‫قرأت‬ ‫ماذا‬‫؟‬

9. WH-Q WORDS( WHO, WHOM, WHOSE)
Who is used for a person or people (subject) .
Whom used instead of "who" as the object of a verb or preposition (very formal)
Whose used to ask who something belongs to or who someone or something is
connected with.
The STRUCTURE In ENGLISH:
- With an auxiliary verb:
Wh + an auxiliary verb (be, do or have)+ subject + main verb.
Wh + a model verb + subject+ main verbOr
E.g.: who's been paying the bills ?
Who would she stay with ?
- Without an auxiliary verb
Who , whom or whose is the subject or part of the subject. We do not use the
auxiliary. We use the word order subject+ verb:
E.g.: who bought this? - whose phone rang?
Negative(who, whose, or whom) questions:-
When we ask negative wh-questions, we use the auxiliary verb do when there is no
other auxiliary or model verb, even when the wh-word is the subject of the clause
E.g.: why doesn't want an ice cream ?

10. The STRUCTURE In ARABIC :
‫أدوات‬‫االستفهام‬:
( who )‫استفهام‬ ‫أداة‬‫من‬ ‫بمعنى‬,‫هوية‬ ‫عن‬ ‫للسؤال‬ ‫تستخدم‬
‫الفاعل‬ ‫عن‬ ‫للسؤال‬ ‫وتستعمل‬ ‫الشخص‬
‫التركيب‬:
‫االستفهام‬ ‫أداة‬+‫الفعل‬+‫به‬ ‫المفعول‬.
‫االستفهام‬ ‫أداة‬+‫الفاعل‬+‫السؤال‬ ‫المراد‬ ‫الجزء‬ ‫بدون‬ ‫الجملة‬ ‫باقي‬
‫عنه‬
E.g.:
-Who helped you ?
-Who won the match ?
-Whom did you meet yesterday ?
‫من‬‫ساعدك‬‫؟‬-
‫من‬‫بالمباراة‬ ‫فاز‬‫؟‬
‫؟‬ ‫باألمس‬ ‫قابلت‬ ‫من‬

11. WH QUESTION WORD (WHEN)
Asking about time something is going to happen in an English speaking
country use when
The STRUCTURE In ENGLISH:
In English we used the structure ( when ) at the beginning of the question.
When + helping verb + subject + main verb
Examples:
- When will he return ? At fife o'clock
-When should we meet ? At 12 :00
-When does the show start ? At twelve thirty

12. The STRIUCTURE In ARABIC:
‫كلمة‬(when)‫دائم‬ ‫نحذف‬ ‫الجواب‬ ‫وعند‬ ‫السؤال‬ ‫أول‬ ‫وتأتي‬ ‫متى‬ ‫تعني‬‫ا‬
‫ا‬ ‫األمثلة‬ ‫في‬ ‫وكما‬ ‫عامة‬ ‫بصورة‬ ‫معينا‬ ‫وقتا‬ ‫بدالها‬ ‫ونضع‬ ‫السؤال‬ ‫أداة‬‫لتالية‬:
‫متى‬+‫المساعد‬ ‫الفعل‬+‫الفاعل‬+‫؟‬ ‫الرئيسي‬ ‫الفعل‬
‫؟‬ ‫الحافلة‬ ‫تغادر‬ ‫متى‬When does the bus leave?
‫هكذا‬ ‫اإلجابة‬ ‫وتكون‬:
‫عشر‬ ‫الثانية‬ ‫الساعة‬ ‫في‬At twelve o'clock
* To understand the answers, you need to understand
how to tell the time in English.

13. WH QUESTIN WORD (WHICH)
Which as a question word We use which in questions as a determiner and interrogative
pronoun to ask for specific information:
The STRUCTURE In ENGLISH:
which determiner, pronoun (QUESTION)
used in questions and structures in which there is a fixed or limited set of answers or
possibilities) what One or Ones.
E.g.:
- Which of the dessert did you have? ‫لديك‬ ‫الحلوى‬ ‫من‬ ‫إي‬
- Which of your parents do you feel closer to? ‫إليه‬ ‫بالقرب‬ ‫تشعر‬ ‫والديك‬ ‫من‬ ‫أي‬
which pronoun (USED TO REFER)
used as the ​subject or ​object of a ​verb to show what thing or things you are referring to, or
to ​add ​information about the thing just ​mentioned. It is usually used for things, not ​people:
E.g.:
-Is that the ​film in which he ​kills his ​mother? ‫والدته‬ ‫به‬ ‫قتل‬ ‫الذي‬ ‫الفيلم‬ ‫هذا‬ ‫هل‬
Which + of:
We use of with which before other determiners (the, those, your) and pronouns (yours,
them)
E.g.:
Which of your sisters lives in Boston? ‫بوسطن‬ ‫في‬ ‫تعيش‬ ‫أخواتك‬ ‫من‬ ‫-أي‬

14. The STRUCTURE In ARABIC :
In standard Arabic "which "We use which when there a restricted range of
answers, also used to ask about choice between tow or more things. We
translate it " ‫."أي‬
Example: ‫األخضر؟‬ ‫أم‬ ‫األحمر‬ ‫تفضل‬ ‫األلوان‬ ‫من‬ ‫أي‬

15. WH Question word (Why):
Why is a wh-word. We use why to talk about reasons and
explanations.
The STRUCTURE IN ENGLISH:
E.g. :
1. Why did he leave home when he was 16?
2. Why is the Earth round?
- We can use why in indirect questions:
E.g. :
1. He asked me why I wanted to leave the job.
2. I wonder why he told nobody he was getting married.
- Also we can use why on its own as a response:
A: I’m going home now.
B:Why?
When we reply to a negative statement, we usually say why not?:
A:I don’t like it here.
B:Why not?

16. Why: asking for reasons
When we ask for reasons in speaking, we can use the phrase why is
that? In informal conversations we often say why’s that?:
A:Look, the moth is attracted to the light.
B:Why is that?
Why don’t and why not: making suggestions
We use why don’t and why not to make suggestions:
Why don’t we leave the washing-up until tomorrow morning? It’s too late
now. (or Why not leave the washing up …)
Why not?: showing agreement
We can use the phrase why not? as a reply which shows that we agree to
a suggestion or request:
A:How about we invite John and Gina round on Saturday night?
B:Why not? We haven’t seen them in a long time.
forming Why With an auxiliary verb
Wh + an auxiliary verb (be, do or have)+ subject + main verb. Or
The Wh + a model verb + subject+ main verb
E.g. : Why did he leave early?
Exception: For the main verb be in Present Simple and Past Simple, there
is no auxiliary verb.
E.g. : Why were you late?

17. The STRUCTURE In ARABIC:
(Why)‫بمعنى‬ ‫استفهام‬ ‫أداة‬(‫لماذا‬)‫ما‬ ً‫ا‬‫شيئ‬ ‫لحدوث‬ ‫السبب‬ ‫عن‬ ‫للسؤال‬ ‫وتستخدم‬
ً‫ال‬‫مث‬:
Why did he leave early? ‫؟‬ ً‫ا‬‫مبكر‬ ‫غادر‬ ‫لماذا‬
-‫وتستخدم‬(why)‫الرئيسي‬ ‫بالفعل‬ ‫وتكتفي‬ ‫فاعل‬ ‫بدون‬ ‫أحيانا‬,‫إذا‬ ‫فيما‬ ‫السؤال‬ ‫بها‬ ‫يراد‬ ‫عندما‬‫وقوع‬ ‫كان‬
ً‫ا‬‫ضروري‬ ‫الحدث‬.
-‫استعمال‬ ‫يتم‬ ‫وكذلك‬(why)‫مثل‬ ، ‫بعد‬ ‫ينجز‬ ‫لم‬ ‫فعل‬ ‫عن‬ ‫للسؤال‬ ‫آو‬ ‫اقتراح‬ ‫عمل‬ ‫بغرض‬ ‫المصدر‬ ‫مع‬:
Why not end it now? ‫؟‬ ‫اآلن‬ ‫تنهيه‬ ‫ال‬ ‫لماذا‬

18. WH Question word (HOW+ HOW MANY):
“How” refers to the way, manner, or to what degree something was done;
it replaces adverbs or adverb phrases. If the verb contains a modal, a form
of the verb “be” or a form of the helping verb “have,” the subject and
predicate are reversed
The STRUCTURE In ENGLISH:
How:
WH + BE + SUBJECT
Example:
Mary is very beautiful.
?How beautiful is Mary
How many:
How many + BE + SUBJECT.
How many + DO/DOES + SUBJECT + VERB .
Example:
How many people are there ?
How many languages can you speak ?

19. .
The STRUCTURE In ARABIC:
How:
‫عن‬ ‫للسؤال‬ ‫تستخدم‬ ‫و‬‫الطريقة‬ ‫أو‬ ‫الحال‬
( How are you ?) ‫حالك؟‬ ‫كيف‬
( How do you go to work ? ) ‫للعمل؟‬ ‫تذهب‬ ‫كيف‬
‫بـ‬ ‫متبوعة‬ ‫تكون‬ ‫أن‬ ‫يجب‬ ‫و‬ ‫العمر‬ ‫عن‬ ‫للسؤال‬
( old )
( How old are you ? ) ‫عمرك؟‬ ‫كم‬
‫الحالة‬ ‫هذه‬ ‫في‬ ‫الجواب‬ ‫في‬ ‫يكون‬ ‫أن‬ ‫ويجب‬ ‫شيء‬ ‫حدوث‬ ‫طريقة‬ ‫أو‬ ‫الكيفية‬ ‫عن‬ ‫للسؤال‬ ‫:و‬
(out foot, by bus, by car ) ‫األقدام‬ ‫على‬ ‫سيرا‬,‫بالسيارة‬,‫بالحافلة‬
How many:
( how many ) ‫بمعنى‬ ‫استفهام‬ ‫أداة‬(‫كم‬)‫العدد‬ ‫عن‬ ‫للسؤال‬ ‫تستخدم‬(‫المعدودة‬ ‫األسماء‬ ‫مع‬)‫مثل‬
‫التركيب‬:
‫االستفهام‬ ‫أداة‬+‫الفعل‬+‫الفاعل‬+‫به‬ ‫المفعول‬.
‫مثل‬:‫عدد‬ ‫كم‬‫تجيدها‬ ‫التي‬ ‫اللغات‬‫؟‬

20. WH QUESTION WORD " WHERE":
Where: asking in or at what place or position
The STRUCTURE In ENGLISH:
Where + BE + SUBJECT.
Where + DO/DOES + SUBJECT + VERB
Example:
Where do they live?
Where is my book ?
Where did you go last weekend?

21. The STRUCTURE In ARABIC:
. ‫أين‬‫اتجاه‬ ‫أو‬ ‫موقع‬ ‫أو‬ ‫ما‬ ‫مكان‬ ‫عن‬ ‫لسؤال‬ ‫تستخدم‬
‫أداة‬‫االستفهام‬+‫الفعل‬+‫المفعول‬‫به‬
Example:
Where does she live ?-
Where are you going ?-
Where do you go to complain?–
‫؟‬ ‫هي‬ ‫تسكن‬ ‫أين‬
-‫؟‬ ‫ستذهب‬ ‫أين‬
-‫؟‬ ‫للشكوى‬ ‫ستذهب‬ ‫أين‬

22. Conclusion:
In these papers we discus WH-Question structure
in both Arabic and English language with details.
We support our research with examples in Arabic
and English to make it easier for learners.
At the end of this explanation you should be able
to use WH-Question correctly.

23. References:
How to use 'Wh...' questions. (n.d.). Retrieved
from http://www.ecenglish.com/learnenglish/how-use-wh-questions
Nordquist, R. (2006). Wh-word. Retrieved
from http://grammar.about.com/od/tz/g/Wh-Word.htm
Wh- question Meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary. (n.d.). Retrieved
from http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/wh-
question?q=Wh questions
Johnson, S. (2005). A Grammar of the English Tongue. Project Gutenberg.
Why - English Grammar Today - Cambridge Dictionaries Online. (n.d.).
Retrieved from http://dictionary.cambridge.org/grammar/british-
grammar/why
‫أدوات‬ ‫باستخدام‬ ‫السؤال‬‫االستفهام‬'Wh'-question. (n.d.). Retrieved
from http://english4all.montadarabi.com/t44-topic

24. :References
•
Are the 'Wh-' Words? (n.d.). Retrieved from http://grammar.about.com/od/tz/g/Wh-
Word.htm
Question Structure. (n.d.). Retrieved
from https://www.englishclub.com/grammar/verbs-questions_structure
Questions with "When" - EnglishClub. (2009, August 6). Retrieved
from https://edition.englishclub.com/survival/when-questions
Understanding and using english grammar (with answer key and audio c ... (n.d.).
Retrieved from http://www.slideshare.net/sophoeunkhmerchild/understanding-
and-using-english-grammar-with-answer-key-and-audio-c-ds-4th-editiona4