This document discusses WH question words in English. It defines WH questions as questions that begin with interrogative words like who, what, when, where, why, and how. These words ask for specific information about people, things, times, places, reasons, or manners. The document provides examples of different WH question words and their functions, how to form WH questions depending on whether the topic is the subject or object, and how to respond to WH questions. It also briefly discusses the digraph "wh" and how it represents a single sound.

1. WH Question Words

2. HOW?

3. WHEN?

4. WHO?

5. WHY?

6. WHERE?

7. WHAT?

8. WH Question Words
• We use question words to ask certain types of
questions.
• The most common questions in English are
often referred to as ‘WH' questions.

9. • We often refer to them as WH words because
they include the letters WH
– WHo
– WHat,
– WHen
– WHere
– WHy,
– HoW.

10. Purpose
• 'Wh' questions ask for specific responses as to
the time, place, reason, thing or person.

11. • Who - asks questions about people
• What - asks questions about things or objects
• When - asks questions about time
• Where - asks a question about place
• Why - asks questions about reasons
• How – asks about manner or condition

12. Question
Word
Function Example
what asking for information about something What is your name?
asking for repetition or confirmation What? I can't hear you.
You did what?
what...for asking for a reason, asking why What did you do that for?
when asking about time When did he leave?
where asking in or at what place or position Where do they live?
which asking about choice Which color do you want?
who asking what or which person or people
(subject)
Who opened the door?
whom asking what or which person or people
(object)
Whom did you see?
whose asking about ownership Whose are these keys?
Whose turn is it?
why asking for reason, asking what...for Why do you say that?
why don't making a suggestion Why don't I help you?
how asking about manner How does this work?
asking about condition or quality How was your exam?

13. Question Word Function Example
how + adj/adv asking about extent
or degree
see examples below
•how far distance How far is Pattaya
from Bangkok?
•how long length (time or
space)
How long will it take?
•how many quantity (countable) How many cars are
there?
•how much quantity
(uncountable)
How much money do
you have?
•how old age How old are you?
how come (informal) asking for reason,
asking why
How come I can't
see her?

14. Forming question words
• Most wh – questions begin with a…
question word + an auxiliary verb + the subject.
Ex: What is Kitty doing?
Where are you from?

15. The grammar
• The "grammar" used with wh- questions
depends on whether the topic being asked
about is the "subject" or ”object" of a
sentence.

16. Grammar
subject questions
• For the subject pattern, simply replace the
person or thing being asked about with the
appropriate wh-word.
– (Someone has my baseball.)
– Who has my baseball?
– (Something is bothering you.)
– What is bothering you?

17. Grammar
object questions
• For the object pattern, wh- question
formation depends on whether there is an
"auxiliary" verb in the original sentence.
He lives in New York.
Where does he live?

18. Responding to WH question
• The answer to 'wh' questions often
repeats the same subject as in the
question form.
When did they have dinner?
They had dinner at six o'clock.

19. Wh Questions - Short Forms
• 'What', 'who' and 'where' are often combined with a
preposition to ask short, follow-up questions.
Examples:
– Are you busy next weekend?
Yes, I'm working next weekend?
What for?
Because I need to finish the project.
– Jennifer is writing a new article?
Who for?
She's writing it for Jane Magazine.
– I have to go away on business next week.
Where to?
I'm flying to Seattle on Friday.
– With Who(who)

20. Digraphs
• When students see two letters many times they want
to make two sounds
• When “wh” is encountered for the first time in the
curriculum,
– students should be taught that it represents
a single sound, /hw/,
– which is different from the /h/ and /w/ sounds that has
already been taught for the letters “h” and “w.”
– Students need only be told that the sound of “wh” is the
“blowing out a candle sound”
when/where/what