An interrogative pronoun is a pronoun that is used to ask questions. The five most common interrogative pronouns are:
- Who – used to ask about people
- Which – used to ask about a specific person or thing out of a group
- What – used to ask about the identity or nature of something
- Whom – used to ask about people in the object case
- Whose – used to ask about ownership
Interrogative pronouns can be used in both direct and indirect questions.
- Direct questions are questions that are asked directly to someone. For example, “Who are you?” or “What is your name?”
- Indirect questions are questions that are embedded in a sentence. For example, “I wonder who that is.” or “Can you tell me what time it is?”
Here are some examples of how interrogative pronouns can be used:
- Who asked you to do that?
- Which of these books do you want?
- What is the capital of France?
- Whom did you see at the party?
- Whose car is this?
Interrogative pronouns are a useful way to ask questions in English. By understanding how to use them, you can communicate more effectively with others.
Here are some additional tips for using interrogative pronouns:
- Who and whom are often interchangeable, but there are some rules about when to use each one. In general, use who when the pronoun is the subject of the verb, and use whom when the pronoun is the object of the verb. For example, “Who is that?” is correct because “who” is the subject of the verb “is.” However, “Whom did you see?” is also correct because “whom” is the object of the verb “see.”
- Which can be used to ask about a specific person or thing out of a group. For example, “Which of these books do you want?” is correct because it is asking about a specific book out of a group of books.
- What can be used to ask about the identity or nature of something. For example, “What is your name?” is correct because it is asking about the identity of the person being addressed.