How
to frame wh-questions with questions starting with what,
when, which, etc?
Roger
Woodham replies:
There
are eight wh-questions, which, what, who, whom,
whose, when, where and why and to this
list we usually add how as they are all used to elicit particular
kinds of information.
Who,
what, which and whose can all be used to elicit
information about the subject or object of the sentence.
Whom
can only be used to elicit information about the object of the
sentence. Although using whom would be grammatically correct,
we normally use who instead because it doesn’t sound so formal.
When
which, what, who or whose refers to
the subject, the question word comes before the verb without the
use of the auxiliary do.
Note
that who always refers to people and that before nouns which
and what can refer to things or people:
Who
won the race? Barry. Barry won the race.
Which
train arrived first – the 7.15 from Reading or the 7.30 from
Oxford? The 7.15 from Reading arrived first.
Which
trainee received the best-student award? The one from India got the first prize.
When
the question word is the object of the sentence, we have to use
the auxiliary do:
So, if Barry won the race, who(m) did he have to beat?
He had to beat Simon and Pierre.
Which
train did Susan catch?
She caught the 7.15 from Reading.
which
or what?
When
there are only two or three possibilities to choose from, which
is normally preferred.
When
there are an unlimited number of choices, what is used.
Compare
the following:
Which
biscuits do you want me to buy – milk chocolate or plain chocolate?
I’d
like the milk chocolate ones, please.
What kind of work do you do?
I work as a lawyer for a firm in the city.
whose
Whose
indicates possession, and like which and what,
can be used with or without a noun as a question word.
Compare
the following:
Whose coat is this?
±õ³Ù’s ´³´Ç²¹²Ô’s.
Whose is that red car across the road?
±õ³Ù’s
the electrician’s.
What precautions did you
take?
I made sure I was wearing lots of warm clothes.
What did you do then?
I simply set off through the snow.
when,
where, why and how
These
question words elicit an adverbial expression and ask for information
about time (when), place (where), reason (why)
and method or way in which something is done (how).
Compare
the following:
When
will you next be in London?
The week after next.
When
are you getting married?
I'm
not sure, next summer or autumn, perhaps.
Where are you getting married?
In an old church near my village.
±õ³Ù’s such a romantic place.
