How to use interrogative words in German?

In German, we mostly use interrogative words to ask questions. In German, these words are also known as "W"-wörter("W"-words), because words like wer(who) or warum(why) start with the letter w.

• Wer ist das?

  Who is that?

• Warum macht sie das?

  Why is she doing that?

There are three types of interrogatives: interrogative adverbs, pronouns, and adjectives. In this post, we’ll introduce you to interrogatives in each of these groups and give you some tips on how to use them in German. Let’s find out more!

In German, we distinguish three types of interrogatives:

• Interrogative adverbs, (e.g. wo(where), wann(when)) let us ask for a specific circumstance, like a place or a time.

• Interrogative pronouns (e.g. was(what) or wer(who)) stand in for the noun that will answer the question.

• Interrogative adjectives, (e.g. welche(which)) stand with a noun to ask for a choice or type of that noun.

Let’s look at interrogatives adverbs and pronouns:

Here are the most important interrogative adverbs in German:

Let’s look at some examples:

Let’s move on to interrogatives that need a little more work: interrogative pronouns!

In German, we use the following words and phrases as interrogative pronouns, to ask about nounsNo definition set for nounsLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum.:

Let’s talk about each pattern!

The next two interrogatives, welche(whi) and was für ein(what kind of) always stand before a noun. Welche lets us ask for information that will identify a specific noun while was für ein lets us ask for a type of item:

Welcher and was für ein take add an ending providing information on the case, the gender, and the number of the noun they stand with. Here are the forms of each word:

Let’s look at some examples of how you can use those interrogative adjectives:

• Let’s say you need to know what kind of cake (der Kuchen) your friend wants.

  accusative masculine

  Was für einen Kuchen möchtest du?

  What kind of cake would you like?

  You are asking for a type, so you need to use a form of was für ein.

  Der Kuchen is a masculine noun and someone wants the cake, so it is being used as a direct object.
  → Use the accusative masculine form, was für einen!

• You want to ask which laptop (der Laptop) you can work with.

  dative masculine

  Mit welchem Laptop soll ich arbeiten?

  Which laptop should work with?

  You are asking for a specific laptop, so you should use a form of welche.

  Der Laptop is a masculine noun. You will work with(mit) the laptop and with(mit) takes the dative case.
  → Use the dative masculine form: welchem.

Interrogative pronouns are used in two different constructions, which differ in word order:

• Direct questions, which ask for specific pieces of information:

  interrogativeverb

  Wer ist das?

  Who is that?

  Welchen Kuchen möchtest du?

  Which cake would you like?

  In direct questions, the interrogative pronoun stands at the beginning and is followed by the verb.

• Indirect questions, which state that someone has a question:

  interrogativeverb

  Ich frage mich, wer das ist.

  I wonder who that is.

  Weißt du, welchen Kuchen du möchtest?

  Do you know which cake you would like?

  An indirect question starts with a phrase indicating that someone lacks a specific knowledge. The interrogative pronoun serves as a connecting word (or subordinating conjunction) and connects another clause that contains the actual question. If an interrogative pronoun is used as a conjunction, the conjugated verb in that clause moves to the end.

• Relative clauses, which describe a noun or a clause. In German, interrogatives are only used to introduce a few specific types of relative clauses, but you’ll often hear was(wgh), wo(where), wohin(where to), woher (where from)(where from) and the wo-compounds used this way:

  Das Auto ist total kaputt, was mich sehr traurig macht.

  The car is totally broken, which makes me very sad.

  → Describes a clause

  Die Stadt, wo ich wohne, heißt Stralsund.

  The city where I live is called Stralsund.

  → Describes a noun (a place)

Here are some idioms and useful phrases in German that use interrogatives:

Here’s what you should remember about German interrogative words:

• We went over some interrogative words and how to use them:

  • Interrogative adverbs like wo(where), wann(when), warum(why), or wie(how) are used to ask for descriptive information about an action or situation.

  • To ask about non-human nouns, use was or a wo-compound (if the noun is the object of a preposition.)

  • To ask about human (or human-like) nouns, use wer(who)

  • To ask for identifying information you can use welche(which)or was für ein(what kind?)

  • While was, wo-compounds, and interrogative adverbs never change their forms, wer, welche, and was für ein are declinedNo definition set for declinedLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum. for case, number, and gender.

• We talked about how to use interrogatives in direct questions, indirect questions, and relative clauses.

Ready to practice? Check out our German interrogatives exercises or review the various forms of German wo-compounds with our table! Happy learning!