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The English language includes four types of sentences: declarative, interrogative, exclamatory, and imperative. This discussion will focus on interrogative sentences.
What Is an Interrogative Sentence?
A declarative sentence "declares" something (e.g., facts, thoughts, opinions), an exclamatory sentence imparts a strong expression or emotion, and an imperative sentence issues a command.
An interrogative sentence asks a question. We use an interrogative sentence to request and receive information. It always includes a question mark (?).
Interrogative sentences typically begin with interrogative (question) words such as:
| who/whom |
where |
| whose |
which |
| what |
why |
| when |
how |
Examples
Who is the person by the mailbox?
Whose shoes are those?
Why won't you give me your password? |
You'll also note that interrogative words can function as different parts of speech in interrogative sentences:
Who [pronoun] is the person by the mailbox?
Whose [adjective] shoes are those?
Why [adverb] won't you give me your password? |
Many interrogative sentences begin with auxiliary words (helping verbs) as well.
| can |
must |
| could |
shall |
| do |
should |
| may |
will |
| might |
would |
Examples
Can you do your homework today?
Might Shannon get to meet the band backstage?
Should we tell Jeffrey his choice of shirt is catastrophic? |
Note how interrogative sentences differ from the other types (declarative, exclamatory, imperative).
Declarative: You can do your homework today.
Exclamatory: You can do your homework today!
Imperative: Do your homework today!
Interrogative: Can you do your homework today? |
As with declarative, exclamatory, and imperative sentences, interrogative sentences include a subject and a verb. Their difference often lies in their word order.
Interrogative sentences frequently begin with the verb or helping verb before the subject or with an interrogative word followed by the verb or helping verb.
Declarative: The homework is due today. (subject > verb)
Interrogative: Is the homework due today? (verb > subject)
Exclamatory: You won't give me your password! (subject > helping verb > verb)
Interrogative: Why won't you give me your password? (interrogative word > helping verb > subject > verb) |
In some cases, you might make other sentence types interrogative simply by adding a question mark.
Declarative: He wrote the song.
Interrogative: He wrote the song?
Imperative: Do it today!
Interrogative: Do it today? |
Interrogative Sentence Examples: Direct vs. Indirect
So far, the examples we've been looking at have included direct questions, which are those that end with a question mark and can be answered.
Examples
Whose shoes are those?
Can you do your homework today?
He wrote the song? |
A question also can be indirect, meaning it is embedded in another sentence type. As such, it is not punctuated with a question mark.
Examples
Ellie is wondering whose shoes those are.
Your father asked if your homework is due today.
I'd like to know how Shannon got to meet the band backstage! |
You can see how each sentence seeks information without asking directly for it. The same sentences would be incorrect if we added a question mark to them.
Incorrect
Ellie is wondering whose shoes those are?
Your father asked if your homework is due today?
I'd like to know how Shannon got to meet the band backstage? |
Some sentences may look like direct questions but are not. They are questions in form but other sentence types in content and tone.
Examples
What I wouldn't do to have those shoes! (exclamatory statement)
Why don't you do your homework today. (declarative suggestion)
Would you just stop doing that. (softened imperative command) |
Interrogative Sentence Examples: Punctuation
If a question is within quotation marks, the question mark goes inside the quotation marks:
| Janie just said, "Will you walk with me to the forest?" |
If quoted material is part of the question, the question mark goes outside of the quotation marks:
| Did you agree with Mr. Floros when he said, "Do your homework today"? |
When there is a question both inside and outside quoted content, use only one question mark and place it inside the quotation mark:
| Did she just say, "Is it due today?" |
You'll also note that a comma or a period does not appear after a question mark.
Related Topics
Question Marks
Question Marks with Quotation Marks
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