Spanish Questions and Negatives

Forming Questions in Spanish

• To form a question in Spanish, use question marks before and after the statement (¿?)
• In a question, the subject (name) and the verb are swapped in order

Examples of Forming Questions

• Original statement: Juan va al colegio a pie. (Juan goes to school by foot.)
• Question: ¿Va Juan al colegio a pie? (Does Juan go to school by foot?)
• Original statement: Voy al colegio en coche. (I go to school by car.)
• Question: ¿Vas al colegio en coche? (Do you go to school by car?)
• Original statement: Vamos al colegio en tren. (We go to school by train.)
• Question: ¿Vais al colegio en tren? (Do ye go to school by train?)

Question Words in Spanish

• ¿Quién? is the Spanish question word for "Who?"
• ¿Cuándo? is the Spanish question word for "When?"
• ¿Dónde? is the Spanish question word for "Where?"
• ¿Cómo? is the Spanish question word for "How?"
• ¿Por qué? is the Spanish question word for "Why?"
• ¿Para qué? is the Spanish question word for "For what?"
• ¿Hay? is the Spanish question word for "Is/are there?"
• ¿Qué? is the Spanish question word for "What?"
• ¿Cuánto/a/os/as? is the Spanish question word for "How many/much?"
• ¿Cuál/es? is the Spanish question word for "Which/what?"

Forming Negatives in Spanish

• To make a negative sentence, simply put "no" in front of the verb.
• Examples: Juan no va al colegio a pie (Juan doesn't go to school by foot), No voy al colegio en coche (I don't go to school by car), No vamos al colegio en tren (We don't go to school by train).

Key Spanish Negatives

• Ninguno/a/os/as: none, not any (changes to agree with the noun).
• Nadie: nobody, not anyone.
• Nada: nothing, not anything.
• Tampoco: neither, not either.
• Nunca/Jamás: never.
• Ni……ni: neither, nor.

Agreement of Negatives with Nouns

• Alguno and ninguno drop the -o before a masculine singular noun.
• Ninguno/ninguna is usually used in the singular form.
• Examples:
  • ¿Tienes algún libro? (Do you have a book?) → No, no tengo ningún libro. (No, I don't have any book).
  • ¿Tienes algunas sillas? (Are there any chairs?) → No, no tengo ninguna. (No, there is none).
  • ¿Hay algunos cuartos disponibles? (Are there any rooms available?) → No, no hay ninguno. (No, there is none).

Learn how to form questions in Spanish by using question marks and swapping the subject and verb. Examples and explanations are provided.