When we want to clarify information, we usually ask additional questions with the words “who, to whom, what, which”:
"What movie to see? Who gave this to you? What did you buy? What dress should I buy?
In English we use the interrogative pronouns who, what, which, whose, whom. Often these pronouns cause confusion and confusion about when to use which word.
In the article I will talk in detail about each pronoun and give you a general table of the use of these words.
From the article you will learn:
What are interrogative pronouns?
Interrogative pronouns- these are words that indicate a person, object or signs unknown to the speaker.
For example:
Who baked this cake? (point to the person)
What did you bring? (point to the object)
What shoes should I wear? (point to the sign)
As you understand, such pronouns are used in interrogative sentences.
In English, the most common interrogative pronouns are:
- who - who, whom
- whose - whose
- what - what, which
- which - which
- whom - whom
Let's look at each of these words in detail.
Interrogative pronoun who
Translation: who will win
Pronunciation:/ [huu]
Usage: We use who when asking about people (sometimes pets).
The word who can:
- Replace the actor in a sentence
In this case, we translate who as “who”. By asking such a question, we find out who did or did not do a certain action. For example: Who came?
Who broke the window?
Who broke the window?
Who called me?
Who called me?
Please note that such sentences are constructed as a question to the subject. That is, we do not use auxiliary verbs (did, does, do, etc.).
- Replace an additional member of a sentence
In this case, we translate who as “whom, to whom.” By asking such a question, we find out who a certain action was aimed at. For example: Who did you congratulate?
Who did you call?
Who did you call?
Who did you invite?
Who did you invite?
Note! Such proposals are constructed as special questions. That is, we use auxiliary verbs.
Interrogative pronoun whom
Whom
Translation: whom, whom
Pronunciation:/ [huum]
Usage: We use whom when asking about people (sometimes pets). In such sentences we find out who the action is directed at. For example: Who are you waiting for?
Whom did you meet?
Who did you meet?
Whom will you write?
Who will you write to?
The words who and whom are similar. Let's look at the difference between them, and then move on to the rest of the words.
What is the difference between who and whom?
As you noticed, both words who and whom can be translated as “whom” and used in the same situations. But there is a slight difference between them.
Whom most often used in formal (official) speech or writing.
Who usually used colloquially.
Interrogative pronoun whose
Whose
Translation: whose, whose, whose
Pronunciation:/ [huuz]
Usage: We use the word whose when we talk about belonging to someone. We can talk about both the belonging of an object and a person. For example: Whose gift did you like best?
Whose book is this?
Whose book is this?
Whose friend is he?
Whose friend is he?
Interrogative pronoun what
What
Translation: what, what
Pronunciation:[?w?t] / [wat]
Usage: We use the word what when we talk about inanimate objects, animals or abstract concepts.
The word what can replace:
- Item
In this case we translate what as “what”. For example: What did you bring?
What do you read?
What are you reading?
What did she draw?
What did she draw?
- Item attribute
In this case we translate what as “which”. After what in this case comes the subject we are asking about. For example: What kind of music do you listen to?
What books do you like?
What books do you like?
What bag should I buy?
Which bag should I buy?
Interrogative pronoun which
Which
Translation: which, which
Pronunciation:/[vich]
Usage: We use which with both people and objects. This word suggests a choice from several items. For example, a girl has 3 dresses. She asks: Which dress should I wear?
Which is your luggage?
Which luggage is yours?
Which phone is broken?
Which phone is broken?
Let's look at the difference between the words what and which.
What is the difference between what and which?
The words what and which are often confused. Since both words can be translated as “which”. But there is a difference between them.
What we use when we talk about unlimited choice. For example, you ask: “What shoes should I buy?” The answer options can be anything: blue, red, black, etc. You do not limit a person's choice.
Which we use when choosing from some specific options. For example, you choose between red, black and yellow shoes. You ask: “Which shoes should I buy?” The interlocutor must choose between these 3 options.
General table of use of interrogative pronouns
Let's take another look at the general table of use of all these pronouns.
| Pronoun | What replaces | Usage | Examples |
| Who - who, whom/to whom | 1. Who did or didn't specific action 2. Who was it? |
Who helps her? Who did she meet? |
|
| Whom - whom, to whom | People, sometimes pets | Who was it for? directionally specific action (official, written version) |
Whom will you invite? Whom did they see? |
| Whose - whose | People, animals, objects |
Asking about affiliation to someone |
Whose dog is it? Whose book is this? |
| What - what, which | Objects, animals, abstract concepts | 1. Ask about the subject 2. We ask about the attribute of the object |
What did you read? What color do you like? |
| Which - which, which | People, animals, objects | Please select from some specific options |
Which dog is yours? Which book is better? |
So, we've covered the theory, and now let's move on to practice.
Reinforcement task
Translate the following sentences into English.
1. Who brought this?
2. Which sweater should I wear?
3. Whose cat is this?
4. Which writer do you like?
5. What did you bring?
6. Who did you meet?
We continue to understand the intricacies of using question words in English. We have already discussed this in detail in one of our recent articles. Today we will study three more question words: what, which and why.
What? - What?
At the word what very widely used in English. But in this material we will consider it only as a question word.
What should be used when you ask a question about an object, phenomenon, action. By the way, what can be used in questions about both animate (for example, animals) and inanimate objects, but if you are asking about a person: “Who,” then you need to use who.
The question with what can be answered either in one word or in a whole sentence:
What is this? - What is this?
What are you doing? - What are you doing?
What do you want to do? - What do you want to do?
What enters into various combinations with nouns, and then acquires the meaning “which”:
What color? - What color?
What music? - What music?
What food? - What food?
What kind of? - What type? (Which?)
What color do you like the most? -What color do you like best?
What music do you listen to? - What kind of music do you listen to?
What food do they cook? - What kind of food do they cook?
What kind of books does he write? - What books does he write?
What nationality are you? - What nationality are you?
Now let's look at the typical mistakes that are made with the word what. They, of course, involve translating questions by analogy with the Russian language. Many of you use the word again and again How in the question “What is it called?” In English this question begins with what :
What is it called in English? - What is it called in English?
What's she called? - What is her name?
When asked about appearance, or want to get another description of an object or phenomenon, they combine what with the corresponding verb and the word like. Let's look at examples:
What does he look like? - What does he look like?
What does it sound like? - How does this sound? (What does this sound like?)
What does this ice cream taste like? - What does this ice cream taste like?
What does this flower smell like? - What does this flower smell like?
If you need to ask about the purpose or purpose of something, in such questions the word what can be the equivalent of the word why(Why? For what?), then at the end of the question there should be a preposition for:
What is this tool for? - What is this tool for?
What are you doing it for? - Why are you doing this?
What can also be used in questions about a person's profession or responsibilities:
What's your father? - He’s a doctor.
- Who is your father by profession? - He is a doctor.
So Mary is the managing director, and what is Tom? - So, Mary is the executive director, and who is Tom / what does Tom do?
Which? - Which? Which?
Which And what often confused because both words are translated as “Which?” To choose the right question word, remember that what can ask a question like to the supplement, so and so the whole offer, and which - only for addition.
In addition, a question word associated with a choice from several alternatives can be translated as “which”, “which of”. If the choice is limited, then you need to use which in the question if you you ask “in general”, then what . In this case, context often helps in the choice:
What is your favorite book? - What is your favorite book? (In general, from all the many books)
Which is your favorite book? - Which / which is your favorite book? (Look at the shelf with books)
To emphasize the limited choice they use Which of, followed by (the, them, these, my) :
You have four dresses. Which of them will you wear? - You have four dresses. Which one will you wear?
I like both cars. Which of the two is cheaper? - I like both cars. Which one is cheaper?
If the question is about a person, without a noun or pronoun after the question word, then not which, A who:
Who do you like more: Jane or Anna? - Who do you like better: Jane or Anna?
Which of the girls do you like more: Jane or Anna? -Which/Which of the girls do you like better: Jane or Anna?
Who is your best friend: John, Bill or Sam? - Who is your best friend: John, Bill or Sam?
Which of your classmates is your best friend: John, Bill or Sam? - Which of your classmates is your best friend: John, Bill or Sam?
With the word which you can also hear the following questions:
Which way? - Where? Which way? Which way?
What day? - On what day?
Which month? - In what month?
Which way shall we go? -Which way will we go?
Which day is his Birthday? - What day is his birthday?
Which month did they get married? - In what month did they get married?
Questions with which more clarifying than questions with where and when.
Why? - For what? Why?
When you need to find out the reason or purpose of an action, you need to use a question word why?
Except the word why, to clarify the purpose, you can use For what purpose? or What for? , to clarify the reason - For what reason? . How to answer a question with Why, I talked in detail in the training material, so now we won’t dwell on this, but let’s look at how to use a question word why in combination with negative particle not.
Short question Why not? are asked after negation, this is an analogue of ours “Why?” And "Why not?":
I did not go to the gym yesterday. - Why not?
- I didn’t go to the gym yesterday. - Why not)?
In addition, why not is often said in response to a sentence, meaning "Why not":
Let's go out tonight. - Yes, why not?
- Let's go somewhere in the evening. - Come on, why not.
And the proposal itself can be expressed using Why in combination with don’t or doesn’t:
Why don’t we go to the cinema? - Why do not we go to the cinema?
Sometimes after why not is used infinitive without particle to:
Why not ask the teacher for help? - Why not ask a teacher for help?
Why not go for a swim? - Why not take a swim?
In addition, the word why in short interrogative sentences in combination with different verbs can convey an idea “not at all necessary”, “not worth it”:
Why be afraid? - Why be afraid? / Don't be afraid.
Why worry? - Why worry? /Don't worry.
That's all you need to remember when using the question words what, which and why. Ask your questions correctly!
Very soon the final article of the series on question words will appear on the blog pages, from which you will learn everything about questions with when, where and how.
Stay tuned and subscribe to our regular newsletter, join us
four ways to differentiate. In general, one is enough. Let everyone take theirs.
1. if semantic emphasis is placed on the word WHAT, you can say: WHAT— WHAT. I know what you want. when the word THAT is not emphasized and can be thrown out - THAT. I know that you want some coffee.
2. when that part of the sentence that begins with WHAT has independent meaning: can be used separately as a question - WHAT, otherwise - that. from the example above: what do you want?- good enough that you want some coffee?- not good.
3. WHAT - has in itself semantic content. that is just for connection, it is “transparent glue”, so it can be omitted in both Russian and English. I saw WHAT-what you bought at the market. I saw what-that you bought at the coffee market.
4. if you can insert WHAT before THAT FACT- THAT, otherwise - what. example: I know the fact that you are from Kyiv / read the English language of pearls / love coffee.
more examples: I know WHAT he will buy you. I know WHAT he will buy you. - Tell me WHAT he will buy me! Tell me WHAT he will buy me! - He will buy you a dictionary. — I already know (that) he will buy me a dictionary. I already know (that) he will buy me a dictionary.
tasks to understand the difference between that and what
[light] ** 1. May I know what you do here every day? 2. You know that I work here. 3. Your boss says that you had 3 working days and 3 days off. 4. Can you tell if you work here every time you come here? 5. I know that you came here with a friend. [more difficult] ** 6. It doesn’t matter what they say about you. 7. The main thing is what they say about you.
in such cases, THAT is actually often omitted in English. but don't throw it away. for you this is a clear sign that we are dealing with a subordinate clause. until you become an expert on this topic, ALWAYS write and say THAT, which is a subordinate clause conjunction, which is one of the most important and largest topics in all of English, and which I covered in part three * my tutorial . Here content this section.
- starting: main, deciphering: subordinate clause - summary table of compiling the main and subordinate clauses - more examples: screenshots from other sources - subordinate clauses to be 1,2,3,4... the main thing is always the same: diagrams - question words and conjunctions, indirect question and task - awkward conjunctions that, what, if and task - complexly composed and complexly subordinated sentences - conjunctions requiring the present tense instead of the future - more examples - two tasks and features of the subject - before [after]: before [after] after vs before [ after] - examples in pictures and task - feature until: before vs while ... not - connective: subordinate clause + incentive - examples of errors associated with non-emphasis of the conjunction.
*
translation of the sentence on the top screen:
Caffeine tricks your brain into
thinking exercise is easier than
it really is and will enhance
anyone's workout performance.
Caffeine fools your brain into
thinking [WHAT] exercise [physical, i.e. fitness]
it is easier to eat than it actually is and improves
[any person's] results when lifting weights.
Sincerely,
I invite you to my FB page
In the English language you can find a number of pronouns that can not just replace nouns, but serve to combine two sentences into one - the main one and the subordinate clause. First of all, we mean the English pronouns who, which and that. These pronouns are usually called connective or relative. Often this group includes whom.
To begin with, you should understand that relative (Relative pronouns) and connecting (Conjunctive pronouns) pronouns are different groups.
I have a friend who can draw well. - I have a friend who draws great./ That is, we will find out exactly what kind of friend this is - a good drawer.
Do you know who wrote this book? - Do you know who wrote this book?/ Here the pronoun joins two clauses and does not define anyone.
Although they may be expressed in the same words and even have the same translation into Russian, these pronouns serve different functions in a sentence. The main purpose of our article is to help you choose the right word, and not to provide a classification of pronouns. Based on this, we will talk about the features of each word, regardless of their group.
Each of the presented pronouns can be translated from English as “which”, “which”. Pronouns are NOT interchangeable. We will talk about the reasons further.
English pronoun Who
This pronoun can only be used to refer to a person. Remember, in English it is not enough to be an animate noun, such as cat or horse. Many grammatical rules related to pronouns divide nouns into the category “person” and “non-person”.
This is a song about a man who sold the world. - This is a song about a man who sold the world.
Let's find out who killed who. - Let's find out who killed whom.
Since the word that performs the function of the subject presupposes a person, a person, we use the pronoun ‘who’.
This pronoun has a case form ‘ whom’ - “which”, “which”. This word in an English sentence expresses the addition of a subordinate clause:
Do you remember whom did you tell about it? - Do you remember who you told about this?
However, many linguists and philologists consider this form to be bookish. In colloquial speech it is most often replaced by 'that'.
English pronoun Which
The pronoun ‘which’ is also translated “which”, “which”, but unlike the previous word it can only be used in relation to inanimate objects and animals, that is, to “non-people”.
Sally don’t remember which way to go. - Sally didn’t remember which road to take.
It is generally accepted that the pronoun ‘which’ is a more bookish version of ‘that’, which can be found more often in colloquial speech. However, these words cannot always replace each other. ‘That’ will never be used as the subject of a subordinate clause:
Tell me, which car is yours? - Tell me, what car is yours?
This is an important point to pay attention to. The pronoun ‘that’, which we will now discuss, very often replaces ‘who’ or ‘which’ in speech if they are relative.
BUT 'that' is never used as a connecting pronoun.
English pronoun That
So, we have decided that this English pronoun is relative. Its beauty lies in the fact that it can replace almost any relative pronoun, regardless of what noun it is attached to - animate or inanimate, be it a person or an animal:
There's a look on your face that I would like to knock out. -Your face has such an expression that I want to punch you (which I just want to knock out).
In this sentence, the English pronoun 'that' refers to the inanimate noun 'look'.
Let's consider another proposal:
Do you have someone that you love to distract? - Do you have someone you love madly?
In this example, the pronoun ‘that’ refers to the word ‘someone’, denoting a person, a person.
Let’s talk about another niche occupied by the English pronoun ‘that’. There are several cases where we can only use this word:
- after ordinal numbers
- after construction with a superlative adjective
- after the words everything, all, any, every
The first rule that you should remember is - there are no rules. - The first rule you need to remember is that there are no rules.
This is the most beautiful painting that I’ve ever seen. - This is the most beautiful picture I have ever seen.
All that you need is love. - All you need is Love.
This choice is due to the fact that ‘that’, like definite article 'the' refers to an object, one of a kind, specific, given.
So, we hope that this article will significantly help you in choosing the right pronoun.
We wish you interesting and useful English!
Victoria Tetkina