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French Question Words
The core French question words are où (where), quand (when), comment (how), pourquoi (why), qui (who), que/quoi (what), and combien (how much, how many). Learn these seven and you can ask for directions, times, prices, reasons, and names.
The question frames themselves — est-ce que, inversion, intonation — belong to the asking questions guide; this page focuses on the words and their quirks, above all "what", which changes shape depending on where it stands.
In short
- Place, time, manner, reason: où = where, quand = when, comment = how, pourquoi = why.
- People, things, amounts: qui = who, que / quoi = what, combien (de) = how much / how many.
- Almost every word slots into the same three structures unchanged — only "what" shifts shape: que at the front, quoi at the end.
question wordest-ce que frameinversion· hover a highlighted word for its label
The seven words
The full set at a glance — all invariable: they never change for gender or number.
| Word | Meaning | Quick example |
|---|---|---|
| où | where | Où est la gare ? |
| quand | when | Quand est-ce que tu arrives ? |
| comment | how | Comment ça va ? |
| pourquoi | why | Pourquoi pas ? |
| qui | who | Qui parle ? |
| que / quoi | what | Qu’est-ce que c’est ? |
| combien (de) | how much / how many | C’est combien ? |
One word, three frames
Every word on this list slots into the three question structures from the asking questions guide the same way. Taking où as the model:
Où est-ce que tu travailles ?
Où travailles-tu ?
Tu travailles où ?
All three mean "Where do you work?" — how each frame is built and when to use it is taught on that page; here we just swap words into the slot.
Embedded questions like Je ne sais pas où il habite — no est-ce que, no inversion — are covered separately under indirect questions.
Where does she work?
— Où sits at the front, and est-ce qu’ elides before elle.
Where is she going?
— Où plus inversion — va-t-elle needs the -t- between the two vowel sounds.
Quand, comment, pourquoi
Quand and comment happily sit at the end in speech, like où; pourquoi prefers to stay at the front even in casual questions. The answer pourquoi expects usually starts with parce que (because).
When are you leaving?
— In speech, quand very often just stays at the end of the statement.
How does it work?
— Comment asks about manner or means; the est-ce que frame keeps the rest in statement order.
Why is he crying?
— Pourquoi asks for a reason; pleure-t-il is the formal frame.
Que, qu’est-ce que, and quoi
"What" is the only question word with two faces. At the front of a question, it is que — almost always fused with the est-ce que frame, eliding to qu’: qu’est-ce que… At the end of a casual question, it becomes quoi.
Bare que does exist at the front, but only with inversion (Que fais-tu ?). Quoi is also the form after prepositions: De quoi est-ce que tu parles ? — or casually, De quoi tu parles ?
What are you doing tonight?
— The front form Qu’ is que glued onto est-ce que.
What are you doing tonight?
— After the verb, "what" becomes quoi — never que.
Qui: asking about people
Qui means "who" and never elides — even before a vowel it stays qui. When qui is the subject (the person doing the action), the frame shifts to est-ce qui: qui est-ce qui… When qui is the object, the ordinary est-ce que frame applies. Bare qui also works as a subject on its own: Qui vient ?
Who made that noise?
— Qui performs the action here, so the frame ends in est-ce qui.
Who are you inviting?
— Here Qui is the person being invited — an object — so the ordinary est-ce que follows.
Combien and combien de
Combien on its own means "how much" and is the word for every price question. Before a noun, it needs de — always bare de, never du or des, eliding to d’ before a vowel:
Combien de temps ? Combien d’argent ? Combien d’élèves ?
English separates "how much" from "how many"; French does not — combien (de) covers both.
How much does it cost?
— The classic shop question: combien stays at the end in speech.
How many brothers and sisters do you have?
— Combien de keeps bare de before the noun; as-tu is the formal frame.
Common mistakes
✗Elle a dit que ?
✓Elle a dit quoi ?
Que cannot stand alone after the verb; in-place "what" is always quoi.
✗Quoi est-ce que tu regardes ?
✓Qu’est-ce que tu regardes ?
Quoi never goes in front of est-ce que. At the front, "what" is que, which elides to qu’ before est-ce.
✗Tu as combien des cousins ?
✓Tu as combien de cousins ?
After combien, French uses bare de before the noun — never des, du, or de la.
✗Pourquoi que tu pleures ?
✓Pourquoi est-ce que tu pleures ?
Casual French says Pourquoi tu pleures ? with nothing after pourquoi; inserting que is nonstandard. In neutral style, use the full est-ce que frame.
✗Qui est-ce que vient ce soir ?
✓Qui est-ce qui vient ce soir ?
When "who" is the subject of the verb, the frame ends in qui; est-ce que introduces an object.
Check yourself
1 / 5You want to know the place: ___ est-ce que tu habites ?
2 / 5Casual speech, word at the end: Tu fais ___ ce soir ?
3 / 5___ vous cherchez ? (asking "what")
4 / 5Tu veux ___ lait dans ton café ?
5 / 5___ a appelé ce matin ? (asking who did it)
Frequently asked questions
What are the French question words?
The core set is où (where), quand (when), comment (how), pourquoi (why), qui (who), que/quoi (what), and combien (how much, how many). Quel ("which") also asks questions but agrees with a noun, so it works differently — see the quel vs quelle guide.
What is the difference between que and quoi in French?
Both mean "what". Que goes at the front of a question, usually as qu’est-ce que (Qu’est-ce que tu fais ?); quoi stays after the verb in casual questions (Tu fais quoi ?) and after prepositions (De quoi tu parles ?).
What does qu’est-ce que mean?
Literally "what is it that", but in practice it simply means "what" at the start of a question: Qu’est-ce que tu veux ? = What do you want? Before a vowel it becomes qu’est-ce qu’ (Qu’est-ce qu’il veut ?).
How do you say "how many" in French?
Combien, followed by de before a noun: combien de livres (how many books), combien de temps (how much time). French uses the same word for "how much" and "how many", and the de never becomes des or du.
Is "Tu fais quoi ?" correct French?
Yes — it is completely normal casual spoken French, with the question word left in place at the end. In formal writing or polished speech, prefer Qu’est-ce que tu fais ? or Que fais-tu ?
Memory tip
Learn the four adverbs as one chant — où, quand, comment, pourquoi — then add qui for people, quoi for things, and combien for amounts. With those seven words and one frame, you can ask almost anything.
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