French Question Words: Qui, Que, Où, Quand, Comment
🇫🇷 French · 20 cards · A1 · by Théo Marchand
These are the 20 words you need to ask almost anything in French: the easy ones (qui, où, quand, comment, pourquoi, combien) and the ones that trip everybody up — que, quoi, qu'est-ce que, qu'est-ce qui, quel/quelle, lequel.
Two real difficulties. French gives you three ways to ask the same thing: « Tu pars quand ? » (everyday speech), « Quand est-ce que tu pars ? » (neutral), « Quand pars-tu ? » (formal or written). My examples lean on the way people actually talk. And "what" is not one word in French — it changes depending on where it sits in the sentence.
In Québec you will also hear the -tu particle in yes/no questions (« Tu viens-tu ? »). I flag it where it matters.
Flip through the cards, then switch to Quiz. Tap the play button on any row to hear it. The full table below is there to read, print or copy into your own flashcard app.
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All 20 cards
| # | French | English | Example | Audio |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | qui Subject or object. As object, speech prefers "Tu invites qui ?"; formal: "Qui invites-tu ?" | who, whom | Qui a pris mon café ? Who took my coffee? | |
| 2 | où Always with the accent: "ou" without it means "or". | where | Où sont les toilettes, s'il vous plaît ? Where are the toilets, please? | |
| 3 | quand In speech the question word often goes at the end. Neutral: "Quand est-ce que tu pars ?"; formal: "Quand pars-tu ?" | when | Tu pars quand ? When are you leaving? | |
| 4 | comment On its own, "Comment ?" means "Sorry, what?" — politer than "Quoi ?" | how; sorry? (pardon?) | Comment tu t'appelles ? What's your name? | |
| 5 | pourquoi The answer starts with "parce que". Also "Pourquoi pas ?" = why not? | why | Pourquoi tu ris ? Why are you laughing? | |
| 6 | combien Used on its own, with no noun after it. | how much, how many | Ça coûte combien ? How much does it cost? | |
| 7 | combien de No article after "de": combien de pain, combien de gens. | how many, how much (+ noun) | Tu as combien de frères et sœurs ? How many brothers and sisters do you have? | |
| 8 | quoi Used after a preposition or at the end of the sentence. Alone, "Quoi ?" is blunt, like "What?!" | what | Tu parles de quoi ? What are you talking about? | |
| 9 | c'est quoi Informal but extremely common in speech; the written/formal version is "Qu'est-ce que c'est ?" | what is it, what's that | C'est quoi, ce bruit ? What's that noise? | |
| 10 | qu'est-ce que Followed by subject + verb. Becomes "qu'est-ce qu'" before a vowel: qu'est-ce qu'il dit ? | what (object of the verb) | Qu'est-ce que tu fais ce soir ? What are you doing tonight? | |
| 11 | qu'est-ce qui Use "qui" when "what" does the action: "Qu'est-ce qui ne va pas ?" | what (subject of the verb) | Qu'est-ce qui se passe ? What's going on? | |
| 12 | que Requires inversion and sounds formal or written. Everyday speech uses qu'est-ce que or quoi. | what (formal, before the verb) | Que voulez-vous boire ? What would you like to drink? | |
| 13 | est-ce que Not translated in English; neutral in any situation. In Québec speech you'll also hear "Tu viens-tu ?" | (marks a yes/no question) | Est-ce que tu viens avec nous ? Are you coming with us? | |
| 14 | quel Masculine singular; agrees with the noun it asks about. | which, what (+ masculine noun) | Quel jour on est aujourd'hui ? What day is it today? | |
| 15 | quelle Feminine singular. Plurals: quels (m.), quelles (f.) — all four sound identical. | which, what (+ feminine noun) | Quelle est ton adresse ? What's your address? | |
| 16 | à quelle heure Don't say "quel temps" for clock time — "Quel temps fait-il ?" asks about the weather. | at what time, when | À quelle heure tu finis le travail ? What time do you finish work? | |
| 17 | lequel Forms: lequel, laquelle, lesquels, lesquelles. Replaces the noun, so no noun follows. | which one | J'hésite entre les deux : lequel tu préfères ? I can't decide between the two: which one do you prefer? | |
| 18 | d'où Formal: "D'où venez-vous ?" Answer with "Je viens de…" | where from | Tu viens d'où ? Where are you from? | |
| 19 | à qui "À qui est…" asks about ownership; "Tu parles à qui ?" means who are you talking to. | to whom; whose | À qui est ce manteau ? Whose coat is this? | |
| 20 | depuis quand Used with the present tense in French, unlike the English present perfect. | since when, how long | Depuis quand tu joues de la guitare ? How long have you been playing guitar? |
Born in Lyon, living in Montréal. I write the phrases the way people actually say them on both sides of the Atlantic and mark the difference when it matters.
Questions about this deck
- What's the difference between qu'est-ce que and qu'est-ce qui?
- Both mean "what". Use qu'est-ce qui when "what" is the subject doing the action: "Qu'est-ce qui se passe ?" (What is happening?). Use qu'est-ce que when a subject follows and "what" is the object: "Qu'est-ce que tu veux ?" (What do you want?). Quick test: if a verb comes straight after, use qui; if a person or a pronoun comes after, use que.
- When do I use quel instead of qu'est-ce que?
- Use quel/quelle when the question is attached to a noun, or before the verb être: quel jour, quelle heure, quelle est ton adresse. Use qu'est-ce que when no noun is involved: "Qu'est-ce que tu manges ?" So it's "Quel film tu regardes ?" but "Qu'est-ce que tu regardes ?" Quel agrees in gender and number: quel, quelle, quels, quelles — all pronounced the same.
- Do I really need est-ce que or inversion to ask a question in French?
- No. In everyday spoken French you can keep normal word order and just raise your voice, or put the question word at the end: "Tu pars quand ?", "Ça coûte combien ?", "Tu viens ?". Est-ce que is neutral and safe in any situation, while inversion ("Quand pars-tu ?") sounds formal or written. In Québec you'll also hear a -tu particle in yes/no questions: "Tu viens-tu ?"
- Why do French people say quoi instead of que?
- Que is the unstressed form: it sits right before the verb and needs inversion ("Que fais-tu ?"), which sounds formal. Quoi is the stressed form, used after a preposition ("de quoi ?", "avec quoi ?") or at the end of a sentence ("Tu fais quoi ?"). On its own, "Quoi ?" is quite blunt — say "Comment ?" or "Pardon ?" when you haven't understood and want to stay polite.
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