Overview of Questions in Spanish

• Questions in Spanish are formulated in an inverted manner where the verb typically precedes the subject.

• Spanish questions can either be yes/no questions (questions that can be answered with a "yes" or "no") or information questions (questions that require more information as a response).

Yes/No Questions

• Yes/no questions are the simplest type of question in Spanish. They can often be formed by just changing the tone of your voice, without altering the structure of the sentence. For instance, "Tú eres Juan" (You are Juan) can become "¿Tú eres Juan?" (Are you Juan?) by using a rising intonation.

• Another way to form yes/no questions is by beginning the sentence with the verb followed by the subject. For example, "Eres tú Juan?" (Are you Juan?).

• With auxiliary verbs, the structure is "auxiliary verb + subject + main verb". Example: "¿Ha Juan comprado el libro?" (Has Juan bought the book?).

Information Questions

• Information questions are more complex and require a question word at the beginning of the question, such as "qué" (what), "quién" (who), "dónde" (where), "cuándo" (when), "por qué" (why), "cómo" (how), "cuál" (which), and "cuánto" (how much/how many).

• Like English, the verb follows the question word, for example: "¿Dónde está Juan?" (Where is Juan?).

• Two important things to remember: if asking about the subject of the sentence, never invert the subject and verb. "¿Quién es ese hombre?" (Who is that man?) compared to "¿A quién ves?" (Who do you see?), where "a quién" is the object.

• "Cuál" means which, but also means what before "ser". For example, "¿Cuál es tu nombre?" (What's your name?), literally "Which one is your name?".

Responding to Questions

• To answer yes/no questions, use "sí" (yes) or "no" (no). Note that Spanish language allows for double negatives, e.g., "No, no tengo dinero" (No, I don't have money).

• When responding to information questions, the answer often begins with the verb. For example, to "¿Dónde está Juan?" (Where is Juan?), the response could be "Juan está en la biblioteca" (Juan is at the library).

• Be careful with answering negative questions. "¿No quieres comer?" (Don't you want to eat?), "Sí, no quiero comer" (Yes, I don't want to eat). Confirming the negative in this way can be confusing but it's commonplace in Spanish.

Understanding the structure and formations of questions in Spanish is critical in achieving effective communication. Persistently practicing and forming your own questions will help enhance your comfort level with Spanish grammar.