Greetings!
Welcome to this inclusive grammar tutorial concerning 'Interrogative Pronouns'. After trekking through this tutorial, you will be acquainted with the nature, functionalities, and many applications of these distinct types of pronouns, simplifying your way through conversational and written English.
An Overview of Interrogative Pronouns
Interrogative pronouns are a critical element of English grammar used for asking questions. They are called ‘Interrogative’ essentially because they are generally employed in interrogative sentences. That is, they are used to ask questions. Specifically, interrogative pronouns are employed to stand for the thing or things we don’t know and are asking about.
The versatile English language includes five main interrogative pronouns:
- Who
- Whom
- Which
- What
- Whose
Understanding Each Interrogative Pronoun
1. Who
'Who' is used to refer to the subject of a question and it mainly interrogates about a person or people.
Example:
- Who is the author of the Harry Potter series?
- Who wants more cookies?
2. Whom
'Whom' is essentially used to question about a specific person when they are the object of the query.
Example:
- To whom was the letter addressed?
- Whom did you call this morning?
3. Which
'Which' is typically used to ask for a choice between a specific set of entities (persons or things).
Example:
- Which is your book?
- Which of these chocolates would you prefer?
4. What
'What' is rather versatile and can be used when you are asking about a thing, an action, or a situation, and there’s no need for a choice among a limited set of options.
Example:
- What is your favourite song?
- What happened at the meeting?
5. Whose
'Whose' is uniquely used when you are inquiring about possession.
Example:
- Whose is this umbrella?
- Whose are these books on the table?
Compounds of Interrogative Pronouns
Apart from these five basic interrogative pronouns, there are also compounds starting with 'wh-' or 'how-', such as 'whoever', 'whatever', 'whichever', 'however', 'whenever', and 'wherever' among others. These work as interrogative pronouns but with an element of surprise, indifference, or confusion.
Example:
- Whatever happened to your promise?
- Whichever road shall we take?
Writing Tips: Interrogative Pronouns
Now that we have a basic understanding of interrogative pronouns, here are few tips to use them effectively:
- Remember that after interrogative pronouns, we should always use the subject and then the verb (e.g., What do you think? NOT What think you?).
- Avoid using an interrogative pronoun to end your sentence to prevent creating a run-on question.
- Bear in mind the contexts and appropriate applications of each interrogative pronoun.
In Conclusion
By understanding and applying these concepts, you can enhance your understanding of the English language and improve your writing skills. We hope this tutorial on 'Interrogative Pronouns' has been beneficial in brushing up your grammar knowledge and enhancing your language proficiency overall. Keep on practicing to acquire full command over their usage.
That's all for this tutorial! Should there be any queries or difficulties, don't hesitate to delve deeper and practice more with different sources.
