Sign inInterrogative Adverbs for intermediate learners
Interrogative adverbs are words such as 'why' and 'where' that are used to ask questions. In this lesson, we will learn more about them.
What Are Interrogative Adverbs?
Interrogative adverbs are adverbs that are used to ask questions about a particular aspect of a sentence, such as time, place, frequency, or manner.
Interrogative Adverbs: Types
Mainly, interrogative adverbs are classified into four groups. Take a look at the list below:
- Interrogative Adverbs of Time
- Interrogative Adverbs of Manner
- Interrogative Adverbs of Place
- Interrogative Adverbs of Reason
Now, let us see how each category functions and is used in statements:
Interrogative Adverbs of Time
Interrogative adverbs of time are used to ask questions and demand information about specific aspects of time, such as duration, frequency, or timing. Words such as 'When', 'how long', and 'how often' are commonly used to ask questions and gather information about time-related details. Let us examine some examples below:
As you can see, the sentence is asking about the duration of an action.
Interrogative Adverbs of Manner
Interrogative adverbs of manner are used to ask about the way in which an action is performed. Questions of this type typically start with the adverb 'how'. Let us take a quick look at some examples:
As you can see, the sentence asks about the manner in which the action took place in.
Interrogative Adverbs of Place
The third group is called interrogative adverbs of place. 'Where' is an interrogative adverb commonly used to ask about the location of something. Pay attention to the following examples:
Here, the sentence is asking about the location of an action or a person.
Interrogative Adverbs of Reason
Interrogative adverbs of reason are used when we want to ask questions about the reasons something did or did not happen. 'Why' is commonly used in this form of a question. Let us take a look at the examples below:
As you can see, the sentence demands a reason as an answer.
Tip!
These interrogative words can also function as interrogative determiners, but there is an important distinction between the two. While both are used to ask questions, an interrogative determiner always modifies a noun, while an interrogative adverb stands alone and does not modify a noun. Compare the following sentences:
Here, 'which' is followed by a noun which makes it an interrogative determiner.
Here, 'when' is used alone which makes it an interrogative determiner.
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