The Interrogative Sentence (La Frase Interrogativa)

Asking questions is fundamental for communication! In Italian, forming questions is generally simpler than in English. There’s often no need for auxiliary verbs like “do” or “does”.

1. Intonation (The Simply Way)

The easiest way to ask a question in Italian is simply to raise the pitch of your voice at the end of the sentence. The structure remains exactly the same as a statement.

• Statement: Tu parli italiano. (You speak Italian.)

• Question: Tu parli italiano? (Do you speak Italian?) ⤴

• Statement: Marco è a casa. (Marco is at home.)

• Question: Marco è a casa? (Is Marco at home?) ⤴

2. Inversion (Subject at the End)

For a slightly more formal tone or for emphasis, you can put the subject at the end of the sentence.

• Parli italiano tu? (Do you speak Italian?)
• È a casa Marco? (Is Marco at home?)
• Hanno mangiato i bambini? (Have the children eaten?)

3. Question Words (Interrogativi)

To ask for specific information (who, what, where, when, why), we use question words. These usually go at the beginning of the sentence.

Question Word	English	Example	Meaning
Chi	Who	Chi sei?	Who are you?
Che / Che cosa	What	Che cosa fai?	What are you doing?
Dove	Where	Dove abiti?	Where do you live?
Quando	When	Quando arrivi?	When do you arrive?
Perché	Why / Because	Perché ridi?	Why are you laughing?
Come	How	Come stai?	How are you?
Quanto	How much/many	Quanto costa?	How much does it cost?
Quale	Which	Quale preferisci?	Which one do you prefer?

4. “Tutto bene?” (Everything good?)

Often in spoken Italian, we use short phrases to ask questions, relying heavily on context and intonation.

• Tutto bene? (Is everything okay?)
• Pronto? (Are you ready?)
• Davvero? (Really?)

Common Mistakes

❌ Using “Do/Does” like in English

• Wrong: Fai tu parlare italiano?
• Right: Parli italiano?

❌ Forgetting the question mark

• In writing, always remember the point interrogative (?)!

Practice Exercises

Turn these statements into questions using intonation (just add ?) or inversion:

1. Luigi ha fame. -> ____________________
2. Voi siete stanchi. -> ____________________
3. Maria studia medicina. -> ____________________

Translate:

4. Where do you go? -> ____________________
5. Why are you sad? -> ____________________

Answers

1. Luigi ha fame? / Ha fame Luigi?
2. Voi siete stanchi? / Siete stanchi voi?
3. Maria studia medicina? / Studia medicina Maria?
4. Dove vai?
5. Perché sei triste?