W-Fragen in German are questions that begin with the question words--in English: who, what, when, where, why, and how. To contrast, yes/no questions in German begin with the verb ("Arbeiten Sie heute?" "Kommen Sie aus Bayern?").
To help you remember these question words and to help you work out the tough parts, here's a quick guide to the W-Fragen in German:
| German | English |
| was | what |
| wann | when |
| wo | where |
| wie | how |
| warum | why |
| wer | who |
The Tough Parts Explained:
One tough part is the false friend of wer, because wer means who, not "where." Memorize the rhyming sentence Wer ist er? (Who is he?) to help you remember that wer refers to a he--a person.
The other tough part is the word wann, because wann is the question word, but wenn also means "when." So associate the 'a' sound of wann with the 'a' sound of Frage, and you'll remember it every time!
Want a Free, Printable Guide?
Here's an expanded Quick Guide to the W-Fragen using Vorlagen, model sentences. Print and keep this Quick Guide to help you learn German, learn the Vorlagen, and always know which Fragewort to use! You can also email this article to your fellow German classmates or your German teacher.
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How do you remember the question words? Do you have more tips? Please comment below!