Lesson 2.2.1 · Las preguntas
❓ Question Words
Six words unlock every Spanish question. Memorize the accents — they're what tell the reader (and the speaker's intonation) that it's a question word, not a relative one.
Sub-lessons
Break this lesson into focused chunks. Each sub-lesson has its own Memory Lab — active recall, mnemonics, elaboration, interleaved review, and shadowing — scoped to just those words.
The six essentials
All written question words carry a tilde: quién, qué, dónde, cuándo, cómo, por qué. 'Por qué' (why) is two words; 'porque' (because) is one — easy trap.
who
what
where
when
how
why
Example sentences
Hoy estoy quién.
Today I feel who.
Mi amigo es muy qué.
My friend is very what.
La comida está dónde.
The food is where.
Mini-diálogo
Mi amigo es muy quién.
My friend is very who.
La comida está qué.
The food is what.
Useful conversation starters
Plug-and-play phrases that keep a chat going.
and you?
Formal: '¿y usted?'
are you hungry?
are you married?
Feminine: 'casada'.
are you well too?
can you help me?
Very Colombian: '¿me colabora?'
can you repeat that?
do you have children?
a little tired
Example sentences
¿y tú?.
and you?.
Siempre digo: "¿tienes hambre?".
I always say, "are you hungry?."
Una persona amable diría: "¿estás casado?".
A kind person would say, "are you married?."
Mini-diálogo
Siempre digo: "¿y tú?".
I always say, "and you?."
Una persona amable diría: "¿tienes hambre?".
A kind person would say, "are you hungry?."
Memory lab
Five research-backed techniques — active recall, mnemonics, elaboration, interleaving, and production — applied to this lesson's vocabulary. Your progress trains a spaced-repetition schedule under the hood.
Force the answer from memory before peeking. The struggle is the workout — that's the testing effect.
Recall from English
are you married?
Practice exercises
Test what stuck. Multiple-choice and fill-in-the-blank — pulled live from this lesson's vocabulary.
who
un poco cansado
are you married?
¿y tú?
¿tienes hambre?
¿tienes hijos?
Fill the blank
Hoy estoy _____.
Today I feel who.
Fill the blank
La comida está _____.
The food is where.
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