Interrogative Pronouns
The question or exclamation pronouns
| Thing | Person | Selection | Amount | ||
| Singular | masc
fem |
qué | quién | cuál | cuánto
cuánta |
| Plural | masc
fem |
qué | quienes | cuáles | cuántos
cuántas |
Use
Qué (what – how much – what for one – which) is unchangeable and stands exclusively for things and/or circumstances
Example:
¿Qué has dicho? – What did you say?
¿Qué hora es? – What time is it?
¿Qué novela lees? – What kind of novel are you reading?
¿Qué abrigo es el de Elena? – Which coat is Elena’s?
With preposition, the translation is different:
para qué (for what) – por qué (why) – de qué (about what) etc.
Example:
¿Para qué vienes? – What are you coming for?
¿Por qué preguntas? – Why do you ask?
Quién/es stands for persons who are not known or not intended. If you know in advance that you are asking for several people, you use quiénes.
Example:
¿Quién ha llamado? – Who called?
¿A quién esperas? – Who are you waiting for?
¿Quiénes son los de la izquierda? – Who are those on the left?
Cuál/es (which/what) is used as question pronoun. It asks for a person or a thing and serves the selection from a set. If this is not clear, it is expressed by de+Substantive, number or pronouns.
Furthermore, you ask with cuál/es for something you assume, e.g. that each country has a currency or capital, or each person has a name, address etc..
Example:
¿Cuál te gusta más? – Which one do you like better?
¿Cuál es la capital de España? – What is the capital of Spain?
Cuánto/-a/-os/-as (how much) depends on the noun in gender and number and asks for the number or quantity. As an exclamation pronoun it expresses a large amount (how much/very much)
Example:
¿Cuánta ropa necesitas? – How much clothes do you need?
¿Cuánto dura el viaje? – How long does the trip take?
¿Cuántas veces has estado en Perú? – How many times have you been to Peru?
¿Cuántos animales tienes? – How many animals do you have?
Further interrogative pronouns
dónde – where
adónde – whereto
de dónde – wherefrom
cuándo – when
cómo – how