Asking questions in German: no auxiliary, and the seven W-words

German has no auxiliary for questions. There are two shapes: the yes/no one, where the verb comes FIRST —Wohnst du hier?—, and the W-word one, where the verb comes straight after it —Wo wohnst du?—. The seven basics: wer, was, wo, wann, wie, warum, woher.

The usual slip. Reaching for an auxiliary. German has no «do»: the main verb itself moves to the front. Wohnst du hier? and Wo wohnst du? — never «Tust du hier wohnen».

Why it catches you out. English is the only one of the four languages that inserts «do» in questions, and that is what comes out: «Where do you live?» becomes «Wo tust du wohnen?». There is a second: English has one «where» and German has three — wo, wohin, woher.