Asking questions in German: no auxiliary, and the seven W-words
CEFR A1 · part 1
edumaterial's parts within the level. The European framework does not subdivide them.
Reading German aloud: ei, ie, z, v, w, chReading any German word aloud, knowing which letters sound different from how they are…Every noun takes a capital letterCapitalising every noun, and using those capitals when reading to find what a long…der, die or das: the gender of nounsChoosing der, die or das, and spotting the endings that give the gender away without…sein and haben: where they part company with EnglishConjugating sein and haben in the present, and knowing which one each sentence needs.The present tense: six endings and the vowel that changesConjugating any regular verb in the present, and spotting the verbs that change their…The verb always comes secondPutting the verb in second place whatever the sentence starts with, and moving the…The rule, in three lines
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.