Grammar - Question Words

Question Words

Which and what - the difference
Which and what are often both possible, with little difference of meaning.
Which/What is the hottest city in the gulf?
Which/What train did you come on?
Which/What people have influenced you most in your last vacation?

Which is preferred when the speaker has a limited number of choices in mind.
We've got white or brown shirt. Which will you have?
(More natural than... What will you have?)
Which size do you want- small, medium or large?
When the speaker is not thinking of a limited number of choices, what is used.
What language do people speak in Greenland?
(More natural than Which language...)
What's your father phone number? (NOT Which is your phone number?)

Without nouns: who, which and what
When these words are used as pronouns, without nouns immediately after them, we generally use who, not which, for people.
Who won - Smith or Khaled? (NOT -Which won-...?)
Who are you going out with - Nadia or Mary?

However, which can be used in questions about people's identity, and what can be used to ask about people's jobs and functions.
'Which is your husband?' 'The one in jeans.'
'So Janet's the Managing Director. What's Peter?' 'He is the Company Secretary.'

And which is sometimes used instead of who in questions about classes of people.
Which is more valuable to society - a politician or a nurse?

Which and what can both be used to ask about things (for the difference, see above).
Which do you prefer - electric cookers or gas?
What have you got in your pockets?

whose
With a noun or alone
The question word whose can be used with a noun as a determiner like my, your etc.
Whose car is that outside?
Whose drawing do you think looks the nicest?
Whose can also be used alone, like mine, yours etc.
Whose is that bicycle outside?
'Whose is this?' 'Mine.'

Prepositions
Prepositions can normally come either before whose (more formal) or at the end of the clause (less formal).
For whose benefit were all these changes made?
Whose side are you on?
In short questions with no verb, prepositions can only come before whose.
I'm going to buy a flat.' 'With whose money?' (NOT 'Whose money with?')

Whose and who's
Whose is a possessive word meaning 'of whom/which', used in questions
and relative clauses. Who's is the contraction of who is or who has. Compare:
- Whose is that coat?
It was a decision whose importance was not realized at the time.
(NOT ... who's importance-...)
- Do you know anybody who's going to Egypt in the next week?
(NOT ... anybody whose going...)
I've got a cousin who's never been to London.
(NOT .. .-whose never been...)


Why and why not
We generally use Why not?, not Why?, in short replies to negative statements.
Compare:
'They've decided to move to Devon.' 'Why?'
'I can't manage tomorrow evening.' 'Why not?' (More natural than Why?)
Why not? can also be used to agree to a suggestion.
'Let's hang out this evening.' 'Yes, why not?'