HOW TO PREPARE AND
ASK GREAT QUESTIONS
QUESTION TIME!
Common mistakes to avoid when asking questions
• Asking vague or unclear questions.
• Askingleading questions: Leading questions are questions that are
phrased in a way that suggests a particular answer which can be seen as
manipulative and can undermine trust between colleagues.
• Interrupting
QUESTIONS, • Askingtoo many questions: Asking too many questions can be
QUESTIONS… overwhelming for the speaker and the audience.
• Notlistening: Failing to listen carefully can lead to misunderstanding and
miscommunication.
• Beingconfrontational: Confrontational questioning can make people
defensive and can lead to conflict.
• Asking
questions for the sake of asking: Asking questions just to appear
engaged or interested can be seen as insincere.
Questions use subject-verb inversion. Remember the main verb can be in
any verb tense and this will determine the auxiliary verb (do/does - am/are/is -
have/has – did – was/were – had).
ASKING Yes/no questions with the verb “to be” MS
• Main verb + Subject
DIRECT • Are you Spanish?
QUESTIONS Verb “to be” with a question word QUMS
• QUestion word + Main verb + Subject
WITH • Where are you from?
REGULAR & Yes/No questions with other verbs ASM
• Auxiliary verb + Subject + Main verb
IRREGULAR • Do you have a car?
VERBS Other verbs > questions with a question word QUASM
• QUestion word + Auxiliary verb + Subject + Main verb
• Where do you have your car?
ASKING QUESTIONS WITH MODAL VERBS
Modal verbs are auxiliary verbs that are used to express modality, or the attitude of the speaker towards the action
or event being described.
• Modal verbs are special verbs which are not conjugated.
• They are always the same for all subjects.
• Modal verbs are always followed by a verb in the infinitive, without “to”, except:
• Ought to + infinitive
• Have to + infinitive / Need to + infinitive / Be able to + infinitive ARE NOT modal verbs, but they are used in
similar ways and sometimes in substitution of modal verbs.
Yes/No questions: invert the subject and modal verb.
• Can you speak Spanish?
• Should we start the meeting now?
• Will you be attending the conference?
Question words: begin with the wh-word followed by the modal verb, the subject, and the main verb.
• Modal verb "can": What can you do to improve your language skills?
• Modal verb "should": Why should we invest in this project?
• Modal verb "will": When will the new product be launched?
Interrogative pronouns
QUESTION • What - asking for information about things and actions in general
• Which - to ask for specific information, choice, alternative, for a
WORDS thing, when there aren’t many things
• Who (subject) - an interrogative pronoun to begin questions about
people
• Whom (object) - the person is the object of the verb
• Whose - to ask about possession
Wh-words
• How – to ask, ‘in what way’ or ‘to what extent’, for a method, way,
or form
• When – to ask about what time something happens
• Where - to ask for information about a place
• Why – to ask about reasons and explanations
Do you know the question?
1. I got to work at 8 AM. What time did TCh says sentences -
you… ENUNCIATE the parts
in bold
2. The meeting will finish at 10 AM - What
time/When will the meeting finish? Make it more difficult
by enunciating another
3. The CEO told the marketing manager. part of the same
Who told the marketing manager? sentence
4. You can do it this way - How can I do it
5. He typed up the report this week. What
did he do this week?
6. The client cancelled the meeting Who
cancelled the meeting
7. The electric bill hasn’t been paid yet
which bill hasn’t been paid yet
1. There are 5 messages for you How many
messages are there for me
To ask for more specific information, we can make compound
questions by putting together two words.
• What … for? - to ask about the purpose of something or in
informal situations to mean why?
COMPOUND •
•
Since when - to ask at what time something began
How often…? - to ask about frequency
QUESTION •
•
How long…? - to ask about duration -time- or length
How much…? - to talk about quantity in uncountable nouns
WORDS •
•
How many…? - to talk about quantity in countable nouns
How old…? – to ask about age
• How far…? – to ask about distance
• What kind / What type…?
• Which kind / which type…?
• Why don’t …? – to make suggestions
TYPES Closed questions
OF Open questions
• Leading questions
DIRECT • Process questions
• Clarifying questions
QUESTIO • Hypothetical questions
NS Tag questions
CLOSED QUESTIONS
These are easy to answer since they require a short or limited answer. They are usually
objective and the person asking the question can be considered dominant. Many can
be answered with yes/no, but there are other types of answers.
Limited choice
• Would you like coffee or tea?
• We can take the bus or the train; which do you prefer?
Identification of a specific type of information
• What did you study at university?
• When will the report be finished?
When do we use closed questions?
• Early in conversations to encourage participation > small talk is a good example
• In situations where we need to get facts, for example, in research.
OPEN QUESTIONS
These allow a longer and more detailed response, a wide range of possible answers, and can encourage discussion and
exploration of a topic. They can’t be answered with yes/no. There are different types of open questions.
Leading questions
Leading questions push respondents to answer in a specific manner, based on the way they are framed and by including
certain terms and phrases.
• How satisfied are you with our product?
• When would you like to sign up for our insurance plan?
• How well did our services meet your needs?
• Don't you think that our proposal is the most comprehensive?"
• Wouldn't you agree that our company has the most experienced team?
Process questions
Process questions require more thought and analysis and/or a sharing of opinion. They can be particularly effective in a
business setting, where understanding processes can lead to increased efficiency and productivity.
• Can you walk me through the steps you took to complete this project?
• How did you come up with this idea?
Clarifying questions
OPEN
QUESTIONS Clarifying questions are questions that are asked to get more
information or to clarify something that is not clear or understood.
• Do you mean this specific product or service?
• Could you repeat that, please? I want to make sure I understand.
• I'm not sure I understand. Could you give me an example?
• Just to confirm, you want me to do X and Y, correct?
• Could you explain how this is relevant to our project?
• Do you mean that we need to complete this task by the end of the
week?
• Can you clarify your expectations for this project?