Define interrogative pronouns and Uses of interrogative pronouns in sentence with examples

In this lesson, we will discuss about Define interrogative pronouns and Uses of interrogative pronouns in sentence.

Define interrogative pronouns:

An interrogative pronoun is a pronoun used to ask questions.

For example:

1. Who is that girl?

Who is the interrogative pronoun that ask a question about the girl.

2. Who are you?

Who is the interrogative pronoun that ask a question about you.

Who, whom, whose, what and which are interrogative pronouns, interrogative pronouns are similar in form to the relative pronouns, but they are used to ask questions rather than join sentences.

Uses of interrogative pronouns:

Who: The interrogative pronoun ‘who’ is used as the subject of the verb.

For example: Who is knocking at the door?
Who is the subject of the verb knock.

Whom: The interrogative pronoun whom is used as the object of the verb or preposition.

For example: To whom did you lend your CD?

Whom is the object of the work lend, the pronoun ‘whom’ is the objective or accusative case of ‘who’.

Whose: The interrogative pronoun ‘whose’ is used for persons and things. It is the possessive form of ‘who’.

For example: Whose bat is that?

In this sentence Whose indicates that the object bat belongs to somebody.

Which: ‘Which’ is also used for persons and things but for selecting from a given number.

For example:

1. Which one is your pen?
2. Which is more important?
3. Which one is mine?

What: What is used as a subject or an object, but only four things.

For example: What is Animation?

‘Which’ and ‘what’ can also be used as interrogative adjectives. But they will always appear before the noun.

For example: Which bag is yours?

Ever: When the word ‘ever’ is placed after an interrogative pronoun, the pronoun becomes emphatic.

It is used to express feelings like irritation, surprise or anger.

For example: Who ever would have thought that?

Else: The word else can be combined with ‘what’ and ‘who’ to lend emphasis to a question.

For example: Who else came to the Restaurant?

The emphatic interrogative pronouns that end in ever are often intended as rhetorical questions.

Interrogative Pronouns can also be used to ask indirect questions. In such cases, the sentence does not end in a question mark.

For example: Tell me who made the chicken.

The sentence does not end with a question mark, a question is still being posed. The speaker wishes to know who meet the chicken.

Let us read some more examples of interrogative pronouns:

1. Who won the cricket match?
2. Whom shall we ask when we get there?
3. Which would you like?
4. What is your school name?
5. Whose did they take?

Let us revise the important point for interrogative pronouns:

1. An interrogative pronoun is used to ask questions.
2. Who, whom, whose, what and which are interrogative pronouns.
3. The form of interrogative pronouns is the same as relative pronouns, but they are use to ask questions rather than join sentences.
4. ‘Who’ is used for people and things, and ask the subject of the verb.
5. ‘Whom’ is used as object of a verb or preposition.
6. ‘Whose’ is used for persons and things, and is the possessive case of ‘who’.
7. ‘Which’ is used for persons and things but for selecting from a given number.
8. ‘what’ is used as a subject or an object, but only four things.
9. ‘What’ and ‘which’ can also be used as interrogative pronouns.
10. When the word ‘ever’ is placed after an interrogative pronoun, the pronoun becomes emphatic.
11. The word ‘else’ can be combined with ‘what’ and ‘who’ to lend emphasis to a question.
12. Interrogated pronouns can also be used to ask indirect questions.