How to Use "Est-ce Que" to Ask Questions in French (2024)

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Est-ce que(pronounced"es keu") is a French expression that is useful for asking a question. Literally translated, this phrase means "is it that...," although in conversation it is rarely interpreted that way. It's a convenience of everyday French, an interrogatory phrase that easily turns a statement into a question. It is a slightly informal construction; the more formal or polite way to ask questions is with inversion, which involves inverting the normal pronoun/noun + verb order.

But in everyday spoken French, est-ce que is far more common and acceptable. It does the inverting for you: Est-ce que is the inversion of c'est que. (Note that a hyphen is required between ce and est when theyare inverted to est-ce.) The word order of the original sentence stays exactly the same; you just add the already inverted phrase est-ce que to the front of the sentence.

This simple structure works best for yes/no questions. For example:

• Tu travailles. / Est-ce que tu travailles? >You work. / Do you work?
• Paulette l'a trouvé. / Est-ce que Paulette l'a trouvé? >Paulette found it. / Did Paulette find it?
• Vous n'avez pas faim. / Est-ce que vous n'avez pas faim? >You aren't hungry. / Aren't you hungry? OR Are you not hungry?

Note that que must contract when it precedes a word beginning with a vowel:

• Elle est arrivée. / Est-ce qu'elle est arrivée? >She has arrived. / Has she arrived?
• Il y a des problèmes. / Est-ce qu'il y a des problèmes? >There are problems. / Are there problems?
• Anne vient avec nous. / Est-ce qu'Anne vient avec nous? >Anne is coming with us. > Is Anne coming with us?

To ask questions that ask for information like "who," "what," "where," "when," "why" and "how," place an interrogative pronoun, adverb, or adjective before est-ce que. For example:

• Qui est-ce que vous avez vu? >Whom did you see?​
• Quand est-ce que tu vas partir? >When are you going to leave?​
• Quel livre est-ce qu'il veut? >Which book does he want?

Remember that est-ce que is the inversion of c'est que, meaning literally, "It is that." That's why a hyphen is required between est and ce: c'est = ce + est which are inverted to est-ce.

Depending on their place in the sentence, the variationsqu'est-ce qui and qui est-ce quiare also useful, but understanding them requires further discussion ofinterrogative pronouns. For now, here's a summary.

SUMMARY OF FRENCH INTERROGATIVE PRONOUNS