Interrogative pronouns
The interrogative pronoun (also: interrogative [um], question pronoun, interrogative pronoun, interrogative pronoun ) is a word that plays the role of a pronoun in a question sentence and at the same time identifies the sentence as a supplementary question, be it as a direct or indirect (embedded) question. The non-pronominal counterpart to question pronouns are the interrogative adverbs (question adverbs). Both groups are combined in German as "W-words" .
Examples:
„Was hast du nur getan?“ „Wer hat das getan?“ „(Ich frage mich), wer so etwas tun würde.“
Since all languages allow the formation of supplementary questions, all languages also have question pronouns. However, they are not distinguished by indefinite pronouns in all languages . The interrogative pronouns of German , who / what (with their declined forms: whose, whom, whom), as well as which etc. have, at least in the spoken language, uses as indefinite pronouns, can therefore also be synonymous with anyone, any etc. Es However, there is a syntactic difference in German that question pronouns must appear at the beginning of a sentence.
Examples:
„Wen hast du getroffen?“ (Ergänzungsfrage, markiert durch wen) „Hast du wen getroffen?“ (= Hast du irgendwen getroffen? — keine Ergänzungsfrage)
See also
literature
- Helmut Glück (Ed.): Metzler Lexicon Language. 4th, updated and revised edition. Keyword: "interrogative pronouns". Metzler, Stuttgart / Weimar 2010, ISBN 978-3-476-02335-3 .
