est-ce que

Yes-no Questions with Est-ce Que

Level 1

Use est-ce que at the beginning of a statement to turn it into a question. It is the most common and neutral way to ask a question in French.

How It Works

The phrase est-ce que literally means 'is it that,' but it functions as a fixed marker to signal a question.

1. Structure and Word Order:
The most important rule is that word order does not change. You simply place the phrase at the start of a statement:
[Est-ce que] + [Subject] + [Verb] + [Object]
Example: Est-ce que tu aimes le café ? (Do you like coffee?)

2. Information Questions:
Place it after question words like où (where), quand (when), or pourquoi (why):
[Question Word] + [est-ce que] + [Subject] + [Verb]...

3. Asking 'What' (Qu'est-ce...):
To ask 'what', you must choose based on the grammatical role:
• Qu'est-ce que: Used when 'what' is the object (e.g., Qu'est-ce que tu fais ? - What are you doing?)
• Qu'est-ce qui: Used when 'what' is the subject (e.g., Qu'est-ce qui tombe ? - What is falling?)

4. Asking 'Who' (Qui est-ce...):
Similarly, when using qui (who):
• Qui est-ce que: Used when 'who' is the object (e.g., Qui est-ce que tu appelles ? - Who are you calling?)
• Qui est-ce qui: Used when 'who' is the subject (e.g., Qui est-ce qui arrive ? - Who is arriving?)

5. Elision:
When the next word starts with a vowel, que becomes qu'. This is called elision. Note that qui never undergoes elision.

6. Register:
This is the standard way to ask questions in French. It is more formal than rising intonation but less formal than inversion.

Examples (6)

  1. Est-ce que vous parlez français ?

    Do you speak French?

    Word by Word: Is it that you speak French?

    A standard yes-no question. Notice that the word order 'vous parlez' is the same as in a statement.

  2. Qu'est-ce que tu manges ?

    What are you eating?

    Word by Word: What is it that you eat?

    Use 'Qu'est-ce que' when 'what' is the object of the verb (you are eating something).

  3. Qu'est-ce qui se passe ?

    What is happening?

    Word by Word: What is it that itself passes?

    Use 'Qu'est-ce qui' when 'what' is the subject of the sentence (something is happening).

  4. Qui est-ce que tu vois ?

    Who do you see?

    Word by Word: Who is it that you see?

    Use 'Qui est-ce que' when 'who' is the object of the verb (you see someone).

  5. Qui est-ce qui chante ?

    Who is singing?

    Word by Word: Who is it that sings?

    Use 'Qui est-ce qui' when 'who' is the subject of the sentence (someone is singing).

  6. Où est-ce qu'il habite ?

    Where does he live?

    Word by Word: Where is it that he lives?

    An information question using 'où' followed by 'est-ce que' with elision before 'il'.

Common Mistakes

  • Using 'est-ce que' and inversion at the same time.

    Est-ce que manges-tu ?
    Est-ce que tu manges ?

    Once you use 'est-ce que', you must keep the standard subject-verb word order. Do not invert the verb and subject.

  • Forgetting to elide 'que' before a vowel.

    Est-ce que il est là ?
    Est-ce qu'il est là ?

    In French, 'que' must always contract to 'qu'' before a vowel sound to maintain flow.

  • Using 'est-ce que' alone to ask 'what'.

    Different MeaningEst-ce que tu manges ? (when asking 'What are you eating?')
    Qu'est-ce que tu manges ?

    'Est-ce que tu manges ?' is correct, but it is a yes/no question: 'Are you eating?'. To ask 'What are you eating?', use 'Qu'est-ce que tu manges ?'.

How It Connects

Tap a pattern to see what it builds on and what it leads to.

est-ce queLevel 1Yes-no Questions with Est-ce Que

Learn This First

To form questions using 'est-ce que', you first need to be comfortable forming basic declarative sentences in French. Additionally, because 'que' ends in a vowel, you must understand how it elides when the subject of the question begins with a vowel sound.

Learn Next

Patterns that build on this one.

Words in This Pattern