Basic Questions in Portuguese

In Brief

Portuguese question words include quem “who,” o que/que “what,” onde “where,” quando “when,” como “how,” and por que “why.” Portuguese normally needs no equivalent of English do or does: Onde moras? literally follows the pattern “Where you-live?” Yes/no questions can keep statement word order and rely on question intonation: Moras aqui? “Do you live here?”

Overview

Questions are an A1 foundation: they let you find a place, identify a person, ask the time, and keep a conversation moving. Portuguese has both open questions, which ask for information with a question word, and yes/no questions, which can be answered with sim or não. The question mark is required in writing, but Portuguese uses only a closing question mark, unlike Spanish.

The main adjustment for an English speaker is that Portuguese does not insert the auxiliary verb (a helping verb) do/does/did. Compare English “Where do you live?” with Onde moras? The Portuguese verb already carries information about the subject: moras means “you live.” Word order often remains close to an ordinary statement, although speakers may move a question word or use special conversational patterns.

The examples in this article include forms common in European Portuguese, such as moras and fazes, because they match the core concept examples. Brazilian Portuguese often uses você mora and você faz. Both varieties use the same central question system, but there are differences in pronouns, preferred phrasing, and the spelling of expressions for “why.”

How It Works

The core question words

A question word replaces the missing information. It normally appears near the beginning of a direct, neutral question.

Portuguese	Core meaning	What it asks about	Simple example
quem	who	a person or people	Quem é? — Who is it?
o que / que	what	a thing, action, or idea	O que fazes? — What are you doing?
onde	where	location	Onde moras? — Where do you live?
quando	when	time	Quando começas? — When do you start?
como	how	manner, condition, or description	Como estás? — How are you?
por que / porquê	why	reason	Por que estudas português? — Why do you study Portuguese?

These words do not all behave exactly alike. A preposition (a short relationship word such as “to,” “from,” or “with”) may come before the question word when the answer requires it.

• Com quem falas? — “Who are you talking with?”
• De onde és? — “Where are you from?”
• Para onde vais? — “Where are you going to?”
• A que horas começa? — “At what time does it start?”

English often leaves a preposition at the end: “Who are you speaking to?” Neutral Portuguese generally places it before the question expression: Com quem falas? This is an important pattern to learn as a complete phrase.

Basic word order

A useful beginner pattern is:

question word + verb + rest of the sentence

• Onde trabalha a Ana? — “Where does Ana work?”
• Quando chega o comboio? — “When does the train arrive?”

A subject (the person or thing the sentence is about) can also appear before the verb, especially in conversational speech and with pronouns:

• Onde tu moras? — “Where do you live?”
• Quando o Pedro chega? — “When does Pedro arrive?”

Preferences vary with region and style. As a beginner, you can safely imitate the order used by native material from your chosen variety. More important than memorizing one rigid order is avoiding English-style do/does: there is no word-for-word form like “Where do you live?”

Portuguese often leaves out a subject pronoun when the verb ending makes the subject clear. Thus European Portuguese naturally says Onde moras? rather than always stating tu. In Brazilian Portuguese, Onde você mora? is extremely common because você normally accompanies a third-person verb form.

Yes/no questions and intonation

To turn a statement into a yes/no question, Portuguese can simply keep the words in the same order. In speech, the voice pattern—intonation, meaning the rise and fall of the voice—signals the question. In writing, the question mark does that job.

Statement	Question	English question
Tu falas português.	Tu falas português?	Do you speak Portuguese?
A loja está aberta.	A loja está aberta?	Is the shop open?
Eles chegam hoje.	Eles chegam hoje?	Are they arriving today?

Portuguese does not normally invert the subject and verb just because the sentence is a question. English changes “you are” to “are you”; Portuguese can keep tu estás: Estás cansado? or Tu estás cansado? The subject is often omitted, but no special question auxiliary is added.

O que, que, and o que é que

For beginner questions meaning “what,” o que is a dependable choice:

• O que queres? — “What do you want?”
• O que aconteceu? — “What happened?”

Que also means “what” and commonly comes directly before a noun: Que música ouves? “What music are you listening to?” Depending on variety and context, it can also stand alone. Do not confuse interrogative que with the many other jobs that que has in Portuguese.

A very common spoken pattern, especially in European Portuguese, is o que é que + clause:

• O que é que fazes? — “What are you doing?”
• Onde é que moras? — “Where do you live?”
• Quando é que chegam? — “When are they arriving?”

Here é que does not need a separate literal translation. Treat the whole frame as a natural way to introduce a question. The shorter versions remain correct: O que fazes? Onde moras? Quando chegam?

Asking “why” and answering “because”

Forms involving por que vary more between Portuguese varieties than the other basic question words.

• In Brazilian Portuguese, por que is the standard spelling in a direct “why” question: Por que você estuda português?
• Por quê is used in Brazilian spelling when it appears at the end: Você saiu por quê?
• Porquê is a noun meaning “the reason,” usually with an article: Não sei o porquê. — “I don’t know the reason.” In European Portuguese it is also seen as a question form in some contexts.
• European Portuguese very often uses porque in questions or the especially clear expression por que razão: Porque estudas português? Por que razão saíste?
• Porque introduces an answer meaning “because”: Estudo português porque vivo em Lisboa.

For an A1 learner, the practical rule is to recognize all these forms and follow the convention of the variety you are learning. Never assume that the English pair “why/because” maps to one universally fixed spelling across all Portuguese usage.

Short answers

A yes/no answer can begin with sim or não, but Portuguese also commonly repeats the verb, particularly in natural replies.

• Falas português? — Falo. — “Do you speak Portuguese? — Yes, I do.”
• Tens tempo? — Não tenho. — “Do you have time? — No, I don’t.”
• A loja está aberta? — Está. — “Is the shop open? — Yes.”

Repeating the verb often sounds more idiomatic than relying on sim alone. Notice again that Portuguese does not answer with an equivalent of English “do”: it repeats the meaningful verb.

Examples in Context

Portuguese	English	Note
Quem é?	Who is it?	Identifies a person.
Com quem vais ao cinema?	Who are you going to the cinema with?	Com comes before quem.
O que fazes aos fins de semana?	What do you do at weekends?	European Portuguese tu form.
Que livro estás a ler?	What book are you reading?	Que directly modifies livro.
Onde moras?	Where do you live?	The subject pronoun is omitted.
De onde você é?	Where are you from?	Common Brazilian use of você.
Para onde vai este autocarro?	Where is this bus going?	Destination with para onde.
Quando começa a aula?	When does the class start?	Asks about time.
A que horas fecha o museu?	What time does the museum close?	Fixed expression for clock time.
Como te chamas?	What is your name?	Literally asks how you call yourself; common in Portugal.
Como se chama?	What is your name? / What is it called?	Meaning depends on context; also useful as a polite form.
Por que estudas português?	Why do you study Portuguese?	Separate spelling follows the concept’s question form.
Onde é que fica a estação?	Where is the station?	Common é que question frame.
Tens irmãos?	Do you have siblings?	Yes/no question; no word for English do.
O restaurante está aberto? — Está.	Is the restaurant open? — Yes, it is.	The answer repeats the verb.

Common Mistakes

Adding an equivalent of English “do”

• Wrong: Onde do moras?
• Right: Onde moras?
• Why: Portuguese forms the question directly with the conjugated verb. English do has no equivalent here.

Using onde when movement requires a preposition

• Less precise: Onde vais?
• Clear destination question: Para onde vais? or Aonde vais?
• Why: Onde asks about location. A destination may be introduced by para or a. Everyday usage varies, and plain onde is widespread, but recognizing the distinction improves comprehension and careful writing.

Leaving the preposition at the end

• Wrong: Quem falas com?
• Right: Com quem falas?
• Why: Standard Portuguese places the required preposition before quem, unlike informal English “Who are you talking with?”

Confusing que and quem

• Wrong: Que é aquela mulher?
• Right: Quem é aquela mulher?
• Why: Use quem to ask a person’s identity. Use que/o que for things, actions, or information.

Mixing “why” spelling conventions

• Wrong for a reason answer: Estudo português por que vivo aqui.
• Right: Estudo português porque vivo aqui.
• Why: An answer meaning “because” is introduced by porque. Question spellings vary by regional standard, but this answer form is joined.

Copying one variety’s pronoun with another form

• Wrong: Você moras aqui?
• Right: Você mora aqui? / Tu moras aqui?
• Why: Você takes a third-person verb (mora); tu takes the second-person form (moras) in the standard pattern.

Usage Notes

Question phrasing immediately reveals regional style. In much of Portugal, Onde moras?, O que fazes?, and Como te chamas? are ordinary informal questions. In Brazil, learners will often hear Onde você mora?, O que você faz?, and Como você se chama? Some Brazilian regions use tu, sometimes with standard second-person forms and sometimes with locally established third-person forms. Choose a consistent model for your own speech while learning to recognize the others.

Questions can sound abrupt if directed at a stranger without a greeting or polite phrase. Desculpe, onde fica a estação? (“Excuse me, where is the station?”) and Pode dizer-me quando fecha? (“Can you tell me when it closes?”) soften a request. Brazilian Portuguese often places the object pronoun differently, for example Pode me dizer...? Register and pronoun placement are later topics; at A1, learning one polite opener is enough.

A question word can also stay at the end in an echo question: Ele chegou quando? This often asks for confirmation or expresses surprise—“He arrived when?” It is natural in conversation but is not the best default pattern for every neutral information question.

Beyond the Basics / Advanced Use

You do not need to master these patterns yet, but you will encounter question words inside longer sentences. An indirect question reports or embeds a question rather than asking it directly:

• Não sei onde ele mora. — “I don’t know where he lives.”
• Podes dizer-me quando começa? — “Can you tell me when it starts?”
• Gostava de saber quem vem. — “I’d like to know who is coming.”

The embedded part does not receive its own question mark unless the whole sentence is a direct question. Portuguese also avoids the English word-order change in “Where does he live?” versus “I know where he lives”: Onde mora ele? and Sei onde ele mora use Portuguese’s own flexible patterns, not English auxiliary rules.

Question words can combine with prepositions in more advanced distinctions: por quem “by/for whom,” de que “about/from what,” em que “in which,” and para que “what for.” Para que? asks about purpose, while por quê/por que/porque? asks about cause or reason, depending on the regional spelling convention. Compare Para que serve isto? “What is this for?” with Por que aconteceu isto? “Why did this happen?”

Finally, questions can serve purposes other than requesting information. Podes fechar a janela? is grammatically “Can you close the window?” but functions as a request. Não é?, certo?, and conversational forms such as né? in Brazil can seek agreement, much like English “right?” These pragmatic uses—what a sentence does in context—become increasingly important beyond A1.

Practice Tips

1. Build six question frames. Memorize one useful pattern for each core word: Quem é...? O que é...? Onde fica...? Quando começa...? Como se diz...? Por que...? Then replace only the final information.
2. Remove English “do.” Write five English questions with do/does, underline the real verb, and form the Portuguese question from that verb: “Where do you work?” → Onde trabalhas? or Onde você trabalha?
3. Practice both question and answer. Say a question aloud, then answer by repeating the Portuguese verb: Tens tempo? — Tenho. This trains intonation and prevents English-style answers from taking over.

Related Concepts

• Next step: Quantity & Selection Questions — ask “how much/many?” and “which?” with quanto, qual, and their agreeing forms.