Question Words and Formation in Yoruba

Overview

Asking questions is a fundamental communication skill, and Yoruba has a rich set of question words and formation strategies. At the A1 level, you need to master both content questions (who, what, where, when, why, how) and yes/no questions. The question system in Yoruba differs significantly from English in its structure and word order.

Yoruba question words include: "ta ni" (who), "kí ni" (what), "níbo" (where), "nígbà wo" (when), "kí nìdí" or "kí ló dé" (why), and "báwo" (how). For yes/no questions, Yoruba uses sentence-initial particles like "ṣé" or "ǹjẹ́" to mark the sentence as a question. Unlike English, there is no subject-verb inversion to form questions.

An important feature of Yoruba questions is that they often use focus constructions. The question word typically occupies a focused position, and the sentence structure rearranges around it. "Níbo ni o ń lọ?" (Where are you going?) literally translates as "Where is-it-that you are going?" with "ni" acting as the focus marker. This pattern connects question formation to the broader topic of focus constructions in Yoruba.

How It Works

Question words:

Question Word	Meaning	Example
ta ni	who	Ta ni ó ṣe é? (Who did it?)
kí ni	what	Kí ni orúkọ rẹ? (What is your name?)
níbo	where	Níbo ni o ń lọ? (Where are you going?)
nígbà wo	when	Nígbà wo ni o máa wá? (When will you come?)
kí nìdí / kí ló dé	why	Kí ló dé tí o fi kùnà? (Why did you fail?)
báwo	how	Báwo ni o ṣe ṣe é? (How did you do it?)
mélòó	how many	Mélòó ni o fẹ́? (How many do you want?)
èwo	which	Èwo ni tirẹ? (Which one is yours?)

Yes/no questions use ṣé or ǹjẹ́ at the beginning:

Marker	Pattern	Example
ṣé	Ṣé + statement?	Ṣé o ti jẹun? (Have you eaten?)
ǹjẹ́	Ǹjẹ́ + statement?	Ǹjẹ́ ó wá? (Did he/she come?)

Examples in Context

Yoruba	English	Note
Kí ni orúkọ rẹ?	What is your name?	Basic introductory question
Níbo ni o ń lọ?	Where are you going?	Location question
Ṣé o ti jẹun?	Have you eaten?	Yes/no with ṣé
Ta ni ó ṣe é?	Who did it?	Person question
Nígbà wo ni o máa dé?	When will you arrive?	Time question
Báwo ni o ṣe wà?	How are you?	State/manner question
Kí ló dé?	What happened? / Why?	Reason question
Mélòó ni o fẹ́?	How many do you want?	Quantity question
Èwo ni tirẹ?	Which one is yours?	Selection question
Ǹjẹ́ o mọ̀ ọ́?	Do you know it/him/her?	Yes/no question

Common Mistakes

Inverting Subject and Verb for Questions

• Wrong: Ń o lọ níbo? (Are you going where? -- English-style inversion)
• Right: Níbo ni o ń lọ? (Where are you going?)
• Why: Yoruba does not use subject-verb inversion. The question word goes to the front with the focus marker ni.

Forgetting the Focus Marker ni

• Wrong: Níbo o ń lọ? (Where you going? -- missing ni)
• Right: Níbo ni o ń lọ? (Where are you going?)
• Why: Content questions typically require "ni" after the question word to create the focus construction.

Using the Wrong Yes/No Marker

• Wrong: Using rising intonation alone (as in English) to mark a yes/no question.
• Right: Ṣé o ti jẹun? (Have you eaten?) with the explicit marker ṣé.
• Why: While intonation can help, Yoruba yes/no questions standardly require ṣé or ǹjẹ́ to be clearly understood.

Practice Tips

1. Memorize question words as chunks: Learn "kí ni" (what is), "ta ni" (who is), "níbo ni" (where is) as fixed phrases rather than individual words. This makes them easier to deploy in conversation.
2. Practice answering your own questions: For each question you form, practice a natural answer. This builds both directions of conversational flow.
3. Use ṣé questions in daily life: Start by converting simple statements to yes/no questions by adding ṣé at the beginning. "O ti jẹun" (You have eaten) becomes "Ṣé o ti jẹun?" (Have you eaten?).

Related Concepts

• Prerequisite: Personal Pronouns -- needed for forming questions about people
• Prerequisite: Basic Sentence Structure (SVO) -- questions modify the basic sentence pattern