Question words: quem, o que, onde, quando, por que, como, cuanto

The Essential Six

QUEM (Who/Whom)

Used for asking about people:

• Quem é você? (Who are you?)
• Quem fez isso? (Who did this?)
• Com quem você foi? (Who did you go with?)

Note: "Quem" doesn't change for singular/plural – it covers both "who" and "who all."

O QUE/QUE (What)

Two forms that mean the same thing:

• O que: More formal, clearer in speech
• Que: More casual, very common

Examples:

• O que você quer? (What do you want?)
• Que horas são? (What time is it?)

ONDE (Where)

For asking about locations:

• Onde você mora? (Where do you live?)
• Onde fica o banheiro? (Where's the bathroom?)

Special combinations:

• Aonde = to where (with movement): Aonde você vai? (Where are you going to?)
• De onde/Donde = from where: De onde você é? (Where are you from?)

QUANDO (When)

For time-related questions:

• Quando você chega? (When do you arrive?)
• Quando foi isso? (When was that?)

POR QUE (Why)

The trickiest question word with 4 different spellings:

1. Por que (separated) = why (in questions)
2. Porque (together) = because (in answers)
3. Por quê (separated + accent) = why (at end of sentence)
4. Porquê (together + accent) = the reason/the why (noun)

COMO (How)

For asking about manner, method, or state:

• Como você está? (How are you?)
• Como se faz isso? (How do you do this?)
• Como assim? (What do you mean?/How so?)

Word Order Flexibility

Brazilian Portuguese is super flexible with question word placement:

Standard (question word first):

• Onde você mora? (Where do you live?)
• O que ele disse? (What did he say?)

Informal (question word last):

• Você mora onde? (You live where?)
• Ele disse o que? (He said what?)

Super informal (question word only):

• E aí? Onde? (So? Where?)
• Fazendo o quê? (Doing what?)

The Uniquely Brazilian "Cadê"

"Cadê" is a contraction of "O que é de" (What is of) and means "Where is/are":

• Cadê você? (Where are you?)
• Cadê meu celular? (Where's my phone?)
• Cadê todo mundo? (Where is everyone?)

This is 100% Brazilian – Portuguese people won't use or understand it!

Question Words in Exclamations

These words aren't just for questions – Brazilians love using them for emphasis:

• Que lindo! (How beautiful!)
• Como você é chato! (How annoying you are!)
• Quem diria! (Who would have thought!)

Common Combinations

Question words often pair with prepositions:

• Para que = what for
• Com quem = with whom
• De quando = from when
• Até quando = until when
• Para onde = to where