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Interrogative Pronouns.

Remember that an adjective modifies and noun or a pronoun.

A little review of the Interrogative Adjectives may make their pronouns easier to remember:

quel for masculine singular
quels for masculine plural
quelle for feminine singular
quelles for feminine plural.

A pronoun might be characterized as a word that is used as a substitute for a noun.

We'll be discussing two kinds of Interrogative Pronouns:
I. which one(s)
II.who, who, (to whom), and what

(The Dutch would say that this is as clear as coffeegrinds (meaning: say whaaaat?)
Hence Double Dutch perhaps).

Examples of the Interrogative Pronouns in English:

I.1. I want to buy that house! Which one??
       (which one is the Interrogative Pronoun)
   2. Mom and Dad love to get those cars! Which ones ?
       (which ones would be the Interrogative Pronoun).
   3. Leadbelly used to sing that song a lot.
       Which one? (which one is the Interrogative Pronoun).
   4. Which one of those book do you want to read?
        (which one is the Interrogative Pronoun).
   5. Which ones of these dresses do you want wear?
       (Which ones is the Interrogative Pronoun).
     and also:
II. 1.Who is picking his nose so loudly?
         (who is the Interrogative Pronoun)
     2.Whose (stand up folks!) broad stripes and bright stars...
        (whose is the Interrogative Pronoun)
      (you may sit down!)
    3. To whom did you say that? (
        To whom is the Interrogative Pronoun).
    4. Whom are you calling
        (whom is the Interrogative Pronoun).

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I The Interrogative Pronoun (which one, which ones --lequel, lesquels, laquelle, lesquelles)

A. Lequel for masculine singular --
            J e vais acheter ce manteau!
            Lequel?
           ( I want to buy that coat. Which one?)

B. Lesquels for masculine plural--
            Nous trouvons ces hommes gentils!
            Lesquels?
           (We find those men kind. Which ones?)

C. Laquelle for feminine singular--
            Maria et Jean aiment cette vache.
            Laquelle?
            (Maria and John like that cow. Which one?)

D. Lesquelles for feminine plural.
            Le prof aime ces bottines!
            Lesquelles?
            (The teacher likes those ankle boots! Which ones?)

E. Other examples:

      1. Lequel de ces livres veux-tu lire - Which one of those books do you want to read?

      2 . Lesquelles de ces jupes veux tu porter? Which one of these skirts do you want to wear?

      3. Tu as acheté laquelle? - Which one did you buy?

4. Ils ont choise lesquelles - Which ones did they choose?

In summary the Interrogative pronouns are:
Lequel for masculine singular
Lesquels for masculine plural
Laquelle for feminine singular
Lesquelles for feminine plural.

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So, who told you life was going to be easy???
When I was young we had to handmilk the cows twice a day. That was hard!!!!
(...thought you oughta know!)

II.The Interrogative Pronoun (who, to whom, whom):

These looks like the following (note: except for what as subject/thing, they all have a short and a long form):

	Person	Things
Subject of a verb	qui Who? qui est-ce qui	que'est-ce qui What?
Direct Object of a verb	qui Whom? qui est-ce que	que What? qu' est-ce que
After a prepostition	qui whom? qui est-ce que	quoi What? quoi est-ce que
*Source: Blume - Stein. French Three Years*	*AMSCO School Publications*

Exampels: (note that the examples are put into the appropriate boxes below)

	Person	Things
Subject of a verb	Qui fait la vaiselle? Qui est-ce qui fait la vaiselle? Who is doing the dishes	Qu'est-ce qui a sonné What rang?
Direct Object of a verb	Qui aimiez-vous? Qui est-ce que vous aimiez? Whom did you love?	Que font les gens Qu'est-ce que les gens font? What are the people doing?
After a prepostition	Avec qui vas-tu? Avec qui est-ce que tu vas? With whom are you going?	De quoi parlez-vous? De qoui est-ce que vous parlez? What are you talking about?