Ask who, what, where, when, why and how much in German with the W-words.
From your first day in Germany you need to ask questions: where the platform is, when the doctor's surgery opens, how much the ticket costs, who is responsible at the Bürgeramt. Almost all German question words start with W, which is why teachers call them W-Fragen. Germans pronounce the W like an English V: wer sounds like vair.
The W-words are also the key to understanding forms and official letters, which are full of questions like Wohnort? or Seit wann?. At A1 you learn the basic ones and the word order: question word first, then the verb, then the subject: Wo wohnst du? Once you know these words, you can keep any conversation going.
Learn every noun together with its article and plural. Use the flashcards to test yourself: the German word on the front, the meaning on the back.
| Word | Plural | English | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| wer | – | who | Wer ist das? |
| wen | – | whom (accusative) | Wen hast du gestern getroffen? |
| wem | – | to whom (dative) | Wem gehört die Tasche? |
| wessen | – | whose | Wessen Fahrrad ist das? |
| was | – | what | Was machst du am Wochenende? |
| was für ein | – | what kind of | Was für ein Auto hast du? |
| welcher / welche / welches | – | which | Welcher Bus fährt zum Bahnhof? |
| wo | – | where | Wo ist die Toilette? |
| woher | – | where from | Woher kommen Sie? |
| wohin | – | where to | Wohin fährst du im Urlaub? |
| wann | – | when | Wann beginnt der Kurs? |
| seit wann | – | since when / how long | Seit wann wohnen Sie in Deutschland? |
| um wie viel Uhr | – | at what time | Um wie viel Uhr fährt der Zug? |
| wie | – | how | Wie heißt du? |
| wie viel | – | how much | Wie viel kostet das? |
| wie viele | – | how many | Wie viele Kinder haben Sie? |
| wie lange | – | how long | Wie lange dauert die Fahrt? |
| wie oft | – | how often | Wie oft fährt die S-Bahn? |
| wie alt | – | how old | Wie alt ist deine Tochter? |
| warum | – | why | Warum lernst du Deutsch? |
| wieso | – | how come | Wieso bist du schon zu Hause? |
| womit | – | with what | Womit fährst du zur Arbeit? |
| worüber | – | about what | Worüber sprecht ihr? |
| die Frage | die Fragen | question | Ich habe eine Frage. |
| die Antwort | die Antworten | answer | Die Antwort ist richtig. |
| das Fragewort | die Fragewörter | question word | Das Fragewort steht am Anfang. |
Watch the false friends: wer means who (not where), and wo means where (not who). Say them out loud with the right meaning until it sticks: Wer? Person. Wo? Place.
German has three words for where: wo (location), woher (origin) and wohin (direction): Wo wohnst du? Woher kommst du? Wohin gehst du?. Use wie viel with uncountable things (Wie viel Geld?) and wie viele with plurals (Wie viele Leute?).
In W-questions the verb is always in position two: Wann kommt der Bus? Yes/no questions have no W-word and start with the verb: Kommt der Bus?
1. What does „was“ mean?
2. What does „wie lange“ mean?
3. What does „was für ein“ mean?
4. What does „wie“ mean?
5. What does „um wie viel Uhr“ mean?
6. What does „wie viele“ mean?
7. Which article does „Fragewort“ (question word) take?
8. Which article does „Antwort“ (answer) take?
9. Which article does „Frage“ (question) take?
More vocabulary: Greetings and introductions, Polite phrases, Numbers and quantities.
Check any noun with the noun gender lookup, or browse the vocabulary index.
Original practice questions written by the Desi European Tales editorial team; they are not the official exam questions. Checked 1 November 2026.
Related: German vocabulary by topic · German A1 lessons · Greetings and introductions
