Lesson 4 · Lesson guide
Subject and Object Questions
Hello, my dear student!
Hello! Look at these two questions: “Who called you?” and “Who did you call?” They have almost the same words, but they ask about different people.
In the first question, “who” is the subject: someone called you, and we want to know who. In the second, “who” is the object: you called someone. Only the second one needs did.
IELTS asks you subject questions all the time: “Which group spent the most?”, “Who first suggested the idea?” Today you will learn to understand them quickly and to ask both kinds without mistakes.
See you in the exercises,Your teacher
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Two kinds of question
Ask yourself: is the question word the person who does the action, or the person who receives it?
Subject question
Who called you?
The answer is the subject: Ali called me. The verb keeps its normal form: called, lives, happened.
- Who called you? — Ali called me.
- What happened? — There was an accident.
- Who lives here? — My aunt lives here.
Object question
Who did you call?
The answer is the object: I called Ali. Use do / does / did and the base verb, like a normal question.
- Who did you call? — I called Ali.
- What does she study? — She studies law.
- Which city did they visit? — They visited Khiva.
With what, which, how many
The same rule
What, which + noun and how many + noun work the same way.
- Which team won? (subject)
- Which team did you support? (object)
- How many students passed? (subject)
Remember!
Subject question: Who + verb? (no do / does / did). Object question: Who + do / does / did + subject + verb?
Mistakes I correct every day
Not: Who did call you?Say: Who called you?
Subject question: no did.
Not: What did happen?Say: What happened?
“What” is the subject: no did.
Not: Who you called?Say: Who did you call?
Object question: you need did + base verb.
Not: Who live in this flat?Say: Who lives in this flat?
In a subject question, who takes a singular verb: lives.
A note from your teacher
In Uzbek, “Kim qoʻngʻiroq qildi?” and “Kimga qoʻngʻiroq qilding?” use different endings. In English, word order and did do that job.
Both kinds in one conversation
- Malika
Who won the match last night?
- Akmal
Pakhtakor won. They scored three goals.
- Malika
Who did they play against?
- Akmal
They played against Nasaf.
- Malika
What happened at the end?
- Akmal
Nasaf scored one goal, but it was too late.
“Who won?” and “What happened?” are subject questions (no did). “Who did they play against?” is an object question.
Check yourself
Answer: “My brother broke the window.” Ask about my brother.
Answer: “My brother broke the window.” Ask about the window.
Correct it: What did happen yesterday?
Now it’s your turn!
8 short parts, each a little harder than the one before. Take your time: mistakes are how we learn.
— Your teacher