Interrogative Adjectives

Used to ask questions and modify nouns by providing specificity to the query

Interrogative Adjectives are used in questions and always modify a noun directly. These adjectives help us inquire about specific people or things, by qualifying the noun with which, what, or whose. They do not stand alone but are always part of a noun phrase.

Common Interrogative Adjectives: which, what, whose

Main Features

  • Appear only in interrogative (question) sentences
  • Directly precede and modify a noun
  • Used to request specific information
  • Do not function as pronouns (unlike interrogative pronouns)

Examples in Sentences

  • Which book do you prefer? → Refers to a specific book among options
  • What subject do you like best? → Asks for the name/type of subject
  • Whose phone is ringing? → Asks about ownership of the phone

Detailed Breakdown

1. Which

  • Used when a choice is to be made from a defined or known set
  • Example: Which restaurant do you recommend?
  • Focuses the question on a selection

2. What

  • Used for open-ended queries with unknown possibilities
  • Example: What movie did you watch?
  • Broadens the question without limiting to specific options

3. Whose

  • Indicates possession; asks to identify the owner
  • Example: Whose shoes are these?
  • Always modifies a noun showing ownership

Comparing with Similar Forms

  • Interrogative Pronoun: Who left the book? → Pronoun replaces the noun
  • Interrogative Adjective: Which student left the book? → Adjective modifies the noun "student"
  • Key difference: Adjectives are followed by a noun

Correct Word Order in Questions

  • Correct: What book are you reading?
  • Incorrect: Are what book you reading?
  • Tip: The interrogative adjective should appear before the noun it modifies, and the auxiliary verb comes next.

Common Mistakes and Fixes

  • ❌ What's book is that? → ✅ Whose book is that?
  • ❌ Which is your jacket? → ✅ Which jacket is yours?
  • ❌ What colour do you like it? → ✅ What colour do you like?

Practice Exercises

1. Identify the Interrogative Adjective

  1. Which jacket fits you best? → which
  2. Whose idea was it? → whose

2. Fill in the Blanks

  1. ______ country would you like to visit? (which)
  2. ______ team won the match? (what)

3. Correct the Sentences

  1. ❌ Who bag is this? → ✅ Whose bag is this?
  2. ❌ Which is your mobile? → ✅ Which mobile is yours?

Pro Tips for Mastery

1. Always Follow with a Noun

Interrogative adjectives must come immediately before a noun: What time, Which colour, Whose idea.

2. Use Appropriately with Countable/Uncountable Nouns

  • What food do you like? (uncountable)
  • Which books have you read? (countable)

3. Don't Confuse with Determiners or Pronouns

  • Interrogative adjective: Which day is it?
  • Interrogative pronoun: Which is yours?