Hey, today we´ll see how to ask about the subject in French. The question word we use depends on whether the subject is a person or not. To make life a bit more sophisticated, we have three possible forms to choose from:
- person subject short form
- person subject long form
- non-person subject long form
As you can see, we do not have a short form for non-person subjects. Let’s see how it all works.
Person Subject Short Form
The question word used for person subjects is qui (who). The short form consists just of this word. This form is very simple and is quite commonly used. Have a look:
| Qui parle? | Who’s speaking? |
| Qui veut rester? | Who wants to stay? |
| Qui arrive? | Who’s arriving? |
Person Subject Long Form
The questions above could all be asked using the long form as well. The long form is qui est-ce qui (who). This form is used quite frequently instead of the short one, with the same meaning. Have a look at the same examples:
| Qui est-ce qui parle? | Who’s speaking? |
| Qui est-ce qui veut rester? | Who wants to stay? |
| Qui est-ce qui arrive? | Who’s arriving? |
Non-Person Subject Long Form
As far as the non-person subject is concerned, there is only the long form. It’s similar to the person subject long form, so pay attention to it, so that you don’t get confused. The long form is qu’est-ce qui (what). Have a look:
| Qu’est-ce qui est si urgent? | What’s so urgent? |
| Qu’est-ce qui a trois roues? | What has three wheels? |
| Qu’est-ce qui arrive? | What’s happening? |