Karamö, le prof virtuelLeçon 16 sur 19
Asking questions and giving information
Je sais poser toutes sortes de questions en anglais (fermées, ouvertes, sur le sujet, indirectes et polies) et donner une information claire et précise en réponse.
- 50 min
- 5 exercices corrigés
- 1 schéma
- QCM de 5 questions
À la fin de la leçon, tu sauras :
- Former les questions fermées (yes / no) et les réponses courtes
- Utiliser les mots interrogatifs (what, where, when, who, why, how, how much…)
- Distinguer question sur le sujet et question sur le complément
- Poser une question indirecte polie (Could you tell me where…?)
- Donner, préciser ou refuser une information avec les expressions adaptées
Avant de commencer : Les temps du verbe et les auxiliaires ; les question tags.
1Je découvre
Aïssatou arrive pour la première fois à la gare routière de Kindia. Elle doit prendre un taxi-brousse pour Mamou, où elle va passer les vacances chez sa tante. À côté d'elle, un touriste sierra-léonais, perdu, s'adresse à elle en anglais :
« Excuse me, where the bus for Mamou leave? How much it costs? »
Aïssatou comprend l'idée, mais elle remarque que les questions ne sont pas bien construites. Elle lui répond poliment :
*« The taxis for Mamou leave from the other side of the station. I'm going there too. I'm not sure how much it costs, but we can ask the driver. »*
Arrivée à Mamou, elle raconte la scène à son cousin Ibrahima, élève de 12e SM. Il lui fait remarquer : « Il aurait fallu dire Where does the bus leave from? et How much does it cost? Et pour être plus poli : Could you tell me where the bus leaves from? »
Savoir poser des questions et donner des informations est indispensable pour voyager, travailler, étudier, et aussi pour réussir les dialogues et les exercices d'expression écrite du BAC.
Comment poser correctement une question en anglais, et comment donner une information de façon claire et polie ?
2Je comprends
1. Les questions fermées (yes / no questions)
On y répond par yes ou no. On place l'auxiliaire devant le sujet. S'il n'y a pas d'auxiliaire, on utilise *do / does / did*.
| Phrase | Question | Réponse courte |
|---|---|---|
| She is a nurse. | *Is she a nurse?* | Yes, she is. / No, she isn't. |
| They can come. | *Can they come?* | Yes, they can. / No, they can't. |
| He lives in Labé. | *Does he live in Labé?* | Yes, he does. / No, he doesn't. |
| You saw the match. | *Did you see the match?* | Yes, I did. / No, I didn't. |
| She has finished. | *Has she finished?* | Yes, she has. / No, she hasn't. |
Les réponses courtes reprennent l'auxiliaire. À la forme affirmative, on ne contracte pas : Yes, I am (jamais ~~Yes, I'm~~).
2. Les questions ouvertes (wh- questions)
Elles commencent par un mot interrogatif, suivi de l'ordre de la question fermée : mot interrogatif + auxiliaire + sujet + verbe.
| Mot | Sens | Exemple |
|---|---|---|
| What | que, quoi, quel | What do you want? |
| Which | lequel, quel (choix limité) | Which road goes to Pita? |
| Who | qui | Who did you meet? |
| Whose | à qui | Whose phone is this? |
| Where | où | Where do you live? |
| When | quand | When does the market open? |
| What time | à quelle heure | What time does the bus leave? |
| Why | pourquoi | Why are you late? — Because… |
| How | comment | How did you come? — By taxi. |
| How much | combien (non dénombrable, prix) | How much rice do you need? How much is it? |
| How many | combien (dénombrable) | How many brothers have you got? |
| How long | combien de temps | How long does the journey take? |
| How often | à quelle fréquence | How often do you go to Kindia? |
| How far | à quelle distance | How far is Dalaba from Mamou? |
| How old | quel âge | How old are you? |
La préposition se place souvent à la fin : *Where do you come from? Who are you talking to? What are you looking for?*
3. Question sur le sujet ou sur le complément ?
C'est un point important en 12e.
- Si who ou what est complément, on utilise l'auxiliaire (do / does / did) : *Kadiatou called Alpha. → Who did Kadiatou call?* (Alpha)
- Si who ou what est sujet, il n'y a pas d'auxiliaire do, et le verbe garde sa forme normale : *Kadiatou called Alpha. → Who called Alpha?* (Kadiatou)
- Who called Alpha? (Kadiatou)
- What happened?
- Who lives here?
- Pas de do / does / did
- Who did Kadiatou call? (Alpha)
- What did you do?
- Who do you live with?
- do / does / did + base verbale
4. Les questions indirectes : poser une question poliment
Pour être plus poli (ou dans une lettre, un entretien), on introduit la question par une formule : *Could you tell me…? Do you know…? I'd like to know… I wonder…*
Dans la question indirecte, on reprend l'ordre de la phrase affirmative (sujet + verbe), sans do / does / did, et sans point d'interrogation si la formule n'est pas une question.
- Where is the bank? → *Could you tell me where the bank is?*
- When does the bus leave? → *Do you know when the bus leaves?*
- How much did it cost? → *I'd like to know how much it cost.*
- Pour une question fermée, on utilise *if* ou *whether* : Is the pharmacy open? → *Do you know if the pharmacy is open?*
5. Demander une information : les formules utiles
- Excuse me, could you tell me…? / Can you help me, please? / I'm looking for… / Is there a… near here?
- Would you mind telling me…? / I'd like some information about…
- Pour faire répéter : Sorry, could you repeat that, please? / What do you mean by…?
6. Donner une information
- Répondre clairement : The bank is opposite the post office. The bus leaves at 7 a.m. It costs 60,000 GNF. (exemple de prix)
- Préciser : Actually,… / In fact,… / To be more precise,…
- Ne pas savoir : I'm sorry, I don't know. / I'm afraid I can't help you. / You'd better ask the driver.
- Vérifier que l'autre a compris : Is that clear? / Do you see what I mean?
- Remercier et répondre : Thank you very much. — You're welcome. / Not at all. / Don't mention it.
Indiquer un chemin : *Go straight on. Turn left / right. Take the first street on the left. It's next to / opposite / between / near… It's about ten minutes' walk.*
Méthode
Pour poser une question correcte :
- Je choisis le type : fermée (yes / no) ou ouverte (mot interrogatif).
- Je repère l'auxiliaire de la phrase ; sans auxiliaire, je prends do / does / did selon le temps et la personne.
- Si le mot interrogatif est sujet (who, what), je garde l'ordre affirmatif et je n'ajoute pas do.
- Sinon : mot interrogatif + auxiliaire + sujet + verbe + reste (préposition à la fin).
- Pour être poli : Could you tell me / Do you know + mot interrogatif + sujet + verbe (ordre affirmatif).
Exemple
Ask questions about the words in bold.
a) « Sékou goes to the mosque every Friday. »
Fréquence → How often does Sékou go to the mosque?
b) « Mariama broke the window. »
Sujet → Who broke the window? (pas de did)
c) « Mariama broke the window. »
Complément → What did Mariama break?
d) « The journey to my grandparents' village takes about three hours. »
Durée → How long does the journey to your grandparents' village take?
Exemple
Turn into polite indirect questions.
« Where is the hospital? » → Could you tell me where the hospital is?
« What time does the ferry leave? » → Do you know what time the ferry leaves?
« Has the headmaster arrived? » → Do you know if the headmaster has arrived?
Answer to the first question (giving information): Of course. Go straight on, then turn right at the roundabout. The hospital is opposite the stadium.
3Je retiens
Je retiens
Question fermée : auxiliaire + sujet + verbe ? (Do / Does / Did si pas d'auxiliaire). Réponse courte : Yes, she does.
Question ouverte : mot interrogatif + auxiliaire + sujet + verbe ? (Where do you live?)
How much (non dénombrable, prix), how many (dénombrable), how long (durée), how often (fréquence), how far (distance).
Question sur le sujet : pas de do (Who called you?). Sur le complément : do (Who did you call?).
Question indirecte : Could you tell me / Do you know + mot interrogatif + sujet + verbe (ordre affirmatif), if / whether pour oui / non.
Donner une information : It's opposite…, It leaves at…, I'm afraid I don't know. Remercier : You're welcome.
4Erreurs fréquentes
- Oublier do / does / did : « Where does he live? », pas « Where he lives? ».
- Ajouter do dans une question sur le sujet : « Who wrote this? », pas « Who did write this? ».
- Garder l'ordre interrogatif dans une question indirecte : « Can you tell me where the station is? », pas « where is the station? ».
- Confondre how much et how many : « How many students? », « How much money? ».
5Je m’exerce
1Exercice 1
Make yes / no questions and give short answers.
a) Fanta is a student. (yes)
b) They live in Kissidougou. (no)
c) Lansana went to the stadium. (yes)
d) You can drive. (no)
e) She has visited Dalaba. (yes)
Voir le corrigéCacher le corrigé
a) Is Fanta a student? — Yes, she is.
b) Do they live in Kissidougou? — No, they don't.
c) Did Lansana go to the stadium? — Yes, he did.
d) Can you drive? — No, I can't.
e) Has she visited Dalaba? — Yes, she has.
2Exercice 2
Complete with the correct question word.
a) … is your birthday? — In March.
b) … brothers do you have? — Three.
c) … is this dress? — It's 250,000 GNF.
d) … did you miss the bus? — Because I woke up late.
e) … do you go to the library? — Twice a week.
f) … bag is this? — It's Hawa's.
Voir le corrigéCacher le corrigé
a) When is your birthday?
b) How many brothers do you have?
c) How much is this dress?
d) Why did you miss the bus?
e) How often do you go to the library?
f) Whose bag is this?
3Exercice 3
Ask questions about the words in bold.
a) Ousmane repaired the radio.
b) Ousmane repaired the radio.
c) The market opens at 7 a.m.
d) Kadiatou lives in Kamsar.
e) They waited for two hours.
Voir le corrigéCacher le corrigé
a) Who repaired the radio? (sujet : pas de did)
b) What did Ousmane repair?
c) What time (When) does the market open?
d) Where does Kadiatou live?
e) How long did they wait?
4Exercice 4
Turn into polite indirect questions starting with the words given.
a) Where is the post office? (Could you tell me…)
b) When does the lesson start? (Do you know…)
c) Is the doctor available? (I'd like to know…)
d) How much did the tickets cost? (Can you tell me…)
Voir le corrigéCacher le corrigé
a) Could you tell me where the post office is?
b) Do you know when the lesson starts?
c) I'd like to know if (whether) the doctor is available.
d) Can you tell me how much the tickets cost?
5Exercice 5
(Type BAC, dialogue) A tourist arrives in Labé and asks you for information. Write the dialogue (about 10 lines): he asks where he can stay, how far the waterfall is, how he can get there and how much it costs. You give the information politely. Use at least one indirect question and one question about the subject.
Voir le corrigéCacher le corrigé
Example answer:
Tourist: Excuse me, could you tell me where I can find a hotel?
You: Of course. There is a small hotel near the central market, about five minutes' walk from here.
Tourist: Thank you. I'd like to visit a waterfall. How far is it from the town?
You: I'm not sure of the exact distance, but it takes about one hour by car.
Tourist: How can I get there?
You: You can take a taxi or rent a motorbike with a driver.
Tourist: Do you know how much it costs?
You: I'm afraid I don't know exactly. You'd better ask the driver before you leave.
Tourist: Who organises the trips?
You: A local guide at the hotel does. Have a nice stay! — Tourist: Thank you very much. — You: You're welcome.
Cherche d’abord seul, sur ton cahier, puis ouvre le corrigé pour comparer.
6Je vérifie
Choisis une réponse pour chaque question : la correction s’affiche aussitôt.
Crée ton compte élève gratuit pour cocher les leçons terminées, suivre ta progression et gagner des points au QCM.
