Chapter 1

Direct Questions

 A direct question is the transmission of a question by direct quotation. In English, the question is set in question marks.

Paris asks, "Where is Helen?"
Helen wondered, "When are the Greeks coming?"

In Latin, a direct question can be introduced in a variety of ways. If the answer is a simple "yes" or "no," there are three ways to ask the question. The neutral way, the one you use when you don't feel like second-guessing the person you're interrogating, involves no more than tacking -ne onto the word at the heart of the question:

Ursusne in tabernam introit?
Is a bear going into a bar?

Ursus in tabernamne introit?
Is a bear going into a bar?

If you expect that the answer to your question is going to be "no," you have the option of suggesting as much by starting off with the word num.

Num ursi cerevisiam imperant?
Bears don't order beer, do they? (Of course they don't!)

Num cerevisia mala est?
Beer isn't bad, is it? (It certainly isn't.)

If, on the other hand, you expect an affirmative answer, you can begin with the word nonne (which is really no more than non plus -ne).

Nonne tabernarii cerevisiam vendunt?
Bartenders sell beer, don't they? (They sure do.)

Nonne ursus animal implume bipes?
A bear is an animal with two feet and no feathers, right? (Right.)

 Latin has a number of ways of saying "yes" and "no." Certe (certainly), ita or sic (thus, so), and vero (in truth) are common affirmatives; non (no, not), minime (not in the least), and nullo modo (by no means, in no way) are negatives.

Yes/no questions are, of course, not the only kinds there are. A close relative is the alternative, or double, question, in which the asker offers the answerer a choice of possibilities:

Utrum ursus an homo capillis promissis es?
Are you a bear or a shaggy human?

A further contingency: questions which in English would end in "or not?"

Ursus es necne?
Are you a bear or not?

Utrum cerevisiam amas annon?
Do you like beer or not?

 For more specific information, we use the "Wh" words in English (who, what, when, where, why, and how). In Latin, these mostly begin with "Qu" and work in much the same way as their English cousins:

Quare in tabernam introimus?
Why are we going into a bar?

Quomodo ursum salutat tabernarius?
How does a bartender greet a bear?

Quo eunt ursi?
Where are the bears going to?

Unde venit cerevisia?
Where does beer come from?

Ubi sunt matellae?
Where are the chamber pots?

Quando in tabernam introit ursus?
When does a bear go into a bar?