I just wanted to give my answer in the comments, but I thought that replying in another post would be more practical, and it might also help other people :)
So, I'll try my best to explain, don't hesitate to tell me if it's not clear!
First of all, in your list, only "Qui est-ce ?" can be used as a question in this form. For the others, you need to add other words.
Also :
- que = what and que + est = qu'
- qui = who and qui + il = qu'
• Qu'est-ce que... ?
This is used to ask "What is..." with a direct object
- Qu'est-ce que c'est ? — What is it?/What is this?
- Qu'est-ce que tu fais ? — What are you doing?
- Qu'est-ce que tu veux faire ce soir ? — What do you want to do tonight?
→ You can replace "qu'est-ce que" with "quoi" as a direct object (more informal form)
- Qu'est-ce que c'est ?/C'est quoi ?
- Qu'est-ce que tu fais ?/Tu fais quoi ?
- Qu'est-ce que tu veux faire ce soir ?/Tu veux faire quoi ce soir ?
• Qu'est-ce qui... ?
This is used to ask "What..." where "what" is the subject
- Qu'est-ce qu'il se passe ? — What is happening?
- Qu'est-ce qui est rouge ? — What is red?
- Qu'est-ce qui t'intéresse ? — What interests you?
→ You can replace "qu'est-ce que" with "quoi" as the subject (more informal form)
- Qu'est-ce qu'il se passe ?/ Il se passe quoi ?
- Qu'est-ce qui est rouge ?/C'est quoi qui est rouge ?
- Qu'est-ce qui t'intéresse ?/C'est quoi qui t'intéresse ?
• Qui est-ce ?
This is correct as it is, it's used when asking about someone's identity
- (Knock on the door) Qui est-ce ? — Who is it?
- (Showing someone in a photo) Qui est-ce ? — Who is he/sher?
• Qui est-ce qui... ?
This is used to ask "Who..." where "who" is the subject
- Qui est-ce qui a fait ça ? — Who did this?
- Qui est-ce qui chante ? — Who is singing?
- Qui est-ce qui cuisine ? — Who is cooking?
→ You can replace "qui est-ce qui" with "qui" as the subject (more informal form)
- Qui est-ce qui a fait ça ?/Qui a fait ça ?
- Qui est-ce qui chante ?/Qui chante ?
- Qui est-ce qui cuisine ?/Qui cuisine ?
• Qui est-ce que... ?
This is used to ask "Who..." with a direct object
- Qui est-ce que tu as vu ? — Who did you see?
- Qui est-ce que tu cherches ? — Who are you looking for?
- Qui est-ce que tu écoutes ? — Who are you listening to?
→ You can replace "qui est-ce que" with "qui" as a direct object (more informal form)
- Qui est-ce que tu as vu ?/T'as vu qui ?
- Qui est-ce que tu cherches ?/Tu cherches qui ?
- Qui est-ce que tu écoutes ?/Tu écoutes qui ?
• To sum up:
- Qu'est-ce que... → What... (direct object)
- Qu'est-ce qui... → What... (subject)
- Qui est-ce ? → Who is it?
- Qui est-ce qui... → Who... (subject)
- Qui est-ce que... → Who... (direct object)
Hope this helps! Feel free to tell me if you still have questions!
People overestimate how hard Chinese is. The grammar is easy, the characters and tones are hard but it's not impossible to learn! A man managed to train his dog how to recognize Chinese characters. Tones are also used when speaking in any language, so you will eventually remember them easier as you go. For example the word 'yes' can have a different meaning whether you say it assertively (yes.) or when you say it in a rising tone (yes?), one is an answer and one is a question.
So if you want to learn Chinese, learn Chinese! Don't be scared. You don't need to be a genius, you just need time, effort and consistency!
chinese-english flashcards I found in my late taiwanese grandparents' garage. they were manufactured in hong kong, around the 1970s-80s. what stands out to me is the western clothing - from other old photos one can see that my grandparents would typically dress their two sons in styles nearly identical to the little boys in the above image, and my grandmother would wear her hair permed and short, often with a blouse and skirt like the card above.
The subject-verb accord, if the subject is in plural, the verb is in plural, if the subject is in singular, the verb is in singular
Example:
Les chiens nagent en mer (plural)
Le chien nage en mer (singular)
THE ONLY TWO RULES TO NOT CONJUGATE THE VERB:
2. When two verbs follow eachother, the second one isnt conjugated
Example: J'aime nager en mer (also: if you add an adverb in the middle, it doesnt change the rule)
3. After prepositions, the verb is not conjugated
Example: Elle a fini de manger
Note, prepositions are: à, de, pour, sans, par, en, avec, sur, dans (a memo techinc way i learnt is: à 2% par an avec Surdent but ignore that if its not helpful)
THIS IS THE ONLY TWO REASONS AS TO WHY A VERB SHOULDNT BE CONJUGATED
And see this post to know what are the different forms of infinitive
4. After l'auxilliaire AVOIR (to have), we put the past participle, that doesnt conjugate with the subject
Example: Elle a oublié sa trousse.
Here, its not conjugated because its just an é, if it was a to be auxilliaire (être), it would have been ée, the extra e since its elle, which is feminine
BUT THERES AN EXCEPTION:
4.5: When the COD is before the auxilliaire avoir (to have), we conjugate the past participle with the subject NO WITH THE COD
Example: Les photos que j'ai faites sont réussies. Traduction: The photos that I have took are good.
What is a COD, you ask? Well it stands for "Complement d'Object Directe, and you find it by answering the question Subject + Verb + quoi (what)? So, here, I is the subject, and took the verb, I have took what? The photos, so the photos is the COD and since its before "have" we accord the past participle to it
END OF THE EXCEPTION:
5. After l'auxilliaire être (to be), the past participle is accorded to the genre and number of the subject
Example:
Les filles étaient fatiguées.
BUT THERES ALSO AN EXCEPTION (lol tell me you dont hate french now)
What happens if your phrase has no auxilliaire...?
5.5: When theres no auxilliaire, you try to add the être (to be)
Example: Les parents énervés nous promettaient des punitions
If you can say it, you put the past participle "Les parents étaient énervés" and you conjugate, its called a past participle adjective.
If you cant say it, you put the conjugated verb "Les parents nous étaient promettaient des punitions"
And thats it!! If you feel to information crushed and hopeless, know that i, as a native french, learnt this at 11, and im now older yet i still pratice and learn these!! French is hard, and even the natives struggle, so theres absolutely no pressure to be great at it!!
Hack if you stayed this long: Dont wanna learn all that?, then ill give a hack that nearly always works and that i use daily, of course, these are still important! SO the hack is, you take a verb of the 3rd group, (see this post to know what are the groups) like vendre (sell) or prendre (take) and at every sentence after the auxilliaire you apply it:
Ex: Elle a oublié sa trousse in your head you can say Elle a VENDU sa trousse, and since its VENDU its in an "é" form, not a "er" or conjugated
Idk if that made sense but try it out with all the examples ifw!! If its VENDU its an "é" form, if its VENDRE its an infinitive form, if its VENDAIT/S/ENT or wtv its a conjugated form
PROOF THAT I DID LEARN THIS AT 11 AND STILL DO NOW: (its the exact thing here, just explained and traznslated)
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