Definition

1. Adjective:

   • Relating to questions or inquiry: Having the nature of, expressing, or used in asking a question.
   • Grammatical mood: In grammar, relating to the form of a verb or sentence used to ask a question.

2. Noun:

   • A word used to ask a question: A word, such as "who," "what," "when," "where," "why," or "how," that introduces a question.
   • A sentence that asks a question: A sentence of inquiry; a question.

Examples

• Adjective:

  • She used an interrogative tone when she asked for my name.
  • In "Where are you going?", the word "where" is an interrogative adverb.

• Noun:

  • "Which" and "whose" are interrogatives.
  • His reply was a simple interrogative: "Why?"

Advanced Usage

• Interrogative mood: A grammatical mood used for asking questions. Not all languages have a distinct interrogative mood.

  • Some languages, unlike English, have a specific verb inflection for the interrogative mood.

• Interrogative pronoun: A pronoun (e.g., who, whom, what, which, whose) used to ask a question.

  • "What is that?" In this sentence, "what" is an interrogative pronoun.

Variants and Related Words

• Interrogation (n): The action of interrogating or questioning someone formally.
  • The suspect was taken in for interrogation.
• Interrogator (n): A person who questions someone, especially formally.
  • The interrogator asked a series of rapid questions.

Synonyms

• Questioning (adj): Inquiring.
• Inquisitive (adj): Curious, eager for knowledge.
• Query (n): A question, especially one asking for information.

Related Phrases

• Interrogative sentence: A sentence that asks a direct question and ends with a question mark.
  • "Are you coming?" is an interrogative sentence.
• Interrogative word/wh-word: A word that introduces a question (who, what, where, when, why, how).
  • In English, many questions begin with an interrogative word.

Adjective

1. relating to the use of or having the nature of an interrogation
2. relating to verbs in the so-called interrogative mood
   • not all questions have an interrogative construction

Noun

1. some linguists consider interrogative sentences to constitute a mood
2. a sentence of inquiry that asks for a reply
   • he asked a direct question
   • he had trouble phrasing his interrogations