Transformation of Assertive Sentences to Interrogative Sentences - Rules and Examples

Assertive sentences, also called declarative sentences, are those sentences that state a general idea or thought, a habitual action, a scientific fact or a universal truth. Interrogative sentences, on the other hand, are questions that are intended to find out some piece of information. Now, if you are asked to transform an assertive sentence into an interrogative sentence or the other way around, how would you do it? Go through the article to learn how it is done.

Table of Contents

• Transforming an Assertive Sentence into an Interrogative Sentence – Rules to be Followed with Examples
  • Change of Adverbs/Pronouns in Sentence Transformation
• Frequently Asked Questions on Transformation of an Assertive Sentence into an Interrogative Sentence

Transforming an Assertive Sentence into an Interrogative Sentence – Rules to be Followed with Examples

Take a look at the following points to understand how it is done.

• The general rule in transforming an assertive sentence into an interrogative sentence applies to all cases and it is as follows,
  • If the assertive sentence is positive, make the question negative. For example, a sentence such as ‘Lorraine is the new English teacher’, the interrogative sentence will be ‘Isn’t Lorraine the new English teacher?’.
  • If the assertive sentence is negative, the interrogative sentence should be a positive question. For example, the interrogative of a sentence such as ‘Lorraine is not the new English teacher’ will be ‘Is Lorraine the new English teacher?’.
• If the assertive sentence has a helping verb and a main verb, the interrogative sentence will begin with the helping verb followed by the noun/pronoun that acts as the subject and then the main verb in the actual tense of the sentence.
  • Example 1:

Anu is working from home.

Isn’t Anu working from home?

• • Example 2:

Manu will not be coming to the party.

Will Manu be coming to the party?

• • Example 3:

Dev has not figured out how to fix the leaking pipe.

Has Dev figured out how to fix the leaking pipe?

• • Example 4:

They had been waiting for Veena for two hours.

Hadn’t they been waiting for Veena for two hours?

• • Example 5:

Gargi and Praveena have started their undergraduate studies at RVS College of Arts and Science.

Haven’t Gargi and Praveena started their undergraduate studies at RVS College of Arts and Science?

• If the assertive sentence does not have a helping verb but just a main verb, use the positive and negative verb forms of ‘do’ (do, don’t, does, doesn’t, did, didn’t) to begin the interrogative sentence, followed by the subject and the main verb in its original form.
  • Example 1:

Remya loves watching animated movies.

Doesn’t Remya love watching animated movies?

• • Example 2:

She completed her homework.

Didn’t she complete her homework?

• • Example 3:

You don’t like chocolates.

Do you like chocolates?

• Now that you know how the verbs are altered when converting an assertive sentence into an interrogative sentence, here are some general rules and techniques you can use to check if you have done the conversion correctly.
  • The interrogative sentence should always start with an auxiliary verb when the assertive sentence has a main verb and an auxiliary verb.
  • When forming the interrogative sentence, the verb and subject in the given assertive sentence switch places while the rest of the sentence remains the same.
  • The interrogative sentence should have a question mark placed at the end.
  • Also, make sure you do not change the meaning of the sentence when transforming one type of sentence into another.
  • To check if your interrogative sentence is right, try answering the question. If you are able to deduct the given assertive sentence as the answer to the interrogative sentence you framed, then your conversion is perfect.

Change of Adverbs/Pronouns in Sentence Transformation

When transforming assertive sentences into interrogative sentences, you will also have to look for conjunctions, pronouns or adverbs that require to be changed in order to retain the meaning of the sentence. Check the table below to learn how it has to be done.

For practice exercises, check out the article on exercises on transformation of an assertive sentence into an interrogative sentence.