MyLeoNes™

Asking yes-or-no questions with do and does — Foreign languages, 7–10 years

A question helper moves a present-tense sentence into a question. Foreign languages, 7–10 years.

Do and does move to the front

In English, do or does can stand at the front when you ask about an action or fact. Use do with I, you, we and they; use does with he, she and it. The main verb stays in its simple form: Does Mia like apples?

Why do we need a helper?

English marks many present-tense yes-or-no questions with a small helper word. Without it, “You like cats?” can sound like a surprised echo rather than a clear question. Do and does show the listener that an answer is expected, while the action word keeps its meaning.

Build a question step by step

Start with the sentence “Leo plays chess.” First, choose does because Leo means he. Second, put does first: “Does Leo”. Third, change plays back to play. The finished question is “Does Leo play chess?” The answer can be “Yes, he does” or “No, he doesn’t.”

Do not keep the extra s

A common mistake is “Does Leo plays chess?” It feels reasonable because Leo is one person, so plays seems to belong with Leo. But does has already carried the special third-person ending. Say “Does Leo play chess?”: only one word shows that Leo is he.

Questions in real life

You use these questions when you need a quick fact from someone: “Do you need help?”, “Does this bus stop here?” or “Do they sell pencils?” They are useful in a shop, on a journey or when joining a game because the other person can answer yes or no.

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