Wolof can form questions in several different ways. Some questions are marked mainly by intonation, while others use specific question words or grammatical constructions.

This means that asking a question in Wolof is not simply a matter of taking an English sentence and changing its word order.

The structure of the question depends partly on what information is being requested.

For example, Wolof distinguishes between questions asking:

• whether something is true
• who performed an action
• what someone did or wants
• where something happened
• when something happened
• how something happened
• how much or how many something is
• which person or thing is being referred to

Questions also interact closely with Wolof’s focus system. In particular, questions about a subject and questions about an object can use different grammatical constructions. (⁠Wolof Resources)

Yes-or-no questions

A yes-or-no question asks for an answer such as:

yes
no

Wolof can form these questions through intonation.

A statement can therefore be interpreted as a question when spoken with interrogative intonation.

For example:

Dinga dem?
Are you going?

The same basic words can be used in a statement:

Dinga dem.
You will go.

The difference is indicated by the way the sentence is spoken and, in writing, by the question mark.

Wolof interrogative intonation is not necessarily identical to English question intonation. Descriptions of Wolof note that the language can use a relatively high pitch at the beginning of an interrogative, rather than relying on exactly the same rising-final pattern familiar from English. (⁠Scribd)

This is one reason listening to spoken Wolof is important when learning to recognize questions.

Ndax — explicit yes-or-no questions

Wolof can also explicitly mark a yes-or-no question with:

ndax

This is roughly equivalent to:

is it that…?
do…?
does…?
is…?
are…?

depending on the sentence.

For example:

Ndax dinga dem?
Are you going?

Ndax Wolof la?
Is he/she Wolof?

Using ndax makes the interrogative function particularly clear.

It can be useful when the speaker wants to explicitly frame something as a question rather than relying entirely on intonation. (⁠Scribd)

Questions with question words

Open questions require information other than simply yes or no.

Some of the most important Wolof question words are:

Wolof	Approximate meaning
kan?	who?
ñan?	who? / which people?
lan?	what?
yan?	what? / which things?
fan?	where?
fu?	where?
kañ?	when?
nan?	how?
naka?	how?
ñaata?	how many? / how much?
ban?	which?
lutax?	why?

There are also related forms such as ku, lu, ñu, yu, fu, bu, and nu, which can function both as interrogative forms and in relative constructions. (⁠Wolof Resources)

The exact form used can depend on the grammatical construction and what is being questioned.

Kan — “who?”

The basic question word for a person is:

kan

For example:

Kan?
Who?

It can also occur in a larger question:

Kan moo dem?
Who left?

Here the question concerns the subject of the verb.

This distinction is important because Wolof uses a different construction when the question concerns the object.

Lan — “what?”

The basic question word for a thing or non-person referent is:

lan

For example:

Lan?
What?

In a longer question:

Lan lay def?
What is he/she doing?

Here the question concerns what is being done—the object or complement of the verbal construction.

The difference between:

Kan moo…

and:

Lan lay…

is therefore not accidental. The two constructions reflect the different grammatical roles being questioned. (⁠Wolof Resources)

Subject questions

A question asking who or what is performing an action commonly uses the subject-emphasis construction.

For example:

Kan moo dem?
Who left?

Literally, the structure is something like:

who + subject focus + verb

The subject-focus element is:

moo

The same construction is used when answering the question:

Kan moo dem?
Who left?

Sama xarit a dem.
My friend left. / It is my friend who left.

The answer places emphasis on the identity of the person who performed the action. (⁠Wolof Resources)

Kan moo can contract to Ku

One of the most useful features for learners is that:

Kan moo…

can contract to:

Ku…

Thus:

Kan moo dem?

can become:

Ku dem?

Both can mean:

Who left?

Similarly:

Kan moo ko def?

can become:

Ku ko def?

Who did it?

This is not simply a matter of informal pronunciation. The shorter form is a grammatical contraction associated with the question construction. (⁠Wolof Resources)

Ñan — “who?” for plural people

For questions referring to multiple people, Wolof can use:

ñan

For example:

Ñan ñoo dem?
Who left? / Which people left?

This can contract in the same way:

Ñu dem?

The relationship is approximately:

Ñan ñoo… → Ñu…

This is parallel to:

Kan moo… → Ku…

and is another example of how Wolof’s question words interact with the focus system. (⁠Wolof Resources)

Lan moo can contract to Lu

The same pattern occurs with questions about a thing functioning as the subject.

For example:

Lan moo xew?
What happened?

can contract to:

Lu xew?

What happened?

The relationship is:

lan + moo → lu

in this type of construction.

This is why learners may encounter lan and lu both meaning roughly “what?” without them simply being interchangeable vocabulary words. They belong to different grammatical constructions. (⁠Wolof Resources)

Object questions

When the question concerns an object or complement rather than the subject, Wolof commonly uses the object/complement focus construction.

For example:

Lan lañuy def?
What are they doing?

or:

Kan ngay seeti?
Who are you looking for?

Here the question is not asking who is performing the action. The subject is already understood:

you are looking for…

The question asks for the object:

…who?

This is why Wolof question formation cannot be reduced to a simple rule such as “put the question word at the beginning.” The grammatical role of the missing information matters. (⁠Wolof Resources)

The difference between subject and object questions

Compare:

Kan moo ko def?
Who did it?

with:

Kan ngay seeti?
Who are you looking for?

In the first question, who is the subject:

Who performed the action?

In the second, who is the object:

You are looking for whom?

Wolof marks this distinction through different focus constructions.

This is one of the most important things for an English-speaking learner to understand about Wolof questions.

Where — Fan and Fu

Wolof has more than one way of asking where.

Two especially important forms are:

fan

and:

fu

For example:

Fan nga dëkk?
Where do you live?

and:

Fu mu dem?
Where did he/she go?

The two forms are closely related, but they occur in different grammatical constructions. Fu belongs to the group of interrogative/relative forms that also occur in relative clauses, while fan is an independent question word. (⁠Wolof Resources)

Learners will therefore encounter both rather than treating one as a spelling variant of the other.

Questions with Ana

Another way of asking where someone or something is uses:

ana

For example:

Ana Duudu?
Where is Duudu?

This construction can be used without an ordinary verb corresponding directly to English is. (⁠Scribd)

This is a good example of why English to be does not always have a single Wolof equivalent.

The question:

Where is X?

can therefore be expressed through a construction that does not translate word-for-word as:

Where + is + X?

When — Kañ

The basic question word for time is:

kañ?

Kañ?
When?

It can occur in longer questions as well:

Kañ nga ñëw?
When did you come?

The exact tense/aspect interpretation comes from the larger verbal construction rather than from kañ itself.

How — Nan and Naka

Wolof has two closely related forms commonly used for questions about manner or condition:

nan

and:

naka

For example:

Naka nga def?
How are you? / How are you doing?

Naka is particularly common in everyday expressions.

Nan can also occur in question and relative constructions.

These forms should not necessarily be treated as two completely separate English-style words. Their relationship becomes clearer when they are studied alongside Wolof’s broader system of interrogative and relative forms. (⁠Wolof Resources)

How much and how many — Ñaata

Wolof uses:

ñaata?

to ask about quantity or number.

It can correspond to:

how many?

or:

how much?

depending on what is being counted or measured.

For example:

Ñaata la?
How much is it?

The same general principle applies as in English: the surrounding noun or context determines whether the question concerns a countable number or an amount.

Which — Ban

Wolof can use:

ban

to ask:

which?

The form belongs to the system of noun-class-sensitive interrogative/determiner forms.

This is important because “which” questions are not simply identical to “what” questions.

Compare the conceptual difference:

What did you see?

versus:

Which one did you see?

Wolof can distinguish these through different constructions and forms.

The exact form can also vary according to the noun class involved. Interrogative forms such as ban, kan, lan, yan, and related forms are part of a larger noun-class-sensitive system. (⁠Wolof Resources)

Why — Lutax

A common way to ask:

why?

is:

lutax?

The expression is historically related to a construction meaning roughly:

what causes/reasons?

For example:

Lutax nga dem?
Why did you go?

The answer can then provide a reason or cause.

Wolof also has constructions involving mootax and ndaxte when explaining reasons or consequences. These should be distinguished from the question itself.

Question words are not always interchangeable

One of the easiest mistakes for learners is to assume:

kan = who
lan = what
fan = where
naka = how

and then simply substitute these words into an English sentence.

Wolof question words are connected to the grammatical construction in which they occur.

For example:

Kan moo dem?

and:

Ku dem?

are related forms.

Likewise:

Lan moo xew?

and:

Lu xew?

are related.

And:

Fan nga dëkk?

and:

Foo dëkk?

can express the same basic question through related constructions.

The shorter forms are not random alternatives. They arise from the way Wolof combines interrogative forms with its pronoun/focus system. (⁠Wolof Resources)

Foo, Koo, Loo, Noo and related contractions

The relationship between independent question words and the construction-specific forms produces some very common contracted forms.

For example:

fan + nga → foo

kan + nga → koo

lan + nga → loo

nan + nga → noo

Thus, depending on the construction, you may encounter:

Foo dëkk?
Where do you live?

Koo gis?
Who did you see?

Loo bëgg?
What do you want?

Noo tudd?
What is your name? / How are you called?

These forms can look mysterious if learned as isolated vocabulary. They become much easier to understand once you recognize them as contractions involving an interrogative form and a verbal pronoun. (⁠Wolof Resources)

Independent question words

Some question words can stand alone:

Kan?
Who?

Lan?
What?

Fan?
Where?

Kañ?
When?

Naka?
How?

This is similar to English.

But Wolof also has a separate group of forms that can function as both interrogative and relative forms, such as:

ku — who
lu — what
fu — where
bu — when/when…
nu — how

This distinction becomes especially important when questions are embedded inside larger sentences. (⁠Wolof Resources)

Questions inside larger sentences

A question does not always stand by itself.

For example:

Xam nga ndax mu dem?
Do you know whether he went?

Here the question is embedded inside another sentence.

The word:

ndax

can introduce an embedded yes-or-no question.

Similarly, an interrogative form can occur inside a larger construction:

Xam nga fu mu dëkk?
Do you know where he lives?

The embedded question is:

fu mu dëkk
where he lives

rather than an independent question requiring the same intonation as:

Fu mu dëkk?
Where does he live?

This distinction is important because questions and relative clauses overlap in Wolof grammar. Some of the same forms can serve both functions. (⁠Wolof Resources)

Questions and relative clauses

The relationship between interrogatives and relative clauses is particularly strong in Wolof.

Compare:

Fu mu dëkk?
Where does he live?

with:

Wax ma fu mu dëkk.
Tell me where he lives.

The form fu occurs in both.

Likewise, forms such as:

ku
lu
nu
bu

can introduce interrogative or relative constructions depending on their grammatical environment.

This is one of the reasons Wolof question formation becomes easier once the learner understands the broader focus and relative-clause systems. (⁠Wolof Resources)

Questions and answers often mirror each other

Wolof answers frequently use the same focus structure that appears in the question.

For example:

Fan nga dëkk?
Where do you live?

A natural focused answer can be:

Portland laa dëkk.
I live in Portland.

The answer puts the requested information—Portland—in the position of focus.

Similarly:

Kan moo dem?
Who left?

can be answered:

Sama xarit a dem.
My friend left.

The grammatical structure therefore helps signal what information is new or being identified. (⁠Wolof Resources)

This is different from English question formation

English often relies heavily on auxiliary verbs and subject-auxiliary inversion:

You are going.
Are you going?

You saw him.
Did you see him?

Wolof generally does not form questions by applying this kind of inversion.

Instead, the language uses:

• interrogative intonation
• question words
• focus/predicator constructions
• subject or object emphasis
• particles such as ndax
• construction-specific interrogative forms

This is why translating an English question word-for-word can produce an unnatural Wolof sentence.

Questions and politeness

Questions can also vary according to the social situation.

A grammatically correct question can still sound different depending on:

• the relationship between the speakers
• the speaker’s tone
• the choice of verbal construction
• whether the question is direct or indirect
• whether the speaker is requesting information, challenging someone, or showing concern

Politeness in Wolof is therefore not simply a matter of adding one equivalent of English please to every question.

The surrounding expression and social context matter.

Questions in informal writing

In text messages, social media, and informal writing, Wolof questions may be written with less consistency than in formal educational materials.

You may encounter:

• shortened forms
• contractions
• omitted accents
• alternate spellings
• French-influenced or informal orthography
• punctuation that does not follow formal conventions

The underlying grammatical construction can still be recognized even when the spelling is inconsistent.

This is another reason it is useful to learn the relationship between forms rather than memorizing each spelling as an unrelated word.

A basic question-word overview

Wolof	Approximate meaning	Typical use
kan	who?	person
ñan	who?/which people?	plural people
lan	what?	thing/object
yan	what?/which things?	plural/non-human
ban	which?	selecting among alternatives
fan	where?	independent location question
fu	where?	interrogative/relative construction
ana	where is…?	locating a person or thing
kañ	when?	time
nan	how?	manner
naka	how?	manner/condition
ñaata	how many?/how much?	quantity
lutax	why?	reason/cause
ndax	whether?/is it…?	yes/no questions

These are approximate functional translations. The grammatical behavior of each form is more important than its English gloss.

A few useful examples

Yes/no

Ndax dinga dem?
Are you going?

Who?

Kan moo dem?
Who left?

What?

Loo bëgg?
What do you want?

Where?

Foo dëkk?
Where do you live?

When?

Kañ nga ñëw?
When did you come?

How?

Naka nga def?
How are you?

How much?

Ñaata la?
How much is it?

Why?

Lutax nga dem?
Why did you go?

Which?

Ban téere nga jàng?
Which book did you read?

The precise interpretation of some examples can depend on context and verbal construction, so these should be understood as illustrations of the patterns rather than rigid English-to-Wolof formulas.

The most important idea

The most important thing to understand about Wolof questions is:

The form of a question depends on what information is being questioned and what grammatical role that information has.

A question asking:

Who did it?

is structurally different from:

Who did you see?

even though English uses the same word who.

Likewise, Wolof distinguishes between:

Kan moo dem?

and:

Kan ngay seeti?

because who is the subject in the first and the object in the second.

Once this distinction becomes familiar, many of Wolof’s seemingly complicated question forms begin to make sense.

Key points to remember

• Wolof forms questions through intonation, question words, particles, and grammatical focus constructions.
• Yes/no questions can often be formed through interrogative intonation.
• Ndax explicitly marks many yes/no questions.
• Wolof does not generally use English-style subject-auxiliary inversion.
• Kan means who and is associated with people.
• Ñan can refer to multiple people.
• Lan means what.
• Fan and fu can both mean where, but occur in different constructions.
• Ana can be used to ask where a person or thing is.
• Kañ means when.
• Nan and naka are used for how.
• Ñaata asks how many or how much.
• Ban asks which.
• Lutax asks why.
• Subject questions commonly use the moo/ñoo focus construction.
• Kan moo… can contract to ku….
• Ñan ñoo… can contract to ñu….
• Lan moo… can contract to lu….
• Related contractions produce forms such as foo, koo, loo, and noo.
• Wolof distinguishes questions about subjects from questions about objects and complements.
• Some interrogative forms also function as relative forms.
• Questions embedded inside larger sentences can therefore resemble relative constructions.
• Answers frequently use focus constructions that mirror the information being requested.
• Intonation and context are especially important in spoken questions.
• Informal written Wolof may show spelling, contraction, and punctuation variation.

Related topics

This page connects especially closely with:

• Wolof Pronouns
• Wolof Verbs
• Wolof Focus and Predicators
• Wolof Negation
• Wolof Conjunctions
• Wolof Relative Clauses
• Wolof Determiners
• Wolof Sentence Structure
• Wolof Interjections