German Yes/No Questions — Flipping the Word Order
After this lesson you can turn any statement into a question by moving one word.
Do this first: W-questions
German Yes/No Questions — Flipping the Word Order
To ask a yes/no question, German does not add a word — it moves the verb to the front. That is the whole rule.
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Kulturnotiz
Doch is the word English speakers miss most once they know it exists. It is the answer to a negatively phrased question when you want to contradict it: "Hast du keine Zeit?" — "Doch!" meaning "yes, I do". Answering ja there would be ambiguous and answering nein would agree with the negative. There is no way to say this in one English word, which is why German speakers learning English find its absence maddening.
Common questions
+Do I need a word like "do" to ask a question?
No. German has no auxiliary for questions — the word order carries the meaning by itself. Sprichst du Deutsch? is complete as it stands.
+Can I just raise my intonation like in English?
You will be understood in speech, but it reads as surprise or disbelief rather than a neutral question, and in writing it is incorrect. Move the verb.
+What is doch and when do I use it?
It contradicts a negative question or statement. Hast du keine Zeit? — Doch, ich habe Zeit. It means "yes, actually" and exists precisely because ja would be ambiguous.
+How is this different from a W-question?
In a yes/no question the verb is first. In a W-question the question word is first and the verb is second: Was sprichst du? Both are covered by the same underlying slot rule from lesson 13.