German Interrogative Pronouns
Ask about people and things in every case, choose between welcher and was für ein, and avoid the classic wer/wen mix-up.
Interrogative pronouns are question words that stand for a person or thing: who, whom, whose, what, which.
In German, 'who' changes with case, just like er → ihn → ihm. Get the case right and your questions sound natural.
Wer for people, was for things
Wer asks about a person, was about a thing or an action. Both take the er/sie/es form of the verb.
Wer kommt heute Abend mit?
Who's coming along tonight?
Was machst du am Wochenende?
What are you doing at the weekend?
Wer changes with the case
Ask yourself what role the missing person plays in the answer. The question word takes the same case.
Who? (people)
- Nominativewersubject
- Accusativewendirect object
- Dativewemindirect object
- Genitivewessenwhose
Wen hast du auf der Party getroffen?
Who did you meet at the party?
Wem gehört die Jacke hier?
Who does this jacket belong to?
Mit wem fährst du in den Urlaub?
Who are you going on holiday with?
Welcher: which one?
Welcher asks for a choice from a known group. It takes the same endings as der, die, das.
Nominative
- Masculinewelcher
- Femininewelche
- Neuterwelches
- Pluralwelche
Accusative
- Masculinewelchen
- Femininewelche
- Neuterwelches
- Pluralwelche
Dative
- Masculinewelchem
- Femininewelcher
- Neuterwelchem
- Pluralwelchen
Welchen Film möchtest du sehen?
Which film would you like to see?
In welcher Straße wohnst du?
Which street do you live on?
Was für ein: what kind of?
- Asks about the type, not a choice from a list.
- Ein takes the case of the noun: was für einen Hund.
- In the plural, drop ein: Was für Bücher?
Was für ein Auto fährt deine Schwester?
What kind of car does your sister drive?
Was für einen Hund habt ihr?
What kind of dog do you have?
Common mistakes
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Wer hast du gesehen?✓ Wen hast du gesehen?
The person is the direct object: accusative wen.
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Wer hilfst du?✓ Wem hilfst du?
Helfen takes the dative: wem.
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Welche Film siehst du?✓ Welchen Film siehst du?
Masculine accusative: welchen, like den.
Questions learners ask
What is the difference between wer, wen and wem?
They are the nominative, accusative and dative of 'who'. Use the case the person would have in the answer: Wen siehst du? – Ich sehe ihn.
What is the difference between welcher and was für ein?
Welcher asks you to pick from known options (which one?). Was für ein asks about the type or quality (what kind of?).
How do you say 'with what' in German?
For things, German uses wo- + preposition: womit, wofür, worüber. Mit wem is only for people.