wh-question
/ˈdʌbl̩juː eɪtʃ ˈkwɛst͡ʃən/
"wh-question" is a 10-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“wh-question” is uncommon English (outside the top frequency list), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.
- Unranked
- below top-frequency English
- 11
- letters
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A question that is introduced by a wh-word (what, where, why, etc.) and cannot be answered by yes or no.
Corpus desk
Index EN-wh-question · wh-question · English
wh-question · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables
- FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
- LEN-MEGA 11 letters
- VOW-4 4 vowels
- CONFUS-0 No pairs
- VAR-0 0 variants
- BOOK-THIN "W" thin
- PHOTO-UNK Peer pending
Read with this headword: Spelling guide for this pattern
Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | wh-question |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| IPA | /ˈdʌbl̩juː eɪtʃ ˈkwɛst͡ʃən/ |
| Letters | 11 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Long-tail rank of “wh-question” in English
Rare enough to double-check
wh-question is uncommon English outside the top frequency list, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˈdʌbl̩juː eɪtʃ ˈkwɛst͡ʃən/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "A question that is introduced by a wh-word (what, where, why, etc.) and cannot be answered by yes or no.".
wh-question doesn't appear in our generated misspelling index, a sign its spelling follows regular English conventions. This headword has no recorded confusable partner, which typically means the spelling is too distinctive to be mistaken for another word.
Etymologically, the entry records: From the fact that many of the adverbs and pronouns that are used at the beginning of such sentences, such as what, when, which, who, and why, begin with wh. The correct English form is wh-question, spelled W-H---Q-U-E-S-T-I-O-N.
Definition
- 1A question that is introduced by a wh-word (what, where, why, etc.) and cannot be answered by yes or no.
Recorded use
Wiktionary examplesThese source excerpts show how wh-question appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.
In general each kind of Wh question calls for an answer which is an instance of a particular major sentence constituent.
To answer a wh-question, a person usually examines the items described by the <+WH> noun phrase and tests the truth of the sentence for each item.
Etymology
From the fact that many of the adverbs and pronouns that are used at the beginning of such sentences, such as what, when, which, who, and why, begin with wh.
This word in other languages
Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.