interrogative

American  

[in-tuh-rog-uh-tiv] / ˌɪn təˈrɒg ə tɪv /

adjective

1. of, relating to, or conveying a question.

2. Grammar. forming, constituting, or used in or to form a question.

   an interrogative pronoun, suffix, particle, or sentence.

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noun

1. Grammar. an interrogative word, element, or construction, as who? and what?

interrogative British  

/ ˌɪntəˈrɒɡətɪv /

adjective

1. asking or having the nature of a question

2. denoting a form or construction used in asking a question

3. denoting or belonging to a class of words, such as which and whom, that are determiners, adjectives, or pronouns and serve to question which individual referent or referents are intended Compare demonstrative relative

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noun

1. an interrogative word, phrase, sentence, or construction

2. a question mark

Other Word Forms

• interrogatively adverb
• uninterrogative adjective
• uninterrogatively adverb

Etymology

Origin of interrogative

From the Late Latin word interrogātīvus, dating back to 1510–20. See interrogate, -ive

Example Sentences

Over the holiday season, there were online pile-ons galore, with straight women repeatedly taking gay critics of the show to task over their negative or merely interrogative opinions of the series.

From Salon • Jan. 2, 2026

At charity events, auctioneers insert interrogative phrases, such as “would you give?,” an appeal to the bidders’ generosity.

From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 28, 2025

The interrogative form does all the work of asking aloud — with none of the actual asking — why mom still thinks you can speak for a four-years-ago ex.

From Washington Post • Aug. 21, 2022

Sen. Kelly Loeffler, R-Ga., was presiding over the Senate when Schumer posed his interrogative.

From Fox News • Sep. 26, 2020

And then in an interrogative tone that showed he could hardly believe it himself, my brother told me that there had been an accident and that Milton was dead.

From "Middlesex: A Novel" by Jeffrey Eugenides