One of the Small Talk Rules was to ask questions that start with a question word. Look at the table:
| Jautājot par personu | Who is he talking about? Who do you work for? (person or company) Who is your favourite actor? |
| Jautājot par lietām | What did you do yesterday? Which days do you work from home? |
| Izmanto What, ja ir daudz iespējamo variantu | What are you going to have for lunch? |
| Izmanto Which, kad piedāvā izvēli, variantus | Which is your favourite day of the week? |
| Jautājot par tipu/ stilu/ žanru | What kind/ sort/ type of music do you like? |
| Kombinē What vai Which + lietvārds | What date is the next conference? (jo ir daudz variantu) Which platform does the train leave from? (jo ir ierobežots variantu skaits) |
| Var kombinēt Which + one, ja jautā par zināmu lietu | Which one do you like, the green or the red? |
| Jautājot par iemeslu | Why was he late? |
| Jautājot par vietu | Where is your office? |
| Jautājot par laiku | When is your birthday? What time does the meeting start? |
| Jautājot par veidu, manieri (kā) | How do you usually get to work? How are you? |
| Izmanto How much + neskaitāmais lietvārds (bez daudzskaitļa galotnes) | How much time does it take to do one task? How much coffee do you drink? |
| Jautājot par cenu | How much does it cost? |
| Izmanto How many + skaitāmais lietvārds (daudzskaitļa formā) Jautājot par skaitu | How many participants are there in your group? How many times have you been there? (reizes) |
| Jautājot, cik bieži | How often do you check your phone? |
| Jautājot par attālumu | How far is your office from here? |
| Jautājot “Cik ilgi?” | How long does it take you to get here? How much time does it take to do one task? |
| Kombinē How + īpašības vārds | How old is your car? How tall are you? |
How long sounds more natural for English speakers:
You can use how much time if you are asking about shorter, more exact time:
⚠️ How long time – INCORRECT!
Make 5-7 questions that you could ask during the small talk. Work in pairs and have a small talk using the AAA model.
Example:
Question: Where do you live?
Answer: I live in Riga.
Add: But I was born in Valmiera.
Ask: And you? And what about you? How about you?
Feel free to ask more than one extra question; it’s your chance to practice speaking!
Do you have a lot in common?
(Press “NEXT” to continue the Lesson)