Tap to copy
Shortcuts
| Device | ¿ | ¡ |
|---|---|---|
| Mac | ⌥ ⇧ ? | ⌥ 1 |
| Windows (Alt code) | Alt 168 or Alt 0191 | Alt 173 or Alt 0161 |
| Windows US-International | Right Alt / | Right Alt 1 |
| Word (Windows) | Ctrl Alt ⇧ ? | Ctrl Alt ⇧ ! |
| iPhone and Android | Open 123 and hold ? | Open 123 and hold ! |
| Chromebook / Linux | Ctrl ⇧ U, bf, Enter | Ctrl ⇧ U, a1, Enter |
| This page | Type the question and ?: ¿ is added | Type the sentence and !: ¡ is added |
Where the opening mark goes
¿ or ¡ goes where the question or exclamation begins, which isn't always the start of the sentence. Following the Royal Spanish Academy (RAE):
- At the start when the whole sentence is the question: ¿Vienes mañana?
- After a name or greeting that comes first: Juan, ¿vienes? · Oye, ¿tienes un minuto?
- After a condition or topic in front: Si llueve, ¿qué hacemos? (If it rains, what do we do?)
- At the start when the name comes last: ¿Vienes, Juan?
The keyboard on this site follows these rules: if the question starts with qué, cómo, dónde… the ¿ goes there; if a short phrase and a comma come first, it goes after the comma. If it guesses wrong, press Backspace right after to undo it.
Common mistakes
- Leaving out the opening mark. “Como estas?” is common in chats, but correct Spanish is “¿Cómo estás?”.
- Adding a period after ? or ! They already end the sentence: “¿Vienes? Te espero.”, never “¿Vienes?.”.
- Mixing marks. For a surprised question, open and close with both: “¡¿Qué dices?!”.
- Dropping the accent on question words. Qué, quién, cómo, cuándo, dónde, cuál and cuánto take an accent when they ask: “¿Dónde vives?”, “No sé qué hacer”.
Indirect questions: no marks
When the question sits inside another sentence, it gets neither ¿ nor ?, but the question word keeps its accent:
| Direct | Indirect |
|---|---|
| ¿Dónde está? (Where is it?) | No sé dónde está. (I don't know where it is.) |
| ¿Cuándo llegas? (When do you arrive?) | Dime cuándo llegas. (Tell me when you arrive.) |
| ¿Qué quieres? (What do you want?) | Me preguntó qué quería. (She asked what I wanted.) |
| ¿Vienes? (Are you coming?) | Quiero saber si vienes. (I want to know if you're coming.) |
Several questions in a row
Separate questions each open and close, and the next one starts with a capital: ¿Dónde estabas? ¿Por qué no llamaste? If they're parts of one list, separate them with commas and keep them lowercase: ¿Quién eres?, ¿de dónde vienes?, ¿qué quieres?
A question can also sit in the middle of a sentence, after a comma or a colon: Ahora bien, ¿quién paga? · La duda es esta: ¿lo hacemos o no?
Where they are on a phone
- iPhone: tap 123, hold ? and slide to ¿. For ¡, hold !.
- Android (Gboard): tap ?123 and hold ? or !.
- Samsung: tap !#1 and hold ? or !.
Why Spanish opens its questions
In Spanish, a question and a statement can use exactly the same words: “Vienes mañana” (You're coming tomorrow) and “¿Vienes mañana?” (Are you coming tomorrow?). Only intonation tells them apart, and the opening mark warns the reader from the first word. It helps most in long sentences: “¿Te parece bien que nos veamos el jueves en la cafetería de siempre después del trabajo?”.
The Royal Spanish Academy introduced the opening mark in the second edition of its Ortografía, in 1754. At first it was only used for long questions; over time it became required for all of them. Today Spanish is practically the only language that requires it.
In texts, social media and email
- In chats, many people skip ¿ and ¡ to save time. It's understood, but in a work email, a résumé or anything published, use them.
- On social media, both marks help the tone come across: “¡Felicidades!” reads differently from “Felicidades”.
- In titles and email subjects they're used too: “¿Nos vemos el lunes?”, “¡Últimas plazas!”.
- With emoji, the closing mark goes before the emoji: “¿Vienes? 😊”.
Correct examples
| Sentence | Why |
|---|---|
| ¿Qué hora es? (What time is it?) | The whole sentence is the question |
| Perdona, ¿sabes dónde está la estación? (Excuse me, do you know where the station is?) | The greeting comes first |
| Si no llueve, ¿vamos a la playa? (If it doesn't rain, shall we go to the beach?) | The condition comes first |
| ¿Vienes o no? (Are you coming or not?) | Short question with a choice |
| ¡Qué sorpresa verte aquí! (What a surprise to see you here!) | Whole exclamation |
| Ay, ¡qué susto! (Oh, what a fright!) | Interjection first, then a comma |
| ¡¿Cómo que no vienes?! (What do you mean you're not coming?!) | Question and surprise at once |
The exclamation mark has its own guide with every shortcut and how it's used: how to type ¡.
Frequently asked questions
Do I really need the upside-down question mark?
In correct Spanish, yes: the RAE requires both the opening and closing marks. People often skip ¿ in casual chats, but not in emails, school work or anything published.
What are ¿ and ¡ called?
In English, inverted (or upside-down) question and exclamation marks. In Spanish, signos de apertura.
Is there a capital letter after ¿?
Yes if the question starts the sentence (¿Qué hora es?), no if it follows a comma (Oye, ¿qué hora es?).