Learn Spanish (Latin America): ¿Adónde va ella hoy?

¿Adónde va ella hoy?

Where is she going today?

Breakdown of ¿Adónde va ella hoy?

Questions & Answers about ¿Adónde va ella hoy?

Why use adónde instead of just dónde here?

Dónde simply means "where." However, because this sentence involves movement to a destination (using the verb va, meaning "is going"), we use adónde. It is a combination of a (to) and dónde (where), so it literally means "to where."

The English translation says "is she going". Why isn't there a word for "is" in the Spanish sentence?

In Spanish, the simple present tense often covers both simple and ongoing actions. The single word va can translate to both "goes" and "is going." You do not need to translate "is" and "going" as separate words!

Why does ella (she) come after the verb va?

In Spanish questions, it is very common to switch the normal order of the subject and the verb. So, instead of the statement order ella va (she goes), the question swaps them to ask ¿Adónde va ella? (literally: "To where goes she?").

Do we have to include the word ella in this sentence?

It is not 100% required, but it is very helpful here! Because the verb form va can mean "he goes," "she goes," or "you (formal) go," including ella makes it perfectly clear that we are asking about "her." If we already knew who we were talking about, we could just ask ¿Adónde va hoy?.