pronoun
what
A1
“was” is the German interrogative pronoun meaning “what”. It asks for information in direct and indirect questions, appears in exclamations (“Was für...?”) and as a relative-like pronoun referring to neuter or nonspecific antecedents. It does not take case or auxiliary verbs; its form is invariable.
VOCABULARY.DETAILS.EXAMPLES
Was machst du?
What are you doing?
Der Zeuge erklärte, was er sah, damit die Polizei den Verdacht prüfen konnte.
The witness explained what he saw so that the police could check the suspicion.
VOCABULARY.DETAILS.DETAILS_LABEL
VOCABULARY.DETAILS.MNEMONICS
a big question mark representing 'what?'
sounds like English 'what' — both ask for information
VOCABULARY.DETAILS.NOTES
Was is the neutral interrogative pronoun used for asking about things.