Sometimes people ask you for personal details, such as name, address and date of birth. Here are some typical questions and ways you can answer.

Question words

Who (asks for a name or person)
Whose (asks about the owner)
Why (asks for a reason)
Where (asks for a place)
What (asks about a thing or a concept)
Which (asks about a thing)
When (asks for a time)
How (asks about the way something happens)
(Also “how much” / “how many” to ask about quantity; “how long” to ask about duration; “how often” to ask about frequency.)

Remember the word order of questions:

(1. Question word – optional)
2. Auxiliary do / does; verb to be
3. Subject
4. Verb + complement

(1)Where (2)do (2)you (4)live?
(1)What (2)is (3)your name?
(2)Do (3)you (4)like reading?

If there is no question word, the question starts with the auxiliary. The answer to a question like this is “yes” or “no”.

Typical questions

1. What’s your name?

(Give your first name then surname: “My name’s Susan Harris” or “I’m Susan Harris”.)

What’s your first name?
– Susan

What’s your surname / family name / second name?
– Harris

On a form, you can often see abbreviations before your surname.
Mr (for a man)
Mrs / Miss / Ms (for a woman: Mrs shows you are married, Miss shows you are single, Ms is if you’d prefer not to show your marital status – the female equivalent of Mr)
Dr (to show the person is a medical doctor or has a PhD)

2. What’s your date of birth?

It’s (day – month – year: “It’s the second of July, 1980”.)

Or:
When were you born?
(“On the second of July, 1980”.)

You can write 2 July 1980 or July 2, 1980. But when you say the date, use ordinal numbers:

1 – the first
2 – the second
3 – the third
4 – the fourth
5 – the fifth
6 – the sixth
7 – the seventh
8 – the eighth
9 – the ninth
10 – the tenth
11 – the eleventh
12 – the twelfth
…
20 – the twentieth
21 – the twenty-first
…

Either “the second of July, 1980” or “July the second, 1980”.

3. What’s your marital status?

I’m married / single / divorced / widowed

Or:
Are you married?

4. What’s your address?

Or:
Where do you live?

(Give the full address)
Name of the house (if there is one)
Street number and name
Town or city
County and Postcode
Country

For example:

Rose Cottage
20, London Road
St Albans
Herts AL9 2RS
England