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Are all these questions and their answers possible?

a) How much costs this book? -> Ten dollars costs this book. (Ten dollars as a singular subject, the price).

b) How much costs this book? -> Ten dollars cost this book. (Ten dollars as a plural subject).

c) How much does it cost this book? -> This book costs ten dollars. (Ten dollars as an object)

d) How much does this book cost? -> This book costs ten dollars. (Same as the one above).

GMC
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  • Welcome! We really like it if you help us out by explaining what has you confused about this and which you think are correct and which are incorrect. – Catija May 19 '15 at 17:46
  • No. Only one of these questions and one of these answers is grammatical. But you probly knew that already. Aren't you interested in why? – John Lawler May 19 '15 at 18:00
  • There's a good summary in the 'Is this a direct object or predicate complement?' thread. But @John Lawler doesn't explain why the commercial transaction verb 'cost' is afforded special syntax there; his linked article contains almost 50 pages. Though he does state in his comment that in 'This book costs ten dollars.' ten dollars is not an object. – Edwin Ashworth May 19 '15 at 18:20
  • Hi, @JohnLawler.

    Yes, I am interested. I would appreciate your comments.

     – GMC May 19 '15 at 18:49
  • @GMC: Then tell us where these came from and why you are asking about them. They're full of mistakes and very puzzling. If you are making up an exam, you should know better; if you are taking one, it's a pretty dumb exam. – John Lawler May 19 '15 at 20:03
  • @JohnLawler: I am neither making up an exam nor taking one. The questions came from the Internet (specifically from Google). The answers are mine according to the following mindset (English is not my native language): – GMC May 19 '15 at 21:38
  • a) If the answer of a question is the subject of a sentence answering that question, you do not need an auxiliary verb.

    Example:

    Who knows you in this office? -> Peter knows me.

    b) If the answer of a question is not the subject of a sentence answering that question, you need an auxiliary verb (except if you use a modal verb).

    Example:

    Who do you know in this office? (To whom do you know in this office?) -> I know Peter.

     – GMC May 19 '15 at 21:38
  • As @Sankarane pointed out, if the verb "to cost" means "to require the payment of", it is not possible to say "ten dollars cost(s) this book". – GMC May 19 '15 at 21:38
  • @GMC: OK. Thanks for clarifying. Only (d) and its answer are grammatical. (a-b) is not the way we ask a question in English (though it works in most other Germanic languages). (c) has a gratuitous it. Only (d) has everything it needs in the right place, and nothing extra. As for answers, the answers to (c) and (d) are grammatical; both answers to (a-b) are ungrammatical, for reasons which are discussed above. – John Lawler May 19 '15 at 22:46
  • Oh, and by the way, this has nothing to do with "how much" questions; it's true of all English questions. They follow rules. – John Lawler May 19 '15 at 22:55

1 Answers1

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Cost = to require the payment of (in this context)

This book costs ten dollars. = This book requires the payment of ten dollars. The understanding of the exact meaning of the word 'cost' shall help us figure out its proper usage.

A question to enquire about its cost would begin with 'How much'. When a sentence begins with 'How much', an ESL student may proceed from the affirmative sentence, "This book costs ten dollars" and frame the question as follows:

"How much this book costs?".

But an interrogative sentence will have to be re-written as

"How much does this book cost?"

Why? Here's the rule: How much + auxiliary (do/does/did/will) + subject/pronoun + infinitive

Framing a question this way may be unique to English, which may pose a challenge to a foreign student.

Your other forms, both questions and answers, are therefore incorrect, grammatically.

However, "How much does it cost... this book?" may be okay in the informal/spoken language.

I tried!

Sankarane
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