"To be" in the question form of the present simple (am I/are you...)

First, let's look at the present simple positive with "be".

Positive form
I
 am
he
she
it
 is

we
you
they

 are

Now, let's make a question. It's very simple. All we need is swap am/is/are and the subject (I/you/they...). In questions with a question word, the sentence always begins with a question word.

Question wordQuestion
What
Where
Who
How
...		 am I?
is

he?
she?
it?
are

we?
you?
they?

Examples

I am late → Am I late?

You are happy. → Are you happy?

He is 28 years old. → How old is he?

Her parents are in Italy. → Where are her parents?

Pay attention

We can contract (shorten) the word "is" with these question words:

what's = what is
who's = who is
how's = how is
where's = where is

Examples

How's John? = How is John

Where's my cup? = Where is my cup?

Who's there? = Who is there?

We cannot contract am/is/are with other question words.

Short answers

Sometimes we don't want to repeat the sentence in our answer to the question. That's where we need short answers. In the short negative answer, it's better to use one of the short forms.

Examples

— Are you happy with your new job at Google? — Yes, I am.

— Is she married? — No, she isn't. (= No, she's not).

— Are they here? — No, they aren't. (= No, they're not).

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