# EN: Est-ce que ceci a un nom ?



## Un Québécois

Bonjour, I wonder how am I supposed to make a "yes/no question" with this sentence?
*Est-ce que ceci a un nom?*
_I know that If there is one verb in the statement and the verb is a form of BE (or HAVE in British English), I simply switch the positions of the subject and verb.
I know that If there is one verb, and the verb is not a form of BE, I add DO to the beginning of the sentence.
I know that If there are two verbs, I simply switch the positions of the subject and first verb._

Despite all those grammar, I do not know how to make that sentence in the "yes/no question" form.
According to what I would say instinctively, I think it would be "Is that have a name", am I right? I am not sure of that, because when the sentence is in the affirmative, it would give "That have a name". Nevertheless, I see no verb BE in it.

Could you enlighten me on this?
Merci


----------



## Guerric

Hi,

I think you can say: _Does this have a name?_
or _Is there a name for this?_


----------



## Un Québécois

Thank for precision. Can you use _have_ for British English?
By _have_ I mean *Have this a name*? It does not sound right...


----------



## Hannah_99

Has this got a name?


----------



## Guerric

_*Has* this a name?_
ça sonne un peu bizarre pour moi aussi...


----------



## Un Québécois

Or maybe *Has** this have a name?* Where "has" has the same meaning as "to be".
I am not sure if we can say it in this way.


----------



## Hannah_99

Un Québécois said:


> Or maybe *Has** this have a name?* Where "has" has the same meaning as "to be".
> I am not sure if we can say it in this way.


 
Sorry, not a chance.

Does this have a name?
Has this got a name?
Has this a name? (borderline ungrammatical)


----------



## dangph

Est-ce que ceci a un nom?​Transform this to the affirmative:Ceci a un nom.​Translate it to English:This has a name.​Apply the first rule ("If there is one verb in the statement and the verb is a form of BE (*or HAVE in British English*), I simply switch the positions of the subject and verb."):Has this a name? (British people, is this really how you would say it?)​Or instead apply the second rule ("If there is one verb, and the verb is not a form of BE, I add DO to the beginning of the sentence."):Does this have a name?​


----------



## Un Québécois

I remember that HAVE may occur in certain cases, for example "Have you a furret?"


----------



## Keith Bradford

_Has this a name? (British people, is this really how you would say it?)_

Not often, and only in formal circumstances, but it's not incorrect.

_"Have you a furret?" _

No, not even a ferret, but the format is perfectly good.  Better examples:
_Have you any idea of the time?  Have you a minute to spare?  Have you his phone number?_  All of these are possible (if a little stilted) in conversation but perfectly OK in writing BE.


----------



## leftimage

au niveau pratique, conversationnel je dirais ''what's this called?'', si seulement pcq _virtually everything's got a name. _


----------



## christabell

I thin "Does it have a name?" would be one of the best translations because the British dees not use "have" in th form of a question. Nevertheless "Has it got a name?" may be appropiarate to use.


----------



## frenchifried

"Has it got a name?" is not as good as Hannah's alternatives as you have the "ceci" in French, so the "it" doesn't really work as well.

Frenchifried


----------



## christabell

absolutely..I missed that part for I was focused on "have got"..


----------



## frenchifried

Leftimage has probably the best translation though "What's this called?" It really depends on the context I imagine.

Frenchifried


----------



## dangph

The point of the exercise was to translate a yes/no question in French into a yes/no question in English.


----------



## frenchifried

Of course, you're right. I lost sight of that!


----------



## wildan1

frenchifried said:


> Leftimage has probably the best translation though "What's this called?" It really depends on the context I imagine.
> 
> Frenchifried


Or even more usually in my experience, _What do you call this?_

Otherwise,_ What's the name for this?_ is what comes to mind.


----------

