how do you know what verb tense to use when asking a question?

Question

I'm really confused on what verb tense to use when responding to a question in spanish. Between preterit, subjunctive, indicative....are there certain clues to look for?

Answer 1

Well, it really depends on when the action took place.

¿Dormiste bien? (Did you sleep well?) The question used the Preterit tense, so I'd respond in the Preterit tense. "Sí, dormí bien." (Yes, I slept well.)

¿Cantas bien? (Do you sing well?) The question used the Present tense, so I'd respond in the Present tense. "No, no canto muy bien."

Answer 2

When answering a question the obvious clue would/should be "What tense was used in the question?" (unless you have some good reason for thinking that the question was ill-phrased).

P.S. Your title speaks of asking a question while the body of your post talks of answering a question.