¿"Qué" o "cuál" camisa?

Question

Según muchos libros, nunca se debe usar ¿Cuál? cuando está enfrente de un sustantivo. Sin embargo, estoy segura de que he oido "¿Cuál camisa?", y ya sé que "Cuál de esas camisas" tambien se puede decir pero es la primera pregunta correcta o es necesario decir "¿Qué camisa?"

I edited your title to include correct punctuation. Remember, everyone is learning here, so proper spelling and grammar is helpful to everyone. - Paralee, Mar 1, 2012

My computer would not allow me to use accent marks on the title and the buttons below did not work. How did you do it so I know from here on out? - kneafus, Mar 1, 2012

Try just clicking on the letter with "tilde or signos" you want, located at the bottom of the field were you write a comment. It should work! - farallon7, Mar 1, 2012

Answer 1

You are right! Cuál camisa me pongo or qué camisa me pongo are exactly the same and correct.

• If you think about it, "Qué = what" and Cuál = Which" but in some cases they are interchangeable like in the case mentioned above. Here is a link with more explanation. Qué, Cuál

Thank you for this comment because I put almost the same example on the board today and according to their book, you use "Qué" if it is followed by a noun, even if it is supposed to mean "which". I couldn't agree with the book this time. - kneafus, Mar 1, 2012

Well, to be honest with you. I have seem many books with similar mistakes. And people believe those mistakes, just because the book said so. It is a shame! You are right! The book is not! - farallon7, Mar 1, 2012

Answer 2

While I would say that it is not technically incorrect to use "cuál" before a noun, and I have heard it used before, I don't think I have ever done it myself as I always use "qué" in front of nouns. I use "cuál" in front of forms of "ser" and other verbs when I want to say "which."

While both interrogatives are very similar, there can be big differences:

¿Cuál quieres? = Which one do you want? vs. ¿Qué quieres? = What do you want?

Answer 3

Creo que gramaticamente "qué camisa" es correcto, pero en una conversacion puedes usar ambos qué o cuál