Dónde y donde

Question

Por qué la palabra dónde as veces tiene un tilde y as veces non?

Answer 1

To add to what jellonz said, "dónde" or "adónde" can be interrogative even if they are not inside a question. for instance "me pregunto dónde estarán las llaves". If that "dónde" is unknown, it will have an accent mark.

Ah ... Thanks Shameless. That could explain many of the uses of an accented "dónde" or "adónde" I have seen outside of a question format. - jellonz, Jun 22, 2017

Answer 2

I've learnt "dónde" when it's an interrogative, otherwise "donde", but I have seen many cases where this rule is rightly or wrongly ignored.

¿Dónde está la ciudad donde vives? - Where is the city where you live?

And don't forget "adonde" (or "a donde") when the "where" could translate as "to where" in English.

¿Adónde vas? - [To] Where are you going?

Adonde vas es importante - [To] Where you are going is important.

Again, I've learnt tilde for interrogative, no tilde otherwise, but again I've seen this not adhered to. Maybe misuse? Maybe regional? Maybe a change in the RAE's requirements? Maybe I learnt wrong?

The only "dónde" that is asking is the first one. The second is just especifying wich city are you referring to (Sorry for bad English) - ale9194, Jun 22, 2017

It's like saying "en la que" - ale9194, Jun 22, 2017

Thanks Ale, that's what I was trying to convey :) - jellonz, Jun 22, 2017

Answer 3

This question was discussed before with explanations. About donde and dónde

Thank you for posting the link. - rac1, Jun 22, 2017

Answer 4

Gracias muchachos