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Abstract This paper discusses the area of the question—its generation, its relation to the retrieval system, and its effect on the inquirer. Four levels of question formation may be isolated and analysed: the actual, but unexpressed, need for information; the conscious within‐brain description of the need; the formal statement of the question; and the question as presented to the information system. Input and output characteristics of systems are examined for their effect on the inquirer's decision to ask a question and on the form the query takes. Investigation of six parameters governing question type and ambiguity argues that we may be placing too much emphasis on syntactic matching of inquiry and store of answers. The inquirer's state of readiness is defined as the “state of mind” which allows a selection to be made from a series of messages. A question is seen as an indication of inadequacy on the part of the inquirer who hopes to remedy that inadequacy by calling on the information system. A major objective of information systems is to make commonplace the point of maximum usefulness where three coordinates cross: level of question, state of readiness, and available answer.