Learn English – “How to […]?” and “Where to […]?” Questions that are not questions. Is this defensible

grammaticalitypunctuationquestions

Adding a question mark to the end of a "How to" or "Where to" sentence appears to be quite common. Here are two examples from this very site:

How to punctuate a list of questions? (link)

Where to put the periods when using a parenthetical sentence? (link)

In my mind, the question mark doesn't belong at all, and it bothers me.

Am I being unreasonable? Is this practice defensible?

Best Answer

I'll give a shot at answering my own question.

The obvious correct alternatives are not entirely satisfying.

How does one punctuate a list of questions?

This comes across as too formal for many people.

How do I punctuate a list of questions?

This is too personal, perhaps selfish sounding.

How do you punctuate a list of questions?

This sounds like it's asking for opinions rather than established usage. (On this site you'd get a warning about a subjective question.)

How to Punctuate a List of Questions

This sounds like an introduction to a guide.

So the problem is probably that using one has become too formal and nothing has reliably taken its place.

Perhaps a better alternative would be to rephrase the question:

How should a list of questions be punctuated?

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