A06-Unit 22-2 Indirect Questions

Indirect Questions:

Indirect Questions First Day on the Job 11 Focus on Grammar 4 Part X, Unit 28 By Ruth Luman, Gabriele Steiner, and BJ Wells Copyright © 2005. Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.

Too Many Questions:

I think he did okay, but he sure asked a lot of questions. Well… How did the new employee do on his first day? Oh? What kinds of questions did he ask you? Too Many Questions

Indirect Questions:

He asked me if he could get a bigger office. He also asked me why the previous person had left. He asked me who fixed the computers. “Who fixes the computers?” “Can I get a bigger office?” “Why did the previous person leave?” Indirect Questions

Indirect Yes / No Questions 1:

The new guy asked whether the boss liked practical jokes. The new guy asked if we had any more chocolate donuts. Indirect Yes / No Questions 1 Use if or whether in indirect yes/no questions . “Do you have any more chocolate donuts?” “Does the boss like practical jokes?”

Indirect Yes / No Questions 2:

Indirect Yes / No Questions 2 Whether is more formal than if . We often use whether or not to report yes/no questions. The new guy asked whether or not he could take a break. “Can I take a break?”

Practice 1:

Practice 1 1. “ Does the company provide a car?” They asked… 2. “ Can I have a company credit card?” She asked… 3. “ Did he order a new computer?” I asked… Change the direct questions into indirect questions. Use if , whether , or whether or not . They asked if the company provided a car. She asked whether she could get a company credit card. I asked whether or not he had ordered a new computer. “ Will I get a raise?” He asked… Example: He asked if he would get a raise. He asked whether he would get a raise. He asked whether or not he would get a raise.

Wh- Questions 1:

The new guy asked when the next office party was. He also asked how many copies he could make. “How many copies can I make?” Wh - Questions 1 Use question words in indirect wh- questions . “When is the next office party?”

Word Order 1:

Word Order 1 Use statement word order (subject + verb), not question word order, for indirect yes/no questions. “Can you turn off the fax machine?” He asked me if I could turn off the fax machine.

Word Order 2:

Word Order 2 Use statement word order (subject + verb), not question word order, for indirect wh- questions about the predicate (usually the last part of the sentence). “Why do the meetings last so long?” He asked why the meetings lasted so long.

Word Order 3:

Word Order 3 Use statement word order (subject + verb), not question word order, for indirect wh- questions about the subject (usually the first part of the sentence). “Who made the coffee?” He asked who made the coffee. Subject

Be Careful!:

Be Careful! He asked what was the dress code. If a direct question about the subject has the form question word + be + noun , then the indirect question has the form question word + noun + be. “What is the dress code?” the dress code was.

Auxiliaries:

He asked me do I have any new video games. any new video games. if I had Auxiliaries In indirect questions, do not use the auxiliary do, does , or did . “Do you have any new video games?”

Punctuation:

He asked me if I could wake him up in an hour ? Punctuation In indirect questions, do not end with a question mark (end with a period). “Could you wake me up in an hour?” . ?

Practice 2:

Practice 2 1. “ What’s the name of the company?” They asked… 2. “ How many people work for the company?” We asked… 3. “ How long has the boss worked in the office?” I asked… Change the direct questions into indirect questions. They asked what the name of the company was. We asked how many people worked for the company. I asked how long the boss had worked in the office. “ Where is my office?” She asked… Example: She asked where her office was.

References:

Copyright © 2006 Pearson Education and its licensors. All rights reserved. References