Intermediate grammar · Unit 50 · B1

Questions 2 (do you know where ... ? / he asked me where ...)

Questions and auxiliary verbs

When a question sits inside a longer sentence (Do you know ... ? / I wonder ... / She asked me ...), it loses its question word order. The subject comes before the verb, and do/does/did disappears.

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A Do you know where ... ? / I don't know why ... / Could you tell me what ... ?

A direct question has question word order: Where has Kirsty gone?

When the same question becomes part of a longer sentence (Do you know ... ? / I don't know ... / Can you tell me ... ? / I wonder ...), it returns to ordinary statement order. The subject comes first, then the verb:

Direct question Inside a longer sentence
Where has Kirsty gone? Do you know where Kirsty has gone? (not has Kirsty gone)
What time is it? Have you any idea what time it is?
Who are those men? I've no idea who those men are.
When will the plumber come? Could you tell me when the plumber will come?

The questions with do/does/did need particular care. The auxiliary is removed altogether, and the main verb carries the tense instead:

Direct question Inside a longer sentence
What time does the chippy open? Do you know what time the chippy opens?
What do you want? Tell me what you want.
Why did Owen resign? I wonder why Owen resigned.

Where there is no question word (what, why, where etc.), use if or whether:

Direct question Inside a longer sentence
Did anyone lock the shed? I don't know if anyone locked the shed. / ... whether anyone locked the shed.
  • Do you know where Kirsty has gone?
  • Could you tell me when the plumber will come?
  • Do you know what time the chippy opens?
  • I wonder why Owen resigned.
  • I don't know whether anyone locked the shed.

B He asked me where ...

Reported questions follow the same rule: statement word order, no do/does/did. The verb usually moves into the past as well (see Unit 47).

Direct Reported
The guard said to us, "Where are you going?" The guard asked us where we were going.
Fatima asked, "What time does the library close?" Fatima wanted to know what time the library closed.

Suppose you had an interview for a job at a garden centre in Harrogate, and the manager asked you these questions:

  • Can you work weekends?
  • What did you do in your last job?
  • How long have you lived in Harrogate?
  • Why do you want to work here?
  • Have you ever worked in a shop?
  • Are you allergic to anything?

Later you tell a friend what the manager asked. It was, one gathers, a thorough interview for a job involving compost.

  • She asked if I could work weekends.
  • She wanted to know what I had done in my last job.
  • She asked how long I had lived in Harrogate.
  • She asked why I wanted to work there.
  • She wanted to know whether I had ever worked in a shop.
  • She asked if I was allergic to anything.

Exercises

50.1 Which is right? Choose the correct sentence.

  1. ___ (Do you know what time the bus leaves? / Do you know what time does the bus leave? / Do you know what time leaves the bus?)

    Do you know what time the bus leaves?

    Do you know what time the bus leaves?

  2. ___ (Why Leon does live so far from work? / Why Leon lives so far from work? / Why does Leon live so far from work?)

  3. ___ (I'd like to know what this sign says. / I'd like to know what does this sign say. / I'd like to know what says this sign.)

  4. ___ (I can't remember where did I put my glasses. / I can't remember where I put my glasses. / I can't remember where I did put my glasses.)

  5. ___ (Why you didn't answer my message? / Why didn't you answer my message? / Why you not answered my message?)

  6. ___ (Do you know where does Craig live? / Do you know where Craig does live? / Do you know where Craig lives?)

  7. ___ (How much it costs to hire a van? / How much does it cost to hire a van? / How much it does cost to hire a van?)

  8. ___ (Tell me what you need. / Tell me what you do need. / Tell me what do you need.)

50.2 Put the words in the correct order to make a sentence. The first word or words are given.

  1. (the match / you / what time / know / starts) Do ...?

    Do you know what time the match starts?

    Do you know what time the match starts?

  2. (is / to Whitby / far / it) How ...?

  3. (wonder / is / how / old / this house) I ...

  4. (she / here / worked / has) How long ...?

  5. (she / here / how long / worked / has / know) Do you ...?

  6. (tell / the post office / you / me / is / where) Could ...?

  7. (in the fire / hurt / anybody / don't / whether / know / was) I ...

  8. (what / on Friday / know / time / will / get here / you / you) Do ...?

50.3 You spent a week in Glasgow, and a great many people asked you a great many questions. Now you tell a friend what they asked. Use reported speech.

  1. A taxi driver: "What's your job?" (He asked me ...)

    He asked me what my job was.

    He asked me what my job was.

  2. A woman at the hotel: "How long have you been in Scotland?" (She asked me ...)

  3. Two students: "Have you visited Glasgow before?" (They asked me ...)

  4. A waiter: "Do you like the food here?" (He asked me ...)

  5. A man on the train: "Which hotel are you staying at?" (He asked me ...)

  6. A shop assistant: "When are you going to go home?" (She asked me ...)

  7. A tour guide: "Do you think Glasgow is friendly?" (She asked me ...)

  8. A bus driver: "Why did you choose Glasgow?" (He asked me ...)

See also