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Total eng upp unit 2.2 p27 indirect questions.

TOTAL ENGLISH UPPER INTERMEDIATE. UNIT 2.2 PAGE 27


INDIRECT QUESTIONS (NOT Indirect speech!)

Remember that there are two types of normal questions in English.


i) Those that can be answered by YES or NO. E.g. Are you happy? Can you lend me
1000 Euros, please? Does the academy open on Saturdays?
ii) WH QUESTIONS: - Those which require more information in the answer. E.g. Where
do you live? Which car did your sister buy? How many inhabitants are there in
Cabanillas?

You also know that with most questions in the present simple, we use DO / DOES (except those
with BE, BE ABLE TO, HAVE GOT, MUST, CAN…) Eg. How much do you pay for your
classes? Why does he always use swear-words?
In the past, we normally use DID for questions, except those asked with BE, BE ABLE TO and
COULD). How many pens did the secretary buy? Where did they go on holiday last summer?

WHO, WHAT, WHICH, HOW MUCH, HOW MANY.. AS THE SUBJECT OF A VERB IN
A QUESTION

Remember too, that if one of the words above is the SUBJECT of the verb in a question, we DO
NOT use the auxiliary verb (DO; DOES; DID) in the present and past to form the question.

EG. Who do you play tennis with? (YOU is the subject of the verb, and WHO refers to the object)
But Who plays tennis with you? (WHO is the SUBJECT of the verb,)

e.g. How many apples did she buy? (SHE is the subject of the verb and HOW MANY APPLES is the object)
e.g. How many apples fell from the tree in the storm? (HOW MANY APPLES is the subject of the verb)

INDIRECT QUESTIONS.
You have remembered, above, how to form normal, direct questions.
But we can also use INDIRECT QUESTIONS if we want to be more polite, or if we are speaking to
somebody we don’t know, like a stranger in the street.
INDIRECT QUESTIONS can be formed with phrases beginning with…CAN YOU TELL ME….
PLEASE COULD YOU TELL ME…. DO YOU KNOW…. I’D LIKE TO KNOW… etc etc

When we use INDIRECT QUESTIONS, in YES / NO questions, we begin with IF or WHETHER


and the question changes to an affirmative sentence. (There is no question mark at the end of the
sentence.)
Eg. I would like to know IF YOU ARE HAPPY.
Can you tell me IF YOU CAN LEND ME 1000 EUROS.
Do you know IF THE ACADEMY OPENS ON SATURDAYS.

When we use INDIRECT QUESTIONS in WH questions, we begin with the question word (When,
why, what, who, etc) followed by an affirmative sentence. (There is no question mark at the end of
the sentence.)
E.g. I’d like to know WHERE YOU LIVE.
Could you tell me WHICH CAR YOUR SISTER BOUGHT.
Can you tell me HOW MANY INHABITANTS THERE ARE IN CABANILLAS.
EXERCISES WITH INDORECT QUESTIONS.

These are DIRECT QUESTIONS. Use a suitable phrase and change them into INDIRECT
QUESTIONS.

1.- DID YOU PASS YOUR LAST MATHS EXAM?

2.- WHO WERE YOU SPEAKING TO ON THE PHONE?

3.- HAS THIS ACADEMY BEEN OPEN FOR MANY YEARS?

4.- HOW MUCH DOES THAT BICYCLE COST?

5.- IS THERE A CHEMIST’S SHOP NEAR HERE?

6.- WHAT’S THE TIME?

7.- WHEN IS YOUR BIRTHDAY?

8.-DO YOU AGREE WITH THIS PROPOSAL (Propuesta)?

9.- WHOSE JACKET IS THIS?

10. HOW LONG HAS JOSE ANTONIO BEEN AN AMATEUR DIVER?

11. WOULD YOU LIKE A CUP OF COFFEE?

12. ARE YOU THINKING OF GOING ABROAD FOR YOUR NEXT HOLIDAYS?

13. HOW DID YOUR HUSBAND REPAIR THE BROKEN CHAIR?

14. ARE YOU ALLERGIC TO ANY TYPES OF FOOD?

15. IS THIS EXERCISE EASY OR DIFFICULT?

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