Indirect questions – When reporting questions, the reporting verbs say or tell are replaced by ask, inquire, wonder or want to know.
Interrogative sentences not beginning with a question word are connected with the main clause by conjunctions if of whether in reported speech.
Examples
| Are you saying for dinner? | David asked me if/whether I am staying for dinner. |
| Can you come tomorrow ? | She asked whether she could come the following day. |
| Is she at home ? | David asked if she was at home ? |
| Do you speak English ? | She wondered if I spoke English ? |
The world order of reported questions is the same as in a simple statement.
In questions introduced by a question-word ( who, what, when, which, why, how ) this word serves as a link between the introducing verb and the reported question.
Examples
| David said to me : “Why don’t you go to work ?” | David asked me why I didn’t go to work. |
| He said to the man: “Where are you going ?” | He inquired of the man where he was going. |
| I said: “Who is working with you ?” | I asked who was working with you. |
| Why did you say that ? | They wondered why i had said that. |
