Reported questions

We use reported questions to report what someone asked without using exactly the same words.

Form:

We can report questions using asked/wanted to know.

We use if/whether to report a yes/no question.

We have to change the tense in reported question in the same way as reported speech. 

Examples:

• Do you pass your test?

He asked me if I passed my test.

• Do you have boyfriend or girlfriend?

He asked me if I had boyfriend or girlfriend.

• Who are your friends?

He asked me who my friends were.

• Will you work in an office?

He asked me if I would work in an office.

• Are you going to have a party?

He asked me if I was going to have a party.

• Can you give me the information?

He asked me if I could give him the information. 

                                                           

Watch out!

He asked where we were going (Right).

He asked where were we going (Wrong).

They wanted to know we liked the candidate (Wrong).

They wanted to know if we liked the candidate (Right). 

Practice

Rewrite the direct questions as reported questions.

• How did you feel?

They asked me how I had felt.

• Do you have any brothers and sisters?

She asked him if he had any brothers and sisters.

• Who is Martha working for?

He asked them who Martha was working for.

• Will you run for public office?

She asked us if we would run for public office.

• Is the senator going to resign?

We wanted to know if the senator was going to resign.

• Can David give us the information?

I asked her if David could give us the information. 

More practice

Write the direct question.

• The instructor wanted to know if we spoke any foreign languages.

Do you speak any foreign languages?

• She asked me where I lived.

Where do you live?

• He asked me if I could design a website for his cleaning company.

Can you design a website for my cleaning company?

• Rosie wanted to know if I would write the report.

Will you write the report?

• They asked us what the main news story was that day.

What is the main news story today?

• The manager asked who had gone to the meeting.

Who was gone to the meeting?