Reported questions

Reporting verbs

• asked, wondered, inquired, wanted to know.

Basic rules

1. Change the word order: no inversion; the subject comes before the verb (no do / does / did).
2. Change the tense: usually one step back.
3. Use connecting words: if / whether for Yes/No questions; the question word (what, where, when, why, how) for Wh-questions.
4. No question mark: a reported question is a statement.

Examples

• Yes/No: "Do you want to hang out?" -> She asked if / whether I wanted to hang out.
• Wh-: "Where did you stay?" -> He asked where I had stayed.
• "Will you come to the party?" -> She asked if I would come to the party.
• "Have you been to that new restaurant?" -> He asked if I had been to that new restaurant.
• "Did you enjoy the movie last night?" -> Dad asked if I had enjoyed the movie the night before.
• "Why can't you come to the party?" -> She asked why I couldn't come to the party.
• "How long will you be in town?" -> He asked how long I would be in town.
• "When are you free next week?" -> My friend asked when I was free the following week.

Tense changes

Time and place changes

• today -> that day; yesterday -> the day before; tomorrow -> the next day; next week -> the following week; here -> there; this -> that.

Common mistakes

• Wrong: She asked me where did I go. Right: She asked me where I had gone.
• Wrong: He asked if will I come. Right: He asked if I would come.
• Do not end a reported question with a question mark; end it with a full stop.

Using reported questions in dialogues

• A: What did Sarah ask you? B: She asked what I was doing at the weekend.
• A: What did Magdy want to know? B: He wanted to know whether I could help him.
• A: Did Lamia ask about the party? B: Yes, she asked what she should wear (what she should wear = reported form of "What should I wear?").