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B1grammar18 questions

Indirect and reported questions

L'indirect question se loge dans une phrase plus longue et, des qu'elle le fait, cesse de se comporter comme une question. Ici tu revois le retour à l'ordre de la phrase déclarative, la disparition de do/does/did et l'emploi de if/whether.

Apprentissage rapide

L'indirect question se loge dans une phrase plus longue et cesse de se comporter comme une question des qu'elle s'y loge.

À retenir

  • L'ordre des mots revient à celui de la phrase déclarative : could you tell me where the station is.
  • do, does et did disparaissent : do you know what he wants, et non what does he want.
  • Sans mot interrogatif, if ou whether relie les deux moitiés.

Exemples

  1. 1Could you please tell me where the nearest underground subway station is?
  2. 2Do you know what time the supermarket closes on Friday evenings?

Piège courant à éviter

Seule la question extérieure fait l'inversion. La proposition intérieure garde le sujet avant le verbe, quel que soit le début de la phrase.

Approfondir

La règle

  1. The polite way to ask

    Indirect (Embedded) Questions are used in spoken and written English to sound polite, formal, and respectful, especially when communicating with strangers, colleagues, customers, or officials. Instead of asking a blunt direct question ("Where is the bank?"), speakers embed the question inside a polite introductory phrase ("Could you please tell me where the bank is?").

  2. Statement order, no do

    The Golden Syntactic Rule of Indirect Questions: In the embedded subordinate clause, the word order MUST revert to standard affirmative statement order: Subject + Verb. Furthermore, auxiliary do, does, and did completely disappear!

    (1) Direct Wh- Question: "What time does the train leave?" → Indirect: "Do you know what time the train leaves?" (Notice: leaves carries the third-person -s; does is removed; the order is Subject the train + Verb leaves).

  3. If or whether

    (2) Direct Yes/No Questions: Yes/No questions do not possess a question word. Therefore, English introduces the clause with IF or WHETHER: Direct: "Is the library open on Sundays?" → Indirect:

    • Could you tell me if the library is open on Sundays?

  4. Useful openers

    Common Introductory Frames: Could you tell me...; Do you know...; I wonder if...; Would you mind telling me...; Can you let me know...; I was wondering if...; Do you have any idea...

Anatomie de la phrase

Des phrases de cette leçon, découpées dans l'ordre qu'exige l'anglais.

  1. AuxiliaireDoSujetyouVerbeknowMot interrogatifwhat timeSujetthe supermarketVerbeclosesTempson Friday evenings?

  2. AuxiliaireCanSujetyouVerbelet me knowMot interrogatifwhetherSujetthe morning flight to DublinVerbeisAttributon schedule?

  3. SujetIVerbewonderMot interrogatifwhat timeSujetour trainAuxiliairewillVerbearriveLieuat the central railway stationTempstonight.

Guide visuel

How to read this B1 topic

At B1, grammar links ideas: condition, result, reported meaning, experience, and narrative order.

1. Name the relationship

Ask whether the sentence gives a condition, contrast, cause, report, or result.

If it rains, we will stay home.

2. Separate time from aspect

Finished event, visible result, duration, and background action use different forms.

I had left before she arrived.

3. Test both clauses

In complex sentences, the second half often proves the first half.

I wish I knew.

Decision path before answering

Use these checks before choosing between close options.

  1. 1Mark the subject, main verb, object, and any connector.
  2. 2Underline the time expression or discourse clue.
  3. 3Reject any option with the wrong agreement, tense, article, pronoun case, or word order.
  4. 4Read the whole sentence once more for naturalness and register.

Contrasts that often decide the answer

Event or background

Simple forms move events forward; continuous forms show an action in progress.

I left while she was talking.

Fact or stance

Modals, hedges, and reporting structures show how certain or responsible the speaker sounds.

This may indicate a problem.

Clause or compressed phrase

Advanced writing often compresses full clauses into participle, noun, or prepositional phrases.

Having reviewed the data, we revised the plan.

Exemples

  1. 1Could you please tell me where the nearest underground subway station is?
  2. 2Do you know what time the supermarket closes on Friday evenings?
  3. 3I wonder if you could help me carry these heavy travel suitcases upstairs.
  4. 4Would you mind telling me how much this handcrafted woolen sweater costs?
  5. 5Can you let me know whether the morning flight to Dublin is on schedule?
  6. 6Do you have any idea why the department manager was absent from the meeting?
  7. 7I was wondering if there is a comfortable coffee shop anywhere near this street.
  8. 8Could you tell me how long it takes to drive from here to the international airport?
  9. 9Do you know if the museum offers discounted admission tickets for students?
  10. 10I wonder what time our train will arrive at the central railway station tonight.

Exceptions

Punctuation of Indirect Questions: If the introductory frame is a question (Could you tell me...?, Do you know...?), the sentence ends with a question mark. If the introductory frame is a statement (I wonder if..., I would like to know..., I am not sure...), the entire sentence ends with a PERIOD, not a question mark: "I wonder where she lives." (never "I wonder where she lives?").

Erreurs fréquentes

  • Retaining direct question inversion

    Erreur

    Could you tell me where is the station?

    Correct

    Could you tell me where the station is?

    Subject precedes verb in indirect questions.

  • Retaining auxiliary do/does/did

    Erreur

    Do you know where does he work?

    Correct

    Do you know where he works?

    Drop does and add -s to the main verb.

  • Omitting if/whether in Yes/No questions

    Erreur

    Could you tell me is he ready?

    Correct

    Could you tell me if he is ready?

Récap

L'essentiel de la leçon sur une carte, avant de te tester.

À retenir

  1. L'ordre des mots revient à celui de la phrase déclarative : could you tell me where the station is.
  2. do, does et did disparaissent : do you know what he wants, et non what does he want.
  3. Sans mot interrogatif, if ou whether relie les deux moitiés.

Erreurs fréquentes

  • Erreur: Could you tell me where is the station?

    Correct: Could you tell me where the station is?

  • Erreur: Do you know where does he work?

    Correct: Do you know where he works?

  • Erreur: Could you tell me is he ready?

    Correct: Could you tell me if he is ready?

Teste-toi

Transforme cinq questions directes en formes polies, puis entraîne-toi sur ce point.

Points de grammaire associés

Poursuivez votre apprentissage avec d'autres notions de ce niveau.

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