reported speech yes no questions rules

Reported Questions

Reported questions are one form of reported speech .

We usually introduce reported questions with the verb "ask":

• He asked (me) if / whether ... (YES/NO questions)
• He asked (me) why / when / where / what / how ... (question-word questions)

As with reported statements , we may need to change pronouns and tense (backshift) as well as time and place in reported questions.

But we also need to change the word order . After we report a question, it is no longer a question (and in writing there is no question mark). The word order is like that of a normal statement (subject-verb-object).

Reported YES/NO questions

We introduce reported YES/NO questions with ask + if :

Note that in the above example the reported question has no auxiliary "do". But there is pronoun change and backshift.

Note that we sometimes use "whether" instead of "if". The meaning is the same. "Whether" is a little more formal and more usual in writing:

• They asked us if we wanted lunch.
• They asked us whether we wanted lunch.

Reported question-word questions

We introduce reported question-word questions with ask + question word :

Note that in the above example the reported question has no auxiliary "do". But there is pronoun change and backshift.

• YES/NO questions: Do you want tea?
• Question Word questions: Where did you drink tea?
• Choice questions: Do you prefer tea or coffee?

Look at these example sentences:

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Reported Speech Yes/No Questions

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Reported Speech: Rules, Examples, Exceptions

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Advanced Grammar Course

What is reported speech?

“Reported speech” is when we talk about what somebody else said – for example:

• Direct Speech: “I’ve been to London three times.”
• Reported Speech: She said she’d been to London three times.

There are a lot of tricky little details to remember, but don’t worry, I’ll explain them and we’ll see lots of examples. The lesson will have three parts – we’ll start by looking at statements in reported speech, and then we’ll learn about some exceptions to the rules, and finally we’ll cover reported questions, requests, and commands.

So much of English grammar – like this topic, reported speech – can be confusing, hard to understand, and even harder to use correctly. I can help you learn grammar easily and use it confidently inside my Advanced English Grammar Course.

In this course, I will make even the most difficult parts of English grammar clear to you – and there are lots of opportunities for you to practice!

Backshift of Verb Tenses in Reported Speech

When we use reported speech, we often change the verb tense backwards in time. This can be called “backshift.”

Here are some examples in different verb tenses:

Reported Speech (Part 1) Quiz

Exceptions to Backshift in Reported Speech

Now that you know some of the reported speech rules about backshift, let’s learn some exceptions.

There are two situations in which we do NOT need to change the verb tense.

No backshift needed when the situation is still true

For example, if someone says “I have three children” (direct speech) then we would say “He said he has three children” because the situation continues to be true.

If I tell you “I live in the United States” (direct speech) then you could tell someone else “She said she lives in the United States” (that’s reported speech) because it is still true.

When the situation is still true, then we don’t need to backshift the verb.

But when the situation is NOT still true, then we DO need to backshift the verb.

Imagine your friend says, “I have a headache.”

• If you immediately go and talk to another friend, you could say, “She said she has a headache,” because the situation is still true
• If you’re talking about that conversation a month after it happened, then you would say, “She said she had a headache,” because it’s no longer true.

No backshift needed when the situation is still in the future

We also don’t need to backshift to the verb when somebody said something about the future, and the event is still in the future.

Here’s an example:

• On Monday, my friend said, “I ‘ll call you on Friday .”
• “She said she ‘ll call me on Friday”, because Friday is still in the future from now.
• It is also possible to say, “She said she ‘d (she would) call me on Friday.”
• Both of them are correct, so the backshift in this case is optional.

Let’s look at a different situation:

• On Monday, my friend said, “I ‘ll call you on Tuesday .”
• “She said she ‘d  call me on Tuesday.” I must backshift because the event is NOT still in the future.

Review: Reported Speech, Backshift, & Exceptions

Quick review:

• Normally in reported speech we backshift the verb, we put it in a verb tense that’s a little bit further in the past.
• when the situation is still true
• when the situation is still in the future

Reported Requests, Orders, and Questions

Those were the rules for reported statements, just regular sentences.

What about reported speech for questions, requests, and orders?

For reported requests, we use “asked (someone) to do something”:

• “Please make a copy of this report.” (direct speech)
• She asked me to make a copy of the report. (reported speech)

For reported orders, we use “told (someone) to do something:”

• “Go to the bank.” (direct speech)
• “He told me to go to the bank.” (reported speech)

The main verb stays in the infinitive with “to”:

• She asked me to make a copy of the report. She asked me  make  a copy of the report.
• He told me to go to the bank. He told me  go  to the bank.

For yes/no questions, we use “asked if” and “wanted to know if” in reported speech.

• “Are you coming to the party?” (direct)
• He asked if I was coming to the party. (reported)
• “Did you turn off the TV?” (direct)
• She wanted to know if I had turned off the TV.” (reported)

The main verb changes and back shifts according to the rules and exceptions we learned earlier.

Notice that we don’t use do/does/did in the reported question:

• She wanted to know did I turn off the TV.
• She wanted to know if I had turned off the TV.

For other questions that are not yes/no questions, we use asked/wanted to know (without “if”):

• “When was the company founded?” (direct)
• She asked when the company was founded.” (reported)
• “What kind of car do you drive?” (direct)
• He wanted to know what kind of car I drive. (reported)

Again, notice that we don’t use do/does/did in reported questions:

• “Where does he work?”
• She wanted to know  where does he work.
• She wanted to know where he works.

Also, in questions with the verb “to be,” the word order changes in the reported question:

• “Where were you born?” ([to be] + subject)
• He asked where I was born. (subject + [to be])
• He asked where was I born.

Reported Speech (Part 2) Quiz

Learn more about reported speech:

• Reported speech: Perfect English Grammar
• Reported speech: BJYU’s

If you want to take your English grammar to the next level, then my Advanced English Grammar Course is for you! It will help you master the details of the English language, with clear explanations of essential grammar topics, and lots of practice. I hope to see you inside!

I’ve got one last little exercise for you, and that is to write sentences using reported speech. Think about a conversation you’ve had in the past, and write about it – let’s see you put this into practice right away.

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Reported Questions: Direct and Indirect Questions

In this reference, you’ll learn how to form reported questions in English, covering essential grammar rules and offering useful example sentences. The main sections include how to report Wh and yes/no questions, notes for reported questions, and useful rules and examples.

You’ll explore the details of both yes/no questions and question words  (Wh- questions) in reported speech. This reference will provide you with notes and examples to better grasp the rules of reported speech questions.

Reported Questions

When changing a question from direct speech to indirect speech, use verbs like  inquire ,  wonder ,  want to know , and  ask . Only  ask  can take an indirect object.

• Direct speech:  “ Have you got a computer? ”
• Reported speech:   He  wanted to know  whether I had a computer.

You introduce the reported question with a different word and change the word order to that of a statement. End the sentence with a full stop.

How to Report Wh and Yes/No Questions

Reported speech questions: yes/no questions.

To report yes/no questions, use  if  or  whether .

Use  whether  for choices.

Reported Speech Questions: Questions Words (Wh- Questions)

Report Wh- questions by using the question word.

Mention the person being asked.

• I asked  him  if he ate meat.
• She asked  Michael  when he would go back to Japan.

Notes for Reported Questions

When reporting questions,  the tense of the verb changes . The word order follows an  affirmative sentence , and there is no auxiliary verb. Do not use question marks except in cases like:

• Could you tell me…?
• Do you know…?
• May I ask…?
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How to report WH and Yes/No questions

There are mainly two types of questions – Wh-questions and Yes/No questions.

When we report a Wh-question, we use a reporting verb like asked or enquired.

Study the example given below.

Direct: He said to me, ‘Where do you live?’

Indirect: He asked me where I lived.

Direct: Mother said to me, ‘What are you doing there?’

Indirect: Mother asked me what I was doing there.

When we report a Yes/No question, we use whether or if.

Direct: Suma said to me, ‘Are you interested in this offer?’

Indirect: Suma asked me if I was interested in that offer.

Direct: The teacher said to me, ‘Do you know the answer?’

Indirect: The teacher asked me if / whether I knew the answer.

Direct: Martha said to Susie, ‘Will you trust a guy like Martin?’

Indirect: Martha asked Susie if she would trust a guy like Martin.

Direct: ‘Do you think you know better than your dad?’ the angry mother jeered.

Indirect: The angry mother jeered at her son and asked if he thought that he knew better than his dad.

Change the following direct speech into indirect speech.

1. ‘What do you want?’ he said to her.

2. He said, ‘How’s your mother.’

3. He enquired, ‘When do you intend to pay me?’

4. ‘Do you really come from China?’ the prince asked.

5. ‘Do you speak English?’ he said.

1. He asked her what she wanted.

2. He asked me how my mother was.

3. He enquired when I intended to pay him.

4. The prince asked if I really came from China.

5. He asked if I spoke English.

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How to use reported questions.

Learn about how to report questions in English grammar. Clear and simple explanation of meaning and use, with examples.

Forming reported questions

These general rules for reported speech also apply.

• Direct speech: “Where are you going?” Reported speech: He asked me where I was going .
• Direct speech: “Why is he shouting?” Reported speech: He asked me why he was shouting .
• Direct speech: “What do you want?” Reported speech: She asked me what I wanted .
• Direct speech: “Who doesn’t like cheese?” Reported speech: She asked me who didn’t like cheese.
• Direct speech: “Do you want me to come?” Reported speech: I asked him if he wanted me to come.
• Direct speech: “Have you fed the dog?” Reported speech: She asked me whether I had fed the dog.
• Direct speech: “Who is the champion?” Reported speech: She asked me who the champion was / She asked me who was the champion.
• Direct speech: “What is your favourite colour?” Reported speech: She asked me what my favourite colour was / She asked me what was my favourite colour.

Related grammar points

Reported Speech Reporting Verbs Say and Tell

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14 comments

It’s very informative… It helped me a lot… Thank you

can you convert this? the student said, “would that my results were different”

Hi , in my book there is exercise that want change sentence from Reported question sentence to direct question My question is ( in past perfect sentence ) how I know that this sentence change to past simple or present perfect. Because both of them in direct speech change to past perfect .

Hi, can you write here the sentence that you need to change?

Hi I have a question, my English teacher said we never inverted the subjects in the reported questions. But in your work I saw that you are inverted the subjects in that reported question. Can you tell me why you do this?

please can you tell me what is the reported speech of “what was the last book you read? “….please it is very important

AHMED KOHARI

he/she asked me what the last book I read was?

He asked what book I read last

Sara Willson

can someone cover this please:

“When do the shops close?” I asked.

I asked when the shops closed.

Can you change the word order with other verbs that are not “to be”? Example: Where have you been? He asked me where had I been.

Hi – no, you would have to say: “He asked me where I had been.”

Hi Yazan She asked me what the last book I read was.

Here’s an example, without the subject and auxiliary inverted first, and then with them inverted:

1. He asked me where was I going. 2. He asked me where I was going.

The second example, with the inversion, is correct for reported speech.

However, you could say the first one like this: 1. He asked me: “Where was I going?”

This is in quite common use in spoken English, and anything which is in common use is acceptable. It’s really a mix of direct and reported speech. With kind of use we would expect just direct speech: 1. He asked me: “Where are you going?”

But as I say, anything which is in common use is acceptable, but may not be “correct” in written English or in tests and exams.

Hope this helps.

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Reported speech

Reported questions

Reported questions.

When we report what people say, we usually change the tense of the verbs to reflect that we are reporting – not giving direct speech. This pattern is followed when we report questions and there are also other important changes between direct questions and reported questions.

Reported questions are one form of reported speech.

We usually introduce reported questions with the verb "ask":

• He  asked  (me)  if / whether ... (YES/NO questions)
• He  asked  (me)  why / when / where / what / how ... (question-word questions)

As with reported statements, we may need to change  pronouns  and  tense (backshift) as well as  time  and  place  in reported questions.

But we also need to change the  word order . After we report a question, it is no longer a question (and in writing there is no question mark). The word order is like that of a normal statement (subject-verb-object).

Reported YES/NO questions

We introduce reported YES/NO questions with  ask + if :

Note that in the above example the reported question has no auxiliary "do". But there is pronoun change and backshift.

Note that we sometimes use "whether" instead of "if". The meaning is the same. "Whether" is a little more formal and more usual in writing:

• They asked us  if  we wanted lunch.
• They asked us  whether  we wanted lunch.

Reported question-word questions

We introduce reported question-word questions with  ask + question word :

Remember that there are basically three types of question:

• YES/NO questions:  Do you want tea?
• Question Word questions:  Where did you drink tea?
• Choice questions:  Do you prefer tea or coffee?

Reported choice questions  have the same structure as Reported YES/NO questions. Questions with the verb BE always have a different structure:  Was the tea cold? Where is my tea?  You can see all these differences in the examples below.

Look at these example sentences:

Course Curriculum

• Changing time and place in reported speech 20 mins
• Direct and indirect speech 15 mins
• Tense changes in reported speech 20 mins
• Reported questions 20 mins
• Reporting verbs 20 mins
• Reporting orders and requests 15 mins
• Reporting hopes, intentions and promises 20 mins