Collins Cobuild English Grammar (139 page)

So the question
Did you enjoy it
? could be reported:
I asked her if she had enjoyed it
.

Questions
are explained in paragraphs
5.10
to
5.34
.

yes/no
questions

7.35
    There are two main types of question, and so two main types of reported speech structure for questions.

One type of question is called a
yes/no
question. These are questions that can be answered simply with
yes
or
no
.

When you report a
yes/no
question, you use an
if
-clause beginning with the conjunction
if
, or a
whether
-clause beginning with the conjunction
whether
.

You use
if
when the speaker has suggested one possibility that may be true.
Do you know my name
? could be reported as
A woman asked if I knew her name
.

She asked him
if his parents spoke French
.
Someone asked me
if the work was going well
.
He inquired
if her hair had always been that colour
.

You use
whether
when the speaker has suggested one possibility but has left open the question of other possibilities. After
whether
, you can suggest another possibility, or you can leave it unstated.

I was asked
whether I wanted to stay at a hotel or at his home
.
She asked
whether the servants were still there
.
I asked Professor Fred Bailey
whether he agreed
.
A policeman asked me
whether he could be of help
.

Sometimes the alternative possibility is represented by
or not
.

The barman didn’t ask
whether or not
they were over eighteen.
They asked
whether
Britain was
or
was
not
a Christian country.

For more information about
yes/no
questions
, see paragraphs
5.12
to
5.14
.

7.36
    There are a few other verbs that can be used before
if
-clauses or
whether
-clauses, because they refer to being unsure of facts or to discovering facts.

I didn’t know
whether to believe him or not
.
Simon wondered
if he should make conversation
.
She didn’t say
whether he was still alive
.

Here is a list of other verbs that can be used before
if
-clauses and
whether
-clauses:

consider

determine

discover

doubt

know

remember

say

see

tell

wonder

Note that
know
,
remember
,
say
,
see
, and
tell
are usually used in a negative or interrogative clause, or a clause with a modal.

All the verbs in the list, except
wonder
, can also be used with
that
-clauses: see paragraph
7.30
. They can all also be used with clauses beginning with
wh
-words: see paragraph
7.38
.

wh
-questions

7.37
    The other type of question is called a
wh
-question. These are questions in which someone asks for information about an event or situation.
Wh
-questions cannot be answered with
yes
or
no
.

When you report a
wh
-question, you use a
wh
-word at the beginning of the reported clause.

He asked
where I was going
.
She enquired
why I was so late
.
She started to ask
what had happened
, then decided against it.
I asked
how they had got there so quickly
.
I never thought to ask
who put it there
.

When the details of the question are clear from the context, you can sometimes leave out everything except the
wh
-word. This happens mostly in spoken English, especially with
why
.

I asked
why
.
They enquired
how
.

For more information about
wh
-questions see paragraphs
5.21
to
5.34
.

7.38
    Other verbs can be used before clauses beginning with
wh
-words, because they refer to knowing, learning, or mentioning one of the circumstances of an event or situation.

She doesn’t know
what we were talking about
.
They couldn’t see
how they would manage without her
.
I wonder
what’s happened
.

Here is a list of other verbs that can be used before clauses beginning with
wh
-words:

decide

describe

determine

discover

discuss

explain

forget

guess

imagine

judge

know

learn

realize

remember

reveal

say

see

suggest

teach

tell

test

think

understand

wonder

Note that
imagine
,
say
,
see
,
suggest
, and
think
are usually used in a negative or interrogative clause, or a clause with a modal.

All the verbs in the list, except
describe
,
discuss
, and
wonder
, can also be used with
that
-clauses: see paragraph
7.30
.

Reporting orders, requests, advice, and intentions

reporting requests

7.39
    If someone orders, requests, or advises someone else to do something, this can be reported by using a
to
-infinitive after a reporting verb such as
tell
. The person being addressed, who is going to perform the action, is mentioned as the object of the reporting verb.

He told her to wait there for him.
He commanded his men to retreat
He ordered me to fetch the books.
My doctor advised me to see a neurologist.

For more on this type of structure, see paragraphs
3.202
and
3.206
.

Here is a list of reporting verbs that can be used with a person as object followed by a
to
-infinitive:

advise

ask

beg

command

forbid

instruct

invite

order

persuade

remind

teach

tell

urge

warn

USAGE NOTE

7.40
    A few verbs can be used with a
to
-infinitive to report requests when the hearer is mentioned in a prepositional phrase.

An officer shouted
to us
to stop all the noise.
I pleaded
with him
to tell me.

Here is a list of these verbs and the prepositions used with them:

appeal to

plead with

shout at

shout to

whisper to

yell at

7.41
    In ordinary conversation, requests are often put in the form of a question. For example, you might say
Will you help me
? instead of
Help me
. Similarly, reported requests often look like reported questions.

He asked me if I could lend him fifty dollars.

When you report a request like this, you can mention both the person receiving it and the person making it.

She
asked
me
whether I would help her.

Alternatively, you can just mention the person making it.

He
asked if I would answer some questions.