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Indirect Questions

(Download this explanation in PDF here.)

Have a look at this conversation.

Me: Excuse me. Could you tell me where the nearest station is?
Person in the street: Certainly. It's along that road on the right.
Me: Thank you. And do you know if there's a supermarket near here?
Person in the street: Yes, there's one next to the station.
Me: Thank you very much for your help.

I use indirect questions when I'm asking for help in the street, because they are very polite. Indirect questions start with a phrase like 'could you tell me...' or 'do you know...'. For example: 

Direct question: Where is the bank?
Indirect question: Could you tell me where the bank is?

Notice that in the indirect question I put the verb ('is') after the subject ('the bank'), in the same way as I do with a normal positive sentence ('the bank is over there'), but in the direct question I put the verb 'is' before the subject 'the bank'. This is called inversion, and it is used to make direct questions in many verb tenses in English, but we don't use inversion in indirect questions. This is very similar to the grammar of reported questions. However, we use indirect questions in a different way from reported questions. Indirect questions are a way of being polite. They are very, very common in English, especially when you're talking to someone you don't know.

'Yes / No' Questions

To make an indirect 'yes / no' question, we use 'if' and the word order of a normal positive sentence. This is the same as for reported 'yes / no' questions. On the other hand, we don't usually need to 'backshift' (change the tense of the verb) as we do with reported questions.

Of course, most tenses make questions by using 'inversion' (changing the word order). To change from a direct 'yes / no' question with inversion to an indirect question, you add 'if' and change the word order back to a normal positive sentence. You don't need to use inversion.

'Yes / no' questions for tenses with inversion:

Verb Tense	Direct Question	Indirect Question
Present simple with 'be'	Is he Spanish?	Can you tell me if he is Spanish?
Present continuous	Is the restaurant closing now?	Can you tell me if the restaurant is closing now?
Past simple with 'be'	Was he late for the meeting?	Can you tell me if he was late for the meeting?
Past continuous	Were you watching TV at 3pm?	Can you tell me if you were watching TV at 3pm?
Present perfect	Has Lucy been to Mexico?	Can you tell me if Lucy has been to Mexico?
Present perfect continuous	Has she been living here long?	Can you tell me if she has been living here long?
Past perfect	Had she found this job when she moved here?	Can you tell me if she had found this job when she moved here?
Past perfect continuous	Had she been living here long when she met you?	Can you tell me if she had been living here long when she met you?
Future simple with 'will'	Will she start her new job next week?	Can you tell me if she will start her new job next week?
Future simple with 'going to'	Is it going to rain later?	Can you tell me if it is going to rain later?
Future continuous	Will Lisa be meeting the boss later?	Can you tell me if Lisa will be meeting the boss later?
Future perfect	Will he have finished the report by tonight?	Can you tell me if he will have finished the report by tonight?
Future perfect continuous	Will he have been studying French for twenty years when he retires?	Can you tell me if he will have been studying French for twenty years when he retires?
Modal verbs	Should we start now?	Can you tell me if we should start now?

'Yes / no' questions with tenses that use 'do / does / did':

Sometimes you want to make an indirect question using the present simple of any verb except 'be' or the past simple of any verb except 'be'. These tense make direct questions by using 'do / does / did'. When we want to make indirect 'yes / no' questions using these tenses, we need 'if' and we don't need 'do / does / did'.

Verb Tense	Direct Question	Indirect Question
Present simple with any verb except 'be'	Does David live in London?	Can you tell me if David lives in London?
Past simple with any verb except 'be'	Did Amanda call John yesterday?	Can you tell me if Amanda called John yesterday?

'Wh' Questions

In the same way as with reported 'wh' questions, we use the question word and the word order of a normal positive sentence to make indirect 'wh' questions. We don't need to use inversion. Again, we also don't usually need to 'backshift' (change the tense of the verb) as we do with reported questions.

To change a direct question to an indirect question for tenses that make questions using inversion, you just add 'if' and change the word order back to a normal positive sentence.

'Wh' questions for tenses with inversion:

Verb Tense	Direct Question	Indirect Question
Present simple with 'be'	Why is he unhappy?	Can you tell me why he is unhappy?
Present continuous	When is the restaurant closing?	Can you tell me when the restaurant is closing?
Past simple with 'be'	Why was he late for the meeting?	Can you tell me why he was late for the meeting?
Past continuous	What were you doing at 3pm?	Can you tell me what you were doing at 3pm?
Present perfect	Where has Lucy been?	Can you tell me where Lucy has been?
Present perfect continuous	How long has she been living here?	Can you tell me how long she has been living here?
Past perfect	Why had she quit her job before she moved here?	Can you tell me why she had quit her job before she moved here?
Past perfect continuous	How long had she been living here when she met you?	Can you tell me how long she had been living here when she met you?
Future simple with 'will'	When will she start her new job?	Can you tell me when she will start her new job?
Future simple with 'going to'	When is it going to rain?	Can you tell me when it is going to rain?
Future continuous	What time will Lisa be meeting the boss?	Can you tell me what time Lisa will be meeting the boss?
Future perfect	When will he have finished the report?	Can you tell me when he will have finished the report?
Future perfect continuous	How long will he have been studying French when he retires?	Can you tell me how long he will have been studying French when he retires?
Modal verbs	What should we do now?	Can you tell me what we should do now?

'Wh' questions for tenses with 'do / does / did':

Sometimes you want to make an indirect 'wh' question using the present simple of any verb except 'be' or the past simple of any verb except 'be'. Usually these tenses make questions by using 'do / does / did'. However, when we want to make indirect 'wh' questions using these tenses, we don't need 'do / does / did'. Instead, we use a question word and then normal positive sentence word order.

Verb Tense	Direct Question	Indirect Question
Present simple with any verb except 'be'	Where does David live?	Can you tell me where David lives?
Past simple with any verb except 'be'	Why did Amanda call John yesterday?	Can you tell me why Amanda called John yesterday?

Common Problems 

It can be difficult to remember to put the verb after the subject, especially when the indirect question is in the present simple tense of 'be'. For example, we need to say:

Could you tell me where the station is?

NOT:

Could you tell me where is the station?

Relative clauses What is a relative clause?

Relative clauses

What is a relative clause?

We can use relative clauses to join two English sentences, or to give more information about something.

I bought a new car. It is very fast.
→ I bought a new car that is very fast.

She lives in New York. She likes living in New York.
→ She lives in New York, which she likes.

Defining and Non-defining

A defining relative clause tells which noun we are talking about:

• I like the woman who lives next door.
  (If I don't say 'who lives next door', then we don't know which woman I mean).

A non-defining relative clause gives us extra information about something. We don't need this information to understand the sentence.

• I live in London, which has some fantastic parks.
  (Everybody knows where London is, so 'which has some fantastic parks' is extra information).

Defining relative clauses:

1: The relative pronoun is the subject:

First, let's consider when the relative pronoun is the subject of a defining relative clause.

We can use 'who', 'which' or 'that'. We use 'who' for people and 'which' for things. We can use 'that' for people or things.

The relative clause can come after the subject or the object of the sentence. We can't drop the relative pronoun.

For example (clause after the object of the sentence):

• I'm looking for a secretary who / that can use a computer well.
• She has a son who / that is a doctor.
• We bought a house which / that is 200 years old.
• I sent a letter which / that arrived three weeks later.

More examples (clause after the subject of the sentence):

• The people who / that live on the island are very friendly.
• The man who / that phoned is my brother.
• The camera which / that costs £100 is over there.
• The house which / that belongs to Julie is in London.

Try an exercise where the relative pronoun is the subject here.

2: The relative pronoun is the object:

Next, let's talk about when the relative pronoun is the object of the clause. In this case we can drop the relative pronoun if we want to. Again, the clause can come after the subject or the object of the sentence. Here are some examples:

(Clause after the object)

• She loves the chocolate (which / that) I bought.
• We went to the village (which / that) Lucy recommended.
• John met a woman (who / that) I had been to school with.
• The police arrested a man (who / that) Jill worked with.

(Clause after the subject)

• The bike (which / that) I loved was stolen.
• The university (which / that) she likes is famous.
• The woman (who / that) my brother loves is from Mexico.
• The doctor (who / that) my grandmother liked lives in New York.

• Try an exercise where the relative pronoun is the object here
• Try an exercise about defining relative clauses, both subject and object here
• Try another exercise about defining relative clauses, both subject and object here

Non-defining relative clauses:

We don't use 'that' in non-defining relative clauses, so we need to use 'which' if the pronoun refers to a thing, and 'who' if it refers to a person. We can't drop the relative pronoun in this kind of clause, even if the relative pronoun is the subject of the clause.

(Clause comes after the subject)

• My boss, who is very nice, lives in Manchester.
• My sister, who I live with, knows a lot about cars.
• My bicycle, which I've had for more than ten years, is falling apart.
• My mother's house, which I grew up in, is very small.

(Clause comes after the object)

• Yesterday I called our friend Julie, who lives in New York.
• The photographer called to the Queen, who looked annoyed.
• Last week I bought a new computer, which I don't like now.
• I really love the new Chinese restaurant, which we went to last night.

Prepositions and relative clauses

If the verb in the relative clause needs a preposition, we put it at the end of the clause:

For example:

• listen to

The music is good. Julie listens to the music.
→ The music (which / that) Julie listens to is good.

• work with

My brother met a woman. I used to work with the woman.
→ My brother met a woman (who / that) I used to work with.

• go to

The country is very hot. He went to the country.
→ The country (which / that) he went to is very hot.

• come from

I visited the city. John comes from the city.
→ I visited the city (that / which) John comes from.

• apply for

The job is well paid. She applied for the job.
→ The job (which / that) she applied for is well paid.

Whose

'Whose' is always the subject of the relative clause and can't be left out. It replaces a possessive. It can be used for people and things.

The dog is over there. The dog's / its owner lives next door.
→ The dog whose owner lives next door is over there.

The little girl is sad. The little girl's / her doll was lost.
→ The little girl whose doll was lost is sad.

The woman is coming tonight. Her car is a BMW.
→ The woman whose car is a BMW is coming tonight.

The house belongs to me. Its roof is very old.
→ The house whose roof is old belongs to me.

Where / when / why

We can sometimes use these question words instead of relative pronouns and prepositions.

I live in a city. I study in the city.

→ I live in the city where I study.
→ I live in the city that / which I study in.
→ I live in the city in which I study.

The bar in Barcelona is still there. I met my wife in that bar.

→ The bar in Barcelona where I met my wife is still there.
→ The bar in Barcelona that / which I met my wife in is still there.
→ The bar in Barcelona in which I met my wife is still there.

The summer was long and hot. I graduated from university in the summer.

→ The summer when I graduated from university was long and hot.
→ The summer that / which I graduated from university in was long and hot.
→ The summer in which I graduated was long and hot.

Relative Clauses 1

Add the phrase in brackets to the sentence using 'that' or 'who' and a relative clause:

1) She worked for a man (the man used to be an athlete) [ . ]
2) They called a lawyer (the lawyer lived nearby) [ . ]
3) I sent an email to my brother (my brother lives in Australia) [ . ]
4) The customer liked the waitress (the waitress was very friendly) [ . ]
5) We broke the computer (the computer belonged to my father) [ . ]
6) I dropped a glass (the glass was new) [ . ]
7) She loves books (the books have happy endings) [ . ]
8) They live in a city (the city is in the north of England) [ . ]
9) The man is in the garden (the man is wearing a blue jumper) [ . ]
10) The girl works in a bank (the girl is from India) [ . ]
11) My sister has three children (my sister lives in Australia) [ . ]
12) The waiter was rude (the waiter was wearing a blue shirt) [ . ]
13) The money is in the kitchen (the money belongs to John) [ . ]
14) The table got broken (the table was my grandmother's) [ . ]
15) The television was stolen (the television was bought 20 years ago) [ . ]
16) The fruit is on the table (the fruit isn't fresh) [ . ]

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Stative Verbs

How to use stative (state) and dynamic verbs

Some English verbs, which we call state, non-continuous or stative verbs, aren't used in continuous tenses (like the present continuous, or the future continuous). These verbs often describe states that last for some time. Here is a list of some common ones:

Stative (or State) Verb List

like	know	belong
love	realise	fit
hate	suppose	contain
want	mean	consist
need	understand	seem
prefer	believe	depend
agree	remember	matter
mind	recognise	see
own	appear	look (=seem)
sound	taste	smell
hear	astonish	deny
disagree	please	impress
satisfy	promise	surprise
doubt	think (=have an opinion)	feel (=have an opinion)
wish	imagine	concern
dislike	be	have
deserve	involve	include
lack	measure (=have length etc)	possess
owe	weigh (=have weight)

A verb which isn't stative is called a dynamic verb, and is usually an action.

Some verbs can be both stative and dynamic:

Be

be is usually a stative verb, but when it is used in the continuous it means 'behaving' or 'acting' you are stupid = it's part of your personality you are being stupid = only now, not usually

Think

think (stative) = have an opinion I think that coffee is great think (dynamic) = consider, have in my head what are you thinking about? I'm thinking about my next holiday

Have

have (stative) = own I have a car have (dynamic) = part of an expression I'm having a party / a picnic / a bath / a good time / a break

See

see (stative) = see with your eyes / understand I see what you mean I see her now, she's just coming along the road see (dynamic) = meet / have a relationship with I've been seeing my boyfriend for three years I'm seeing Robert tomorrow

Taste

taste (stative) = has a certain taste This soup tastes great The coffee tastes really bitter taste (dynamic) = the action of tasting The chef is tasting the soup ('taste' is the same as other similar verbs such as 'smell')

How fight with procrastination

•                  How fight with procrastination 

Hello. My name is Emma, and I have a question for you. I want you to imagine this. Imagine you have a big English test that's going to happen very soon. What do you do? Okay? And I want you to be honest. Do you open up your book and study right away, and every day study for your test? Do you think about your test, feel a little bit sad and maybe go on Facebook? Do you, instead of studying, text your friends? Or do you think about studying, but instead just watch TV? Okay, a lot of students will say that they open up their book and study, but in reality a lot of people don't do this. A lot of people before tests or presentations or work get really, really nervous, and they do something different. Okay? They don't want to do the studying, they don't want to do the hard work, they're really afraid to do it so instead they do something like go on Facebook, call their friends, go to the mall. Okay? These are all examples, two, three, and four that is... These three are examples of procrastination. Okay?

So, "procrastination" is maybe a new word for you, but it's a very, very important word if you are a student or, you know, even if you work. It's actually an important word for everybody because most people procrastinate. So what does procrastination mean? Well, it's when you have something you have to do, but instead of doing what you have to do, you do something else that's more fun, and you keep thinking: "I'll come back to this", but you're very busy with these other things.

So let's look at some examples of the word procrastination. We have it as a verb, an action: "I am procrastinating." Because I'm not studying, I'm on Facebook, I'm procrastinating. "I'm not studying. I procrastinate a lot." Here we have another verb form. Okay? "I procrastinate a lot", which means: I don't study, I don't do my English homework; instead, I spend a lot of time texting my friends and doing anything but English. I can also use it as a noun: "My procrastination is really bad." Okay? My procrastination is bad. I have a problem with procrastination. So this means I have a problem getting stuff done because I don't really want to do it, I'd rather focus on doing Facebook or something else. Or we can also have it as a noun to say what we are. "I'm a procrastinator." A procrastinator is a person. Okay? So I'm a teacher, that's a person. When I was in university sometimes I was a procrastinator. This means before any big test or presentation I'd start working on it, and then I'd do something else because I'm a procrastinator. Okay? So let's... We're going to talk about why people procrastinate, and then we're going to talk about how to fight procrastination. Okay? Because it's something we all need to fight.

Okay, so why do people procrastinate? That's a very good question. Okay? So, different people procrastinate for different reasons, but usually a lot of the times people have the same reasons for procrastinating. People procrastinate when they think something is difficult. Okay? So for me I find math difficult, so when I used to do math I would procrastinate and I would do something else like, you know, make a sandwich or clean my room even because the math seemed so difficult to me, anything was better than doing the math. So I would always get distracted. A lot of people find English grammar difficult, and when they're studying grammar a lot of the times they procrastinate, they text their friends or they, you know, do anything but grammar. Boring. A lot of people procrastinate when something is boring. They don't want to do it because it's... You know, they want to do something interesting. People procrastinate when something is a lot of work. Okay? And they know it's a lot of work, so they look at the task and it's just too much, so then they want to feel good, so they do something else. A lot of people also procrastinate just because they're scared or they're afraid. They want to do something well, and they don't think that they can so it well, so you know... Or, you know, they're worried about making mistakes, so a lot of the times people procrastinate because of fear.

Gerunds and Infinitives

We use gerunds (verb + ing):

• After certain verbs - I enjoy singing
• After prepositions - I drank a cup of coffee before leaving
• As the subject or object of a sentence - Swimming is good exercise

We use 'to' + infinitive:

• After certain verbs - We decided to leave
• After many adjectives - It's difficult to get up early
• To show purpose - I came to London to study English

We use the bare infinitive (the infinitive without 'to'):

• After modal verbs - I can meet you at six o'clock
• After 'let', 'make' and (sometimes) 'help' - The teacher let us leave early
• After some verbs of perception (see, watch, hear, notice, feel, sense) - I watched her walk away
• After expressions with 'why' - why go out the night before an exam?

Verbs that take the gerund or 'to + infinitive' with examples and exercises:

• Verbs with gerunds and infinitives part 1
• Verbs with gerunds and infinitives part 2
• Verbs with gerunds and infinitives part 3
• Verbs with gerunds and infinitives part 4

How to Use 'Let' and 'Make'

Let

Subject + let + object + bare infinitive (infinitive without 'to')

'Let' can mean 'allow' or 'give permission':

• David's mother let him use her car.
• Our boss let us leave early.

We can also use 'let' to mean 'allow' in the sense of 'make something possible':

• This student card lets you book discount flights.
• You can buy a pass which lets you visit all the art galleries more cheaply.

Let's + infinitive is often used to make a suggestion:

• Let's go to the cinema tonight.
• Let's get some coffee.

(Although 'let's' is a contraction of 'let us', we don't use 'let us' in this situation). We don't use 'let' in the passive.

Make

Subject + make + object + bare infinitive (infinitive without 'to')

'Make' can mean 'force someone to do something that he or she doesn't want to do':

• His mother made him clean his room.
• The teacher made us study very hard.

It can also be used to mean 'cause someone to do something' (the thing can be good or bad):

• That film made me cry.
• My brother often makes me laugh.

If we use 'make' in the passive, we use the infinitive with 'to' instead of the bare infinitive:

• She was made to work on Saturday, even though she hated working at weekends.

We can also use subject + make + object + adjective. This means 'cause the object to be the adjective' (the adjective can be good or bad):

• Her story made me really happy.
• The traffic jam made us late.

Choosing 'let' or 'make'

Remember, we use 'let' when we mean 'allow'. It's usually something the person wants to do:

• My boss let me leave early (I wanted to leave early, and the boss gave me permission).

We use 'make' when we mean 'force' or 'cause'. It's often something the person doesn't want to do:

• My boss made me stay late (I didn't want to stay, but I had to).

When 'make' means 'cause' it can be something good or bad:

• My brother made me laugh

Laughing is a good thing, BUT laughing isn't something I wanted to do that my brother gave me permission for. Instead it's something that he caused.

We can only use 'make + object + adjective'. We can't use 'let' in this way.

Exercises

learning vocabulary

Here are some groups of words that commonly occur in Explanations, with examples. Here is some information about the way the information is shown.

Here are some groups of words that commonly occur in Explanations, with examples from different disciplines. Click on Instructions for more information about the format.

The tasks that follow will help you work with some of these word groups.

Describing location, structure, procedure

as well as the

Example 

Agricultur...	. </p><p> Tesco also offers a 'finest' product range	as well as	a brand called 'Free from' for customers with
Agricultur...	welfare and create an enriched environment	as well as	a smooth move from inside to the outdoor sheds.
Agricultur...	. This has added to the value of the conversion	as well as	customer appeal. The location in terms of
Agricultur...	, humane, and environmentally friendly,	as well as	economically sustainable production systems
Agricultur...	needed for different fields reduced leaching	as well as	efficiently using the recycled manure and
Agricultur...	in grassed paddocks and fed on cereal based roll	as well as	foraging for themselves. They are slaughtered
Agricultur...	the chickens have the highest animal welfare	as well as	friendly to the environment therefore
Agricultur...	and concentrate with silage and cracker feed	as well as	milled rapeseed making up the majority of the
Agricultur...	the permanent grassland on the flood plains,	as well as	on cereal volunteers and on cattle grazing land
Agricultur...	mainly winter wheat and barley as seed crops,	as well as	OSR, linseed and grass seed. Livestock1. Beef -
Agricultur...	, free range chicken and pork all from the farm	as well as	other local produce such as pickles, cheeses
Agricultur...	there are also grass and gorse species present	as well as	some trees. Lowland heath land has always been a
Agricultur...	work almost work as the 'break' for grazing land	as well as	supplying a source of farmyard manure as a
Agricultur...	being 'farming in harmony with the environment	as well as	to share in the values that Waitrose continues
Agricultur...	facilities, and these could be used for geese	as well as	turkeys. The whole niche could be maintained,
Anthropolo...	. The rhinarium acts as a tactile sense organ	as well as	an olfactory device. Some species, such as the

learning English Grammar

Comparative and Superlative Adjectives

Download this explanation in PDF here.

To make the comparative form of adjectives (like 'bigger' or 'more expensive') and the superlative form (like 'biggest' or 'most expensive'), first we need to know how many syllables are in the adjective.

Adjectives with one syllable

Usually if an adjective has only one syllable, we add 'er' to make the comparative form. We add 'est' to make the superlative form.

• clean → cleaner / cleanest
• cold → colder / coldest
• small → smaller / smallest
• young → younger / youngest
• tall → taller / tallest

There are some spelling changes. If there is one vowel followed by one consonant at the end of the adjective, we often double the consonant.

• wet → wetter / wettest
• big → bigger / biggest
• hot → hotter / hottest
• thin → thinner / thinnest

If the adjective ends in 'y', this often changes to 'i'.

• dry → drier / driest

If the adjective ends in 'e', we don't add another 'e', just 'r'.

• nice → nicer / nicest
• large → larger / largest

Even when the adjective has only one syllable, it's still not wrong to use 'more' or 'most'. It's possible to say 'more wet' or 'most tall'. This isn't incorrect.

There are a few adjectives that we have to use 'more' or 'most' with, even though they only have one syllable. We CAN'T add 'er' or 'est'.

• fun → more fun / most fun (NOT funner / funnest)
• real → more real / most real (NOT realer / realest)
• right → more right / most right (NOT righter / rightest)
• wrong → more wrong / most wrong (NOT wronger / wrongest)

Adjectives with two syllables

For adjectives with two syllables we generally use 'more' or 'most'.

• careful → more careful / most careful
• bored → more bored / most bored

But some two syllable adjectives can take 'er' or 'est'. It's also fine to use 'more' (for the comparative) or 'most' (for the superlative).

• clever → cleverer / cleverest
• simple → simpler / simplest
• narrow → narrower / narrowest
• quiet → quieter / quietest

Adjectives with two syllables that end in 'y' usually can add 'er' or 'est' (y generally changes to i). It's also fine to use 'more' or 'most'.

• dirty → dirtier / dirtiest
• pretty → prettier / prettiest
• happy → happier / happiest
• ugly → uglier / ugliest

Adjectives with more than two syllables

Adjectives with more than two syllables can only make their comparative by using 'more' and their superlative by using 'most'.

• beautiful → more beautiful / most beautiful
• intelligent → more intelligent / most intelligent
• interesting → more interesting / most interesting
• expensive → more expensive / most expensive

Irregular adjectives

There are also some irregular adjectives. We just need to learn these forms.

• good → better → best
• bad → worse → worst
• far → further → furthest
• little → less → least
• much → more → most

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