Changing Direct Questions to

Reported Questions

1. The rules in tense sequence and pronoun

changes are the same as those used when changing

direct statements to reported statements.

2. A yes-no question that is

reported is introduced by if.

DIRECT SPEECH REPORTED SPEECH

"Will you stay?" Nena asked Juliet.

Nena asked Juliet if she would stay.

DIRECT SPEECH REPORTED SPEECH

"Are you speaking

Japanese?" he asked us.

He asked us if we were speaking

Japanese.

3. A question that calls for a choice is introduced by

whether when it is reported.

DIRECT SPEECH REPORTED SPEECH

"Do you want chicos or

pineapples?" the vendor asked us.

The vendor asked us whether we

wanted chicos or pineapples.

DIRECT SPEECH REPORTED SPEECH

"Will you go to school or stay at home?" the

mother enquired her

son.

The mother enqired her

child whether he would go to school or

stay at home.

3. An information question, when reported, has the same question

word as that used in the original question.

DIRECT SPEECH REPORTED SPEECH

Karen asked Diether,

"Where have you been?"

Karen asked Diether where he had been.

DIRECT SPEECH REPORTED SPEECH

The teacher asked the students,

"How are you going to solve the problem?"

The teacher asked the

students how they were

going to solve the problem.