Forme interrogative e discorso indiretto
Ordine delle parole
Per riportare delle domande, la normale disposizione delle parole in una frase non cambia, vale a dire il soggetto si colloca prima del verbo e non è necessario usare gli ausiliari do o did:
Esempi
| Discorso diretto | Discorso indiretto |
|---|---|
| "Where does Peter live?" | She asked him where Peter lived. |
| "Where are you going?" | She asked where I was going. |
| "Why is she crying?" | He asked why she was crying. |
Domande chiuse (Yes / No)
Questo tipo di domande viene riportato usando la formula ask + 'if / whether' + proposizione:
Esempi
| Discorso diretto | Discorso indiretto |
|---|---|
| "Do you speak English?" | He asked me if I spoke English. |
| "Are you British or American?" | He asked me whether I was British or American. |
| "Is it raining?" | She asked if it was raining. |
| "Have you got a computer?" | He wanted to know whether I had a computer. |
| "Can you type?" | She asked if I could type. |
| "Did you come by train?" | He enquired whether I had come by train. |
| "Have you been to Bristol before?" | She asked if I had been to Bristol before. |
Pronomi interrogativi
Questo tipo di domanda viene riportato usando la formula ask (o un altro verbo che introduce il discorso indiretto) + pronome interrogativo + proposizione. La proposizione contiene la domanda, rispettando la normale disposizione delle parole e senza modificare il verbo.
Esempi
| Discorso diretto | Discorso indiretto |
|---|---|
| "What is your name?" he asked me. | He asked me what my name was. |
| "How old is your mother?", he asked. | He asked how old her mother was. |
| The policman said to the boy, "Where do you live?" | The policeman asked the boy where he lived. |
| "What time does the train arrive?" she asked. | She asked what time the train arrived. |
| "When can we have dinner?" she asked. | She asked when they could have dinner. |
| Peter said to John, "Why are you so late?" | Peter asked John why he was so late. |