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    B1 · IntermediateSentences & clausesIELTS Band 6 to 8

    Indirect questions

    An indirect question embeds a question inside a polite opener or statement: 'Could you tell me where the station is?' The embedded clause uses statement word order (subject before verb) and drops the auxiliary do/does/did. Yes/no questions embed with if or whether. Indirect questions sound softer and more polite than direct ones.

    Practise

    The rule

    How to form an indirect question

    • Wh-question

      openerquestion wordsubjectverb

      Do you know where the conference hall is?

    • Yes/no question

      openerif/whethersubjectverb

      Could you tell me if this seat is taken?

    • Do/does/did deleted

      question wordsubjectmain verb (-s/-ed restored)

      I wonder what time the pharmacy closes.

    • Soft request opener

      I'd like to know / I was wonderingembedded clause

      I was wondering whether the deadline could be extended.

    Inside a sentence

    I wonderopenerwhat timequestion wordthe pharmacysubjectcloses.verb (-s restored)

    No does: the verb takes its -s back, subject first

    Could you tell meopenerifif/whetherthis seatsubjectis taken?verb

    Yes/no question: if or whether, then statement order
    • subject
    • main verb
    • key word

    How to use indirect questions

    What is an indirect question?

    An indirect question wraps a question inside a polite opener ('Could you tell me…', 'Do you know…') or inside a statement ('I'm not sure…', 'I wonder…'). The information you want is identical; only the packaging changes, and with it the level of politeness.

    English speakers reach for indirect questions whenever directness might sound abrupt: approaching strangers, making requests at work, or querying an official. Because they bury one clause inside another, they also count as complex sentences, which is exactly why they matter for the IELTS Grammatical Range criterion.

    • Could you tell me where the station is?embedded clause in statement order
    • Could you tell me where is the station?→ where the station is
    • Do you know how long the delay will be?polite opener + embedded question

    What happens to word order in an indirect question?

    Inside the embedded clause, the question flips back into statement order: subject before verb. The auxiliary do/does/did disappears completely, and its tense marker returns to the main verb: 'Where does she work?' becomes 'Do you know where she works?', and 'When did they leave?' becomes 'I'd like to know when they left.'

    With the verb be there is no auxiliary to delete; be simply steps back behind its subject: 'Why is the office closed?' becomes 'Can you explain why the office is closed?' This tiny repositioning is the single most common slip, because the direct-question order is so automatic.

    • I'd like to know when the results come out.do deleted, plain statement order follows
    • Can you explain why is the printer offline?→ why the printer is offline
    • Nobody told us how much the visa costs.does disappears and cost regains its -s

    How do you embed yes/no questions with if and whether?

    A yes/no question has no question word, so English inserts if or whether to hold its place: 'Is the museum open?' becomes 'Do you know if the museum is open?' In everyday speech, if and whether are interchangeable in this slot.

    Whether is the only choice in three places: directly before 'or not', after a preposition, and before a to-infinitive. In formal writing, whether is generally the safer and more elegant pick.

    • I'm not sure whether the landlord received my message.
    • Everything depends on whether the sponsors sign the contract.after a preposition, only whether works
    • She can't decide if to accept the offer.→ whether to accept; before a to-infinitive, use whether

    Which openers introduce indirect questions, and do they need a question mark?

    The opener decides the punctuation. If the frame is itself a question (Could you tell me…?, Do you know…?, Do you happen to know…?) the whole sentence ends with a question mark. If the frame is a statement (I wonder…, I'm not sure…, I'd like to know…, I have no idea…) it ends with a full stop, even though a question hides inside.

    Openers also carry register. 'Do you know…?' is neutral; 'Could you tell me…?' is polite; 'I was wondering if you could…' is the softest of all and doubles as a request form in emails and formal letters.

    • Do you happen to know whose umbrella this is?question opener → question mark
    • I wonder who designed this building.statement opener → full stop
    • I'd like to know why the invoice was rejected?statement opener → full stop, not a question mark

    Indirect questions vs reported questions: is there a tense change?

    An ordinary indirect question keeps its original tense, because you are asking now: 'Could you tell me where the lift is?' Reported questions are different: when you report what somebody asked in the past, the reporting verb is past ('asked', 'wanted to know') and the tense inside usually shifts back one step.

    Both structures share the same statement word order, so mastering one gives you the other almost for free. The only extra machinery in reported questions is backshift and pronoun changes.

    • The examiner asked me what I did at weekends.backshift: do → did
    • The border officer wanted to know how long we were planning to stay.
    • She asked me where do I work.→ where I worked; statement order plus backshift

    Common mistakes with indirect questions

    Find what is wrong in each one, then open it to check.

    • 1Could you tell me where is the bank?What's wrong? Show the fix

      Could you tell me where the bank is?

      Embedded questions use statement word order; the verb goes back behind its subject.

    • 2Do you know what time does the shop close?What's wrong? Show the fix

      Do you know what time the shop closes?

      The auxiliary does disappears in an embedded clause, and its third-person -s moves back onto the main verb.

    • 3Tell me what is your name.What's wrong? Show the fix

      Tell me what your name is.

      Even after an imperative like 'tell me', the embedded clause keeps subject-before-verb order.

    • 4I wonder that the tickets are still available.What's wrong? Show the fix

      I wonder if the tickets are still available.

      'Wonder' introduces an embedded yes/no question, which needs if or whether; that would turn it into a statement of fact.

    • 5Success will depend on if the rains arrive on time.What's wrong? Show the fix

      Success will depend on whether the rains arrive on time.

      After a preposition, only whether can introduce the embedded clause.

    • 6I have no idea how much does the ferry cost.What's wrong? Show the fix

      I have no idea how much the ferry costs.

      Statement openers like 'I have no idea' still take embedded statement order; the auxiliary does must go.

    Practise

    1 / 5

    I'd like to know the apartment is still available.

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    Write a sentence of your own with indirect questions, about you, your studies or your town.

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    Indirect questions in IELTS

    Speaking

    • In Part 3, hedge with an embedded question instead of a flat 'I don't know': 'I'm not sure how realistic that would be in my country, but…' The examiner hears a complex, accurate structure exactly where weaker candidates go silent.
    • If you miss a question, ask for repetition with full embedded order: 'Could you explain what you mean by traditional?' A correctly built indirect question earns grammatical credit even while you buy thinking time.

    Writing

    • In General Training Task 1 letters, requests live in indirect questions: 'I would be grateful if you could let me know when the repairs will be completed.' Getting the embedded order right is a hallmark of the polite, semi-formal tone a Band 7 letter needs.
    • In Task 2, a whether-clause makes a sophisticated thesis frame: 'The real question is whether censorship protects children or merely inconveniences adults.' It embeds a question without the informality of asking one directly.

    Questions

    What is an indirect question with an example?
    An indirect question is a question folded inside a polite opener or statement. Direct: 'Where is the post office?' Indirect: 'Could you tell me where the post office is?' The embedded part switches to statement word order (subject before verb) and any auxiliary do/does/did disappears.
    Do indirect questions need a question mark?
    Only when the opener is itself a question. 'Could you tell me where the exit is?' takes a question mark because 'Could you tell me…?' is a question. 'I wonder where the exit is.' ends with a full stop, because the frame is a statement, even though a question hides inside it.
    Should I use if or whether in indirect questions?
    In everyday speech they are interchangeable: 'I don't know if/whether it will rain.' Use whether before 'or not', after prepositions, and before to-infinitives: 'It depends on whether…', 'whether to apply'. In formal writing, whether is the safer default and sounds more polished.
    Why is 'Could you tell me where is the station?' wrong?
    Because the embedded clause must use statement order. Inversion belongs to the direct question ('Where is the station?'); once that question sits inside another clause, the verb returns behind the subject: 'Could you tell me where the station is?' Keeping direct-question order inside is the most common learner error.
    Do indirect questions change the tense?
    Not by themselves. 'Do you know where he works?' keeps the present because you are asking now. Tense only shifts back in reported questions, where a past reporting verb pulls the clause into the past: 'She asked where he worked.' Word order behaves identically in both structures.

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