Station 3  Reporting questions, commands and requests

Station 3: The lawyer’s daughter

Reporting questions, commands and requests

Zoe
“Is she at the hospital? When can we go see her?”
p. 28, l. 11–12
Later, Zoe tells the story:

I asked my dad {q:if} {s:she} {v:was} at the hospital and {q:when} {s:we} {v:could} go see her.

What is different from the speech bubble? Today we look at it step by step.

  1. Review: backshift
  2. Reporting questions
  3. Reporting commands and requests
  4. Putting it all together

Backshift: one step back

Julia tells her class what Zoe and her dad said. Look at the verb.

So far:
Remember

If the reporting verb is in the past (said, told, asked), the verb goes one step back into the past. Change the people and the words for time and place, too.

Backshift at a glance

Remember

If the reporting verb is in the past, the verb goes one step back.

simple presentam / is→wassimple past
work / works→worked
present progressiveis working→was workingpast progressive
present perfecthas / have worked→had workedpast perfect
simple pastworked→had workedpast perfect
will-futurewill→would
modal verbscan→could
must→had to

No change: could, would, should, might and had + past participle.

Change the people: I → he / she my → his / her we → they

Time and place: what do they become?

Guess first, then turn the card (click or Next).

Exercise 1: What did Zoe say?

Julia tells her class about the interview. Report what Zoe said. Start like this: Zoe said that …

Write the sentences in your exercise book. Think of backshift, people and time words. verbpersontime / place

    Questions with question words

    Julia asks a lot of questions. How do we report later what she asked?

    Careful: if the question word is the subject, the word order stays the same. What has happened? → I asked him {q:what} {v:had happened}. (p. 28, l. 8–9)

    Yes/no questions: if or whether

    Some questions have no question word. The answer would be just “yes” or “no”.

    Exercise 2: Questions at the museum

    Visitors at the 9/11 Memorial & Museum ask the guide, Ms Rivera, lots of questions. Report them. Start like this: A visitor asked Ms Rivera …

    Question word or if? You can also use whether instead of if. question word / ifsubject / personverbtime / place

      Find the mistake

      Each sentence has one mistake. Find it and write the correct sentence.

      There is exactly one mistake in each sentence.

        Commands and requests

        Someone should do something, or not do it. This is how we report it.

        Exercise 3: Before the trip

        Before the class trip to the museum, Mr Brooks gives his students lots of instructions. Report them with told or asked. Start like this: Mr Brooks told the students …

        A request (please) → asked. A command → told. reporting verb(not) toperson

          Everything at a glance

          What?PatternExample
          Statement
          said (that)+backshift
          		 I am nine. → She said that {s:she} {v:was} nine.
          Question with a question word
          asked+question word+subject+verb
          		 Where is the museum? → Julia asked {q:where} {s:the museum} {v:was}.
          Yes/no question
          asked+if / whether+subject+verb
          		 Can we go back? → Zoe asked {q:if} {s:they} {v:could} go back.
          Command, request
          told / asked + person+(not) to+infinitive
          		 Don’t worry. → They told me {t:not to} {v:worry}.
          Remember

          Statements and questions need backshift. Commands and requests just use (not) to + infinitive.

          Mix it up: Julia and Andrew

          Andrew wants to visit New York and talks to Julia. Report what they said. Is it a statement, a question or a command?

          First decide: statement, question or command? Then use the right pattern. question word / ifpersonverb(not) totime / place