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Indirect questions: could you tell me where it is? Indirect questions exercises for B1 students

This B1 drill lesson gives indirect questions exercises for openers such as Could you tell me…?, with statement word order, no do or did, and if or whether.

Grammar
Opener + question word or if / whether + subject + verb: Do you know where the station is? Do, does and did drop out: what time it opens.
Topic
Tramstop Tourist Info, an invented desk in Lisbon: a visitor's live chat about bags, a walking tour and custard tarts, the desk's FAQ page and an email.
Activities
Sorting, gap-fills, word-order choices, drag-and-drop dialogues, unjumbles, quizzes, tables, matches, a memory game and a chat, all self-checking.

What's inside

  1. Chapter 1The rule

    • PictureUnlock
    • Study the scheme: indirect questionsGrammar schemeTry it
    • Is the sentence correct? Mark true or falseTrue or falseUnlock
    • Sort the direct questions: what happens in the indirect question?Sort into columnsTry it
    • Choose the right word orderChoose the optionUnlock
    • Write the indirect questionsFill in the gapsUnlock

  2. Chapter 2Where is it? → where it is

    • Fill in the gaps: subject before the verbFill in the gapsTry it
    • Choose the right word order: be, can, will and haveChoose the optionUnlock
    • Drag the words into the gapsDrag and dropUnlock
    • Put the words in the right orderUnjumbleUnlock
    • Find the mistake and choose the right wordsQuizUnlock
    • Write the indirect questions: at the train stationFill in the gapsUnlock

  3. Chapter 3No do, does or did

    • Fill in the gaps: no do, does or didFill in the gapsUnlock
    • Choose the right form: no do, does or didChoose the optionTry it
    • Fill in the table: direct and indirect questionsFill in the tableUnlock
    • Match the direct and indirect questionsMatchUnlock
    • Drag the verbs into the gapsDrag and dropUnlock
    • Put the words in order: no do, does or didUnjumbleUnlock
    • Choose the right indirect questionQuizUnlock

  4. Chapter 4If or whether? Yes or no?

    • Fill in the gaps: yes/no questionsFill in the gapsUnlock
    • Choose the right word order: if + subject + verbChoose the optionUnlock
    • Read the mini-dialogues and drag the questions into the gapsDrag and dropTry it
    • Put the words in the right order: yes/no questionsUnjumbleUnlock
    • Which sentence is correct? Choose the right answerQuizUnlock
    • Write the indirect questions: mixedFill in the gapsUnlock

  5. Chapter 5Real life: The tourist desk in Lisbon

    • Read the tourist desk's live chatReal-life documentUnlock
    • Read the chat again: true or false?True or falseUnlock
    • Read the desk's FAQ page and fill in the gapsFill in the gapsUnlock
    • Read Femi's email and drag the words into the gapsDrag and dropUnlock
    • Read the conversation at the desk and choose the right wordsChoose the optionUnlock
    • Choose the right replies: ask the tourist deskChatTry it
    • Test yourself: choose the right answerQuizUnlock

  6. Chapter 6Homework

    • Choose the right words: at a hotelChoose the optionUnlock
    • Fill in the gaps: at the doctor's officeFill in the gapsUnlock
    • Fill in the gaps: questions about a new jobFill in the gapsUnlock
    • Put the words in the right order: polite questionsUnjumbleUnlock
    • Fill in the table: make the questions politeFill in the tableUnlock
    • Sort the sentences: correct or wrong?Sort into columnsUnlock
    • Match the questions and the answersMatchUnlock
    • Find the matching pairs: direct and indirectMemory gameUnlock
    • Find the mistake: everyday questionsQuizUnlock
    • Choose the right words: yes/no questionsChoose the optionUnlock
    • Drag the words into the gaps: questions at schoolDrag and dropUnlock
    • Read Jarrah's email and fill in the gapsFill in the gapsUnlock
    • Read Sigurd's forum post and drag the words into the gapsDrag and dropUnlock
    • Write the indirect questions: at the airportFill in the gapsUnlock
    • Choose the correct sentenceQuizUnlock

47 exercises in 6 chapters. Start a 7-day free trial to open all of them, copy any part into your own lessons, and teach the lesson live.

Grammar: indirect questions: an opener + statement word order

An indirect question puts a direct one inside a polite opener, such as Could you tell me…?, Do you know…? or I wonder…. After the opener, the words follow statement order: Where is the station? turns into Could you tell me where the station is? Learners put the subject before the verb, drop do, does and did, and use if or whether when there's no question word.

Indirect questions: could you tell me where it is?

Ask politely: start with an opener, then use statement word order (subject + verb).

Opener + question word + subject + verb

Start with an opener, add the question word, then the subject and the verb: Do you know what time the gallery opens? Could you tell me…? and Do you know…? end in a question mark, but I wonder… and I'd like to know… end in a period.

Opener + question word or if + subject + verb

Could you tell me / Do you knowwhere / when / what time… or if / whethersubjectverb …

Could you tell me where the market is?

Do you know what time the gallery opens?

I wonder if the café is still open.

Openers: ? or .

  • Could you tell me…?
  • Can you tell me…?
  • Do you know…?
  • Do you have any idea…?
  • Can I ask…?
  • I wonder… .
  • I'd like to know… .
  • I'm not sure… .
  • I have no idea… .

Be, can, will and have move; do, does and did go

Helper verbs stay but change places: Where can I buy a ticket? → where I can buy a ticket. Do, does and did disappear, and the main verb carries the tense: what time the museum opens, when the train left. Negatives keep don't, doesn't and didn't: why she didn't call.

Direct → indirect

Direct questionIndirect question
Where is the station?Could you tell me where the station is?
Where can I buy a ticket?Can you tell me where I can buy a ticket?
How long will the tour take?Do you know how long the tour will take?
Where have they gone?I wonder where they have gone.
What time does the museum open?Do you know what time the museum opens?
When did the train leave?Do you know when the train left?
Is the castle open today?Do you know if the castle is open today?
Does this bus go downtown?Could you tell me whether this bus goes downtown?

Be, can, will stay · do, does, did go

Be, can, will, should and have stay but go after the subject: where it is, how I can help. Do, does and did go away, and the main verb shows the tense: What time does it open? → what time it opens. When did it leave? → when it left. Negatives keep don't / doesn't / didn't: Why didn't she call? → why she didn't call.

If or whether, and questions about the subject

With no question word, add if or whether; both are right: Is it far? → Do you know if it's far? A question about the subject keeps its order: Who called? → Do you know who called?

Yes/no questions, subject questions, ? or .

No question word? Use if or whether (both are right): Is it far? → Do you know if it's far? / whether it's far? A question about the subject keeps its order: Who called? → Do you know who called? After Could you tell me…? or Do you know…? end with ?; after I wonder… or I'm not sure… end with a period.

Direct with friends, indirect with strangers

Friends and family get the short, direct form: Where's the bathroom? At a desk, in a store or in an email, the indirect form sounds more polite: Excuse me, could you tell me where the bathroom is?

Direct: friends and family

  • short and simple
  • Where's the bathroom?
  • What time does the party start?

Indirect: polite, with people you don't know

  • at a desk, in a store, in an email
  • Excuse me, could you tell me where the bathroom is?
  • Do you know what time the party starts?

Common mistakes

Four slips keep the question form: where is the bank, what time does it open, when did she arrive and if is it true. Statement word order fixes all four: where the bank is, what time it opens, when she arrived, if it's true.

Common mistakes

  • Could you tell me where is the bank?

    Could you tell me where the bank is?

    subject before the verb

  • Do you know what time does it open?

    Do you know what time it opens?

    no does: open → opens

  • Can you tell me when did she arrive?

    Can you tell me when she arrived?

    no did: arrive → arrived

  • I wonder if is it true.

    I wonder if it's true.

    if + subject + verb

Examples

  • Excuse me, could you tell me where Gate 12 is?be: after the subject
  • Do you know how much this jacket costs?does → costs
  • Do you have any idea why Sam left the party?did → left
  • Can you tell me if we can sit outside?a yes/no question: if
  • I wonder whether the store will be open on Sunday.I wonder… ends with a period
  • Do you know who wrote this note?who is the subject: no change

More lessons on this grammar: Questions lessons and exercises

Try the indirect questions exercises

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What's in the lesson

  • 39 auto-checked exercises
  • 5 games
  • 1 real-life document
  • 1 grammar scheme
  • 1 picture

The main objectives of this lesson are to:

  • turn a direct question into a polite one with the subject first: Where is the bank? → Could you tell me where the bank is?
  • drop do, does and did and let the main verb show the tense: Do you know what time the bakery opens? I wonder why Emma called.
  • ask yes/no questions with if or whether: Do you know if the museum is free on Sundays?
  • keep the word order of a question about the subject: Do you know who took my pen?
  • end the sentence with the right mark: a question mark after Do you know…?, a period after I wonder…

Lesson 18 of English Grammar Practice · B1 belongs on the questions page. It comes after lesson 17, Reported questions and commands: what did they ask you?, and before lesson 19, Question tags: it's your first day, isn't it? Like the rest of the series, it is a drill lesson with no new words, so it can sit beside any course book in the week indirect questions come up.

The first chapter has a picture, the scheme and four drills, one of them a sort of direct questions by what changes. Where is it? → where it is moves be, can, will and have; No do, does or did fixes the main verb; If or whether? Yes or no? adds yes/no questions. In The tourist desk in Lisbon, students read the desk's live chat, fill in its FAQ page, finish Femi's email, choose words at the desk, chat with Duarte and take a 12-question test.

Its 15 homework tasks all check themselves: questions at a hotel, a doctor's office, a new job, a school and an airport, in gap-fills, word order, a table, a sort into correct and wrong, a match, a memory game and two quizzes, plus Jarrah's email to a Spanish school and Sigurd's forum post about a clicking bike.

Grammar:
indirect questions · Could you tell me…? / Do you know…? · if / whether · word order in questions
Topic:
grammar practice · travel · asking for information · polite questions

Teaching tips

  • Put the two questions one above the other: Where is the bank? and Could you tell me where the bank is? Students draw an arrow from is to its new place after the subject.
  • Cross out do, does and did in five direct questions on the board, then ask what the main verb needs now: open becomes opens, leave becomes left.
  • Turn the classroom into a hotel lobby: one student is the receptionist, and the others must start every question with an opener from the scheme. The receptionist answers only questions in the right order.
  • Check the last mark together: a question mark after Could you tell me…? and Do you know…?, a period after I wonder… and I'd like to know…. The final test in chapter 5 asks about it.

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The whole course: English Grammar Practice · B1

English Grammar Practice · B1 has 28 drill lessons, one grammar point each: the present perfect continuous, narrative tenses, future forms, modals of deduction, the second conditional, the passive, relative clauses, reported speech, question tags and linkers. Each has the rule as a scheme, 43 to 47 exercises that check themselves, 15 of them for homework, and no new words.See the course

  1. 1Present perfect continuous: how long have you been doing it?
  2. 2Present perfect simple or continuous: how many or how long?
  3. 3Past perfect: what had happened before?
  4. 4Narrative tenses: telling a great story
  5. 5Future forms: plans, promises and timetables
  6. 6Future time clauses: I'll call you when I land
  7. 7Used to, be used to, get used to: settling in
  8. 8Modal verbs: can, must, should or might?
  9. 9Could, was able to, managed to: did you make it?
  10. 10Modals of deduction: whose bag could it be?
  11. 11Second conditional: what would you do?
  12. 12Conditionals compared: real or imagined?
  13. 13Present and past passive: how is it made?
  14. 14Passive in other tenses: what's being done?
  15. 15Relative clauses: the person who, the place where
  16. 16Reported statements: who said what?
  17. 17Reported questions and commands: what did they ask you?
  18. 18Indirect questions: could you tell me where it is?
  19. 19Question tags: it's your first day, isn't it?
  20. 20Gerunds and infinitives: enjoy doing or decide to do?
  21. 21Reflexive pronouns: did you make it yourself?
  22. 22Although, however, despite: great view, tiny room
  23. 23So, such and because of: what a storm!
  24. 24Phrasal verbs: who's going to clean it up?
  25. 25All, both, either, neither, none: two or a whole group?
  26. 26-ed and -ing adjectives: bored or boring?
  27. 27Advanced comparatives: the more, the better
  28. 28Articles with place names: the Nile, but Lake Como

Questions about this lesson

What are indirect questions?
Indirect questions are polite questions inside an opener such as Could you tell me…?, Do you know…? or I wonder…, with the words after it in statement order: Could you tell me where the market is? People use them with strangers, at a desk, in a store or in an email. Indirect questions: could you tell me where it is?, a B1 drill lesson on edio.ai, practices them in 44 self-checking exercises.
What is the rule for indirect questions?
After the opener, the subject comes before the verb, as in a statement: Where is the station? becomes Do you know where the station is? Be, can, will and have stay but move; do, does and did drop out, and the main verb shows the tense. Yes/no questions add if or whether. The scheme in Indirect questions: could you tell me where it is? on edio.ai sets out all three steps.
What are some examples of indirect questions?
Here are five from Indirect questions: could you tell me where it is? on edio.ai: Could you tell me where platform 4 is? Do you know what time the stores close? I'd also like to know how much the course costs. Do you know whether the tour runs in the rain? Do you know who won the game last night? The last one keeps its order, because who is the subject.
What's the difference between indirect questions and reported questions?
You ask an indirect question yourself, in the present: Do you know when the train left? A reported question tells what someone else asked earlier, usually one tense back: She asked when the train had left. Both use statement word order and drop do and did. In English Grammar Practice · B1 on edio.ai, lesson 17 drills reported questions, and lesson 18, Indirect questions: could you tell me where it is?, the polite form.
Is it “Do you know what time does it open?” or “what time it opens?”
It's Do you know what time it opens?: in an indirect question, does drops out and the main verb takes the -s. The same goes for did: Can you tell me when she arrived?, not when did she arrive. Keeping does is one of the four mistakes in the scheme of Indirect questions: could you tell me where it is? on edio.ai, and the chapter No do, does or did drills it seven ways.
Do indirect questions end with a question mark?
Only when the opener is itself a question: Could you tell me where the exit is? and Do you know what time it is? end with a question mark, but I wonder what time it is. and I'm not sure how far the airport is. end with a period. The scheme of Indirect questions: could you tell me where it is? on edio.ai lists nine openers with the mark each one takes.
How do I teach indirect questions to B1 students?
Begin with a direct question students already know, write the indirect version under it and show what moved and what disappeared. Practice the subject-first order with be and can before you take away do, does and did, then add if and whether. Indirect questions: could you tell me where it is? on edio.ai follows that order in three drill chapters and ends at a tourist desk in Lisbon.
What's a good activity for practicing indirect questions?
Try a tourist desk role-play: one student holds a page of facts about an invented town, and the others ask for each fact with an opener, such as Could you tell me where the pharmacy is? A direct question gets no answer. In the chat of Indirect questions: could you tell me where it is? on edio.ai, students pick the correctly ordered question at each turn while Duarte from Tramstop Tourist Info answers.
What's good homework for indirect questions?
Good homework mixes all three changes in new settings: subject-first order, no do or did, and if or whether. In Indirect questions: could you tell me where it is? on edio.ai, the homework moves from a hotel and a doctor's office to an airport, with Jarrah's email to a language school and Sigurd's forum post about a noisy bike, and every task checks itself.
How do you practice indirect questions one-to-one?
Let the student play the polite customer: the teacher is a hotel receptionist, a pharmacist or a bus driver, and the student asks five things with five different openers. Then swap roles. Between sessions, the student can work through Indirect questions: could you tell me where it is? on edio.ai alone, since every exercise checks itself, the chat with the tourist desk included.
Are there interactive indirect questions exercises?
Yes. This page plays five parts of Indirect questions: could you tell me where it is?, a B1 drill lesson on edio.ai, with no account: a sort of direct questions by what changes; gaps that put the subject before the verb; a choice of forms without do, does or did; mini-dialogues to finish with whole questions; and a chat with a tourist desk. The other 39 exercises need an account.
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