Direct

Ques+ons
Object Ques+ons…
ask about the object of a sentence. You know who
did the ac4on (subj.) but not who/what was
affected by it (obj).
(Ques4on Word - Object) + aux + subject + verb
Who did you go out with last night? —> (I went out) with a friend.
Where did she live before living here? —> (She lived) in Nairobi.
Why are you looking at me that way? —> (I’m looking at you that way) because you’re being a jerk.
How did they know that? —> (They knew that) because I told them!
What did Alexander Fleming discover? —> (A. Fleming discovered) penicillin.
Subject Ques+ons…
ask about the subject of a sentence. You don’t know who did the ac4on (subj.)
but you do know who/what was affected by it (obj).
NEVER USE AUXILIARY VERBS! THERE IS NO INVERSION!
THE WORD ORDER OF THE QUESTION IS THE SAME AS THE ANSWER!
(Ques4on Word - Subject) + verb + object and all the rest.
Who went out with you last night? —> A friend (went out with me).
What’s the capital of Kenya? —> Nairobi (is the capital of Kenya).
What’s wrong with you? —> Nothing(’s wrong with me).
Who likes grammar? —> Everybody (likes grammar)!
Who discovered penicillin? —> Alexander Fleming (discovered penicillin).
 Indirect Ques+ons
Indirect ques+ons are used to be less direct (WOW!) so that we can ask be more
polite or ask about sensi4ve things.
The opening phrase contains the ques4on form (verb + subj) but the real ques4on
has the word order of a normal sentence/the answer (subj + verb)

Direct Indirect
opening phrase real ques4on

How old are you? Do you mind me asking | how old you are?
Who did you vote for? Can I ask you | who you voted for?
What 4me is it? Could you tell me | what 4me it is?
 No+ce that the word order is the same as the answer!
Do you mind me asking how old you are? —> I’m 35.

Can I ask you who you voted for? —> I voted for the leY, although the party I
would’ve voted for didn’t make it through the primaries.

Could you tell me what 4me it is? —> It’s ten past five.

WRONG!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Do you mind me asking how old are you?
Can I ask you who did you vote for?
Could you tell me what 4me is it?
 Some indirect ques+ons aren’t asked as a ques+on at all.
The same rules apply!

I was wondering where you bought that jacket.

I bought it at a thriY store.

I wanted to know whether you’d like to have dinner with me some day.
Sure, I’d love to!

I wanted to know if you would’ve reacted the same way I reacted.

Well, I probably wouldn’t have been so rude!
 WRONG!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I was wondering where did you buy that jacket.

I wanted to know whether would you like to have dinner with

me some day.

I wanted to know if would you have reacted the same way I reacted.