Embedded Questions
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Do you know how to put a question inside another question or statement
This is called embedding. We call this process embedded questions. That is what this video is about
We have a main question or statement and then we put another question inside of it
That question is called the embedded question. Let's see how it works
There are eight main things we will consider here. Number one, regular questions
Two, direct quotes. Three, embedded questions. Four, indirect quotes or reported speech
Five, reduced phrasing. Six, true versus false questions. Seven, other phrasers. Eight, putting it all together
Number one, regular questions in English. To make a question, we usually switch positions of the subject and first verb
For example, he is a doctor. To make a question, we say, is he a doctor
She is working in California. To make a question, we say, is she working in California
Note that it's only the subject and the first verb that change positions
The second verb remains in the same place. Sometimes we add a WH word to the beginning of the question
For example, what is his job? Where is she working? Note that the question word order does not change when a WH word is added
Two, direct quotes. The easiest way to insert a question into another sentence is to use direct quotes
For example, he asked me, what time is it? We are merely putting another person's exact words within quotation marks
What time is it? Is there a question? He asked me, what time is it
We're using his exact words. We don't have to change the word order or anything within the quotation marks
Punctuation and direct quotes. Generally, with direct quotes, we put the exact words including punctuation and capitalization within quotation marks
For example, Nigel asked, where are you going? Where am I going? responded Zelina
To the theater. You will often see a comma after the introductory phrase
Josh calmly asked, where did you put the money? These are general rules for direct quotes and questions
Other rules may apply to different situations and types of sentences. Three, when we put one question into another question or statement without quotes
we need to switch the subject and verb back to their original positions
For example, the question, what is his job? Is put into another question
Do you know? Do you know what is his job? No, that's incorrect
You have to say, do you know what his job is? Notice we're using the same sentence structure as in a statement
His job is management. Switch it back to the subject verb order
This process is called embedding. These are called embedded questions. For embedded questions, we do not capitalize the question word
If the first verb in the question is a form of do, the do is omitted
and the main verb goes back to its original form in the embedded question
For example, the question is, what does she know? We put that into another question
The question, can you tell me what does she know? No, that's incorrect
You need to say, can you tell me what she knows? She knows a lot
Keep the statement word order here. Next example, where did he go
That's the question. We put it into a statement. I don't know, where did he go
That's incorrect. We have to say, I don't know where he went
Notice the past tense here. In the original question, the past tense is in the did
In the embedded question, the past tense is in the word went
He went to the hospital. To make things easier to understand, we'll call the main phrase the stem sentence or question
and the inserted phrase the embedded question. For example, John told me, what should I do
John told me is the stem sentence. What should I do is the question
John told me what I should do. John told me, stem, what I should do, embedded question
The stem sentence or question can control the tense of the embedded question
For example, I asked Terry, who is that man? This is a direct quote, no change in grammar
I asked Terry, who that man was? Both the word order and tense change here
Let's look at this step by step. Start with the question, who is that man
Put it into a stem sentence. I asked Terry, who is that man
That's incorrect. I asked Terry, who that man is? Not quite right
Next, I asked Terry, who that man was? This is correct. When I asked, it was in the past tense
The past tense in the stem sentence usually prevails over the embedded question
Other elements of the stem sentence can affect the embedded question as well
See the following examples. Jim asked me, what would you do? This is a direct quote, exactly what Jim said
Next, Jim asked me what I would do. This is an embedded question
I'm telling you what Jim asked me. Notice how the I here is referring to me, the speaker
This is also called an indirect quote. I'm not using Jim's exact words
I'm telling you what Jim asked me. Next, Jim asked me, what should I do
This is a direct quote. Jim is referring to himself in this case
Jim asked me what he should do. Now, I'm telling you what Jim asked me
So, the he is referring to Jim. This is an indirect quote or reported speech
I'm reporting to you what Jim asked me. Five, reducing embedded questions
Sometimes, embedded questions can be reduced to an infinitive. To plus verb
For example, Jim asked me what she should buy. This is an embedded question
Jim asked me what to buy. This is reduced to three words
Don told me where I should go. This is an embedded question
Don told me where to go, reduced. True versus false questions. Some people get how do you and how to mixed up
How do you is a true question. For example, how do you fix a leaky faucet
I want to know, so I'm asking. How to fix a leaky faucet, question mark, is not a real question
It's bad grammar. This phrase is actually an answer, not a question at all
For example, this is how to fix a leaky faucet, period. You can expect instructions to follow on how to do it
It does not ask you, it tells you how to do it
For example, how to fix a leaky faucet, colon, not question mark
Step one, step two, step three. But, some people write or say how to, question mark
They are incorrect. No, even native speakers can be wrong sometimes. Do not ask how to spell that
Ask a real question. How do you spell that? Some people may introduce a process by asking how to, question mark
Maybe they don't know, or maybe they think it's cute. It's not, it's annoying, and it's incorrect
Seven, other types of phrasing. We sometimes use special grammar with yes, no questions
For example, will Liz come to the party? This is a yes, no question
The answer we expect is either yes or no. Let's look at how it works
For example, the question here is, will Liz come to the party
We want to put it inside a stem sentence. Do you know
Do you know if Liz will come to the party or not
Because of the yes, no nature of this question, we often use the word if
Sometimes we use whether. Do you know whether or not Liz will come to the party
Let's look at another example. We'll use the same embedded question, will Liz come to the party
Put it into a stem sentence. I wonder. I wonder if Liz will come to the party
This is a yes, no question inside of the statement. Maybe she will, maybe she won't
Eight, putting it all together. See how embedded questions work in various situations
First example. What time is it? This is a regular question. Can you tell me what time it is
This is an embedded question. He asked me what time it was
This is an indirect quote or reported speech. Next example. How to play chess
This is incorrect. It's not a real question. How do you play chess
Correct, that's a true question. I asked Rob, how do you play chess
This is a direct quote, what I asked him. I asked Rob how to play chess
This is a reduced embedded question, and it's okay. Practice time
Tell whether the following are correct or not. This is a true question
This is an indirect question. This is a true question. This is an indirect question
This is an indirect question. This is an indirect question. This is an indirect question
This is an indirect question. Please feel free to pause the video if you'd like more time for this
Here are the answers. Number one. I don't know where is Matt. Incorrect
The correct answer is, I don't know where Matt is. Two. How to make a paper airplane. Incorrect
The correct answer is, How do you make a paper airplane? Three
I wonder if he is here yet. Correct. Four. Can you tell me where the bank is? Correct. Five
She asked me what should she wear. Incorrect. The correct answer is
She asked me what she should wear. Six. We ask Gay, When does the game start? Correct
This is a direct quote. Jill told me what the movie is about. Incorrect
The correct answer is, Jill told me what the movie was about
From Jill's perspective, the movie was in the past tense. Eight. Do you know why Lenny is late? Correct. Nine
I don't care where does she come from. Incorrect. The correct answer is
I don't care where she comes from. Ten. Please ask Nancy, when will she arrive? Incorrect
The correct answer is, Please ask Nancy, when she will arrive. Hope that was helpful
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