¡Hola! Bienvenidos a esta nueva mini lesson. Hoy vamos a aprender una forma de hacer preguntas en inglés que puede hacer que nuestras conversaciones suenen un poco más naturales, educadas y formales: las indirect questions, o preguntas indirectas.

Probablemente ya conoces preguntas directas como:

• Where is the bank?

• What time does the store open?

Son completamente correctas. Pero dependiendo de la situación, podemos hacer que estas preguntas suenen un poco más suaves utilizando una pregunta indirecta. Por ejemplo, en lugar de decir "Where is the bank?" podemos decir "Could you tell me where the bank is?".

¿Notaste algo importante? En la pregunta indirecta, el orden de las palabras cambia. Este es uno de los puntos que más confunden a los estudiantes, porque aunque la primera parte sigue siendo una pregunta, la segunda parte funciona como una oración normal.

En esta mini lesson, vamos a aprender cómo formular preguntas indirectas, qué expresiones podemos utilizar para introducirlas, cómo cambia el orden de las palabras y cuáles son algunos errores comunes que debemos evitar. Y, al final, tendremos una pequeña práctica de solo tres ejercicios para ponerlo en acción.

Conoce las preguntas indirectas en inglés

Let's switch to English and get started!

Indirect questions are a useful way to ask for information in a more polite, softer, or more formal way. Let's start with a simple example.

A direct question is:

• Where is the train station?

This is perfectly correct. But we can make the question more indirect:

• Could you tell me where the train station is?

Both questions ask for the same information. The difference is the structure and the tone.

Direct vs. Indirect Questions

Let's compare them.

Direct question:

• Where is the hotel?

Indirect question:

• Do you know where the hotel is?

Here's another example.

Direct:

• What time does the movie start?

Indirect:

• Do you know what time the movie starts?

And another one:

Direct:

• Where does she live?

Indirect:

• Could you tell me where she lives?

Notice something? In the direct question, we have: "Where does she live?", but in the indirect question "where she lives". The word order changes.

The most important rule

This is the most important thing to remember about indirect questions: use normal statement word order after the question word. Let's look at the difference.

Direct:

• Where is he?

Indirect:

• Do you know where he is?

Not:

• Do you know where is he?

That is a very common mistake. Here's another example.

Direct:

• What does she want?

Indirect:

• Do you know what she wants?

Not:

• Do you know what does she want?

Direct:

• Where did they go?

Indirect:

• Do you know where they went?

Not:

• Do you know where did they go?

So remember: direct question "Where does she live?". Indirect question "Where she lives". The auxiliary verb does disappears, and the sentence returns to normal word order.

Common Expressions

There are several expressions we can use to introduce indirect questions. Some of the most common are:

• Could you tell me...?
• Do you know...?
• Can you tell me...?
• Would you mind telling me...?
• I'd like to know...

Let's see some examples.

• Could you tell me where the bathroom is?
• Do you know what time the store closes?
• Can you tell me how much this costs?
• I'd like to know when the meeting starts.

These expressions are especially useful when you're talking to someone you don't know very well or when you're in a more formal situation.

Yes-or-No Questions

What happens when the original question doesn't have a question word? For example:

• Is the restaurant open?

We can make it indirect:

• Do you know if the restaurant is open?

We can also use whether.

• Do you know whether the restaurant is open?

Both if and whether can be used in many indirect yes-or-no questions. Another example:

Direct:

• Does she work here?

Indirect:

• Do you know if she works here?

Notice again that the word order becomes normal: she works, not: does she work.

Everyday Situations

Let's imagine you're traveling. You're at a hotel and you want to ask about breakfast. You could ask directly:

• What time does breakfast start?

But you can also say:

• Could you tell me what time breakfast starts?

Now imagine you're lost. You want to find the train station. You could ask:

• Where is the train station? Or: Could you tell me where the train station is?

Here's another everyday situation. You're in a store and want to know the price.

Direct:

• How much does this cost?

Indirect:

• Can you tell me how much this costs?

The information you're asking for is exactly the same. The structure is simply more indirect.

Indirect Questions With "Could You Tell Me"

One of the most useful expressions to remember is:

• Could you tell me...?

After it, we use normal word order. For example:

• Could you tell me where the bank is?
• Could you tell me when the store opens?
• Could you tell me why she's upset?
• Could you tell me how this works?

And with yes-or-no questions:

• Could you tell me if the store is open?

This structure is especially useful when asking strangers for information.

Common Mistakes

Let's look at some common mistakes.

Mistake number one:

• Do you know where is the bathroom? Incorrect.

• Do you know where the bathroom is? Correct.

Mistake number two:

• Can you tell me what does this mean? Incorrect.
• Can you tell me what this means? Correct.

Mistake number three:

• Do you know where did he go? Incorrect.
• Do you know where he went? Correct.

The important thing is: once you introduce the indirect question, don't keep the direct-question word order. Think: Question word + normal sentence order.

A Simple Formula

Here's an easy formula you can remember.

For questions with a question word:

• Introductory expression + question word + normal sentence order

For example:

• Do you know + where + she lives?
• Could you tell me + what time + the movie starts?
• Can you tell me + how + this works?

For yes-or-no questions:

• Introductory expression + if/whether + normal sentence order

For example:

• Do you know + if + he's at home?
• Could you tell me + whether + the store is open?

That's it!

Practice Time

Let's practice with three exercises.

Number 1

Turn this direct question into an indirect question:

• Where is the nearest bank?

Use:

• Could you tell me...?

Pause the lesson.

...

The answer is:

• Could you tell me where the nearest bank is?

Remember: where the bank is, not where is the bank.

Number 2

Turn this direct question into an indirect question:

• What time does the movie start?

Use:

• Do you know...?

Pause the lesson.

...

The answer is:

• Do you know what time the movie starts?

Notice that "does" disappears and the verb becomes "starts".

Number 3

Turn this yes-or-no question into an indirect question:

• Is the restaurant open?

Use:

• Do you know...?

Pause the lesson.

...

The answer is:

• Do you know if the restaurant is open?

Excellent!

Recap

Let's review the most important points. Indirect questions are useful when we want to ask for information in a more polite, softer, or formal way. We can introduce them with expressions like:

• Could you tell me...?
• Do you know...?
• Can you tell me...?
• I'd like to know...

And the most important rule is:

• Use normal sentence word order inside the indirect question.

So:

• Where is the bank?  becomes: Do you know where the bank is?

And:

• What does she want? becomes: Do you know what she wants?

For yes-or-no questions, we can use if or whether:

• Is he home? becomes: Do you know if he is home?

Remember:

• Direct question: where is the hotel?
• Indirect question: where the hotel is.

Once you get used to this word order, indirect questions become much easier. And they're a great way to make your English sound more natural and polite in everyday conversations.

Thanks for joining me in today's mini lesson. Keep practicing, and I'll see you in the next one. Happy learning!

Preguntas frecuentes

¿Qué son las preguntas indirectas?

Son preguntas que utilizamos para solicitar información de manera más cortés o menos directa.

¿Por qué son importantes las preguntas indirectas?

Son importantes porque nos permiten comunicarnos de manera más educada, respetuosa y natural.

Se utilizan especialmente en:

• Conversaciones formales.
• Situaciones laborales.
• Entrevistas.
• Viajes.
• Conversaciones con personas desconocidas.