(Continued from Previous Chapter)
INTERROGATIVE SENTENCES
Interrogative sentences are of two
types.
A. First, sentences starting with helping verbs like is, am, are, were, was, had, have, shall, will
or would etc.
The second type of interrogative sentences are which start with words like – What,Which,Why,Who,Whose,Where,When,how
and whom etc.
Sometimes there are
combined sentences of two or more types in one sentence.
These two sentences
are changed from direct into indirect form of speech accordingly.
Some examples
of such sentences are given here under for practice.
1. My friend said to me, “Are you
coming to us today in the evening? Why don’t you join us over dinner tonight?”
These two sentences in the reported
speech are of interrogative nature. So ‘said to’ in the reporting speech will change
according to interrogative sentence. It will change into ‘asked’. Further both
of these sentences will be changed separately as required under rules for them.
My friend asked me if I was coming to
them that day in the evening and enquired
further why I did not join them over dinner that night.
2. The inn keeper said to the traveler,
“Why have you come so late? Do you not know that I do not allow late entry to anybody
at night?
These both sentences are of
interrogative nature but first starts with ‘Why’ and the second with ‘Do’. Both
these sentences will be changed
differently in their own ways. ‘said to’ will change into ‘asked’. In case of
first sentence, no word is required to replace inverted commas but for the
second these will be replaced by ‘if’. These sentences will be as under:
The innkeeper asked the traveler why
he had come so late and if he did not
know that he did not allow late entry to any body at night.
3. The mother said to her son, “What
is the matter? “Why are you crying?”
These both sentences are of
interrogative nature of the same type. So
‘said to’ will change into ‘asked’ and no word is required while
removing inverted commas.
The mother asked her son what the matter
was and why he was crying.
4. The old man said to the children, “Why
are you making a noise here? Do you not know that I am taking rest?”
The old man asked the children why
they were making a noise there and if they did not know that he was taking
rest.
5. The owner of the house said to the
beggar, “Why are you knocking at my door? Do you need any help?”
The owner of the house asked the beggar
why he was knocking at his door and if he needed any help.
6. The villager said to the minister,
“The prices of all the essential commodities are getting higher and higher. Can
you explain the reason for this?”
Out of these two sentences, one is a
simple assertive sentence and the second is an interrogative sentence starting with
word ‘Can’. For the first, ‘said to’ will change into ‘told’ or ‘informed’ and for
into the second sentence it will change
into ‘asked’. Inverted commas for the first will change into ‘that’ and for
second ‘if’.
The villager told the minister that
the prices of all the essential commodities
were going higher and higher and asked if he could explain the reason for that.
7. His daughter said to her, “You
have travelled a long distance during the day. Will you not take rest for a
while?”
These two sentences are of assertive and
interrogative nature respectively. ‘said to’ will change for the first into
told and for the second into asked.
Inverted commas for the first will change into ‘that’ and for the second into ‘if’
.
His daughter told her that she had
travelled a long distance during the day and asked if she would not take rest
for a while.
8. His mother said to him, “I have
been waiting for you since morning. Why are you so late today?”
For the first sentence ‘said to’ will
change into ‘told’ and for the second into ‘asked’. Inverted commas for the
first sentence will change into ‘that’ and for the second no word is required
in place of commas.
His mother told him that she had been
waiting for him since morning and asked why he was so late that day.
9. The merchant said to the customer,
“Do you need goods of a good quality? I shall provide you with very good quality goods.”
The merchant asked the customer if he
needed goods of a good quality and told that he would provide him with very
good quality goods.
10. His friend said to him, “You are
looking unwell today. Why don’t you take any medicine?”
His friend told him that he was
looking unwell that day and asked why he did not take any medicine.
11.The official said to the boss," Can I go home early today ? Shall I have to submit an application for this purpose?'
The official asked the boss if he could go home early that day and if he would have to submit an application for this purpose.
12.The crane said to the fox, " Where do you live ? Will you like to have your dinner with me tonight?"
The crane asked the fox where she lived and if she would like to have her dinner with him that night.
13.The priest said to the bridegroom, " Where do you come from ? Will you marry this girl? "
The priest asked the bridegroom where he came from and if he would marry that girl.
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