4. Indirect questions
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Imagen de Karen Eliot en Flickr bajo licencia CC |
We are going back to questions, now to deal with their pronunciation.This is easy, but you should pay attention because a proper intonation is key to understanding and being understood.
Questions can be pronounced with the voice going up at the end or going down at the end. Normally questions with yes/no answers have a rising intonation, that is, the speaker stresses the ending of the question, and wh- questions have a falling intonation and the speaker stresses the beginning of the question.These are some examples of questions you might hear in an interview. Paying attention to the intonation pattern.
Why do you want to work at Cisco Computers? falling
What experience have you had? falling
Why do you want to work in education? falling
What attracted you to this job? falling
How well do you work in a team? falling
Can you tell me about a time when you had to deal with a difficult situation? rising
Are you able to work flexible hours? rising
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Indirect questions
When asking someone something you can use:
A direct wh- question:
Where is the lift?
An indirect question:
Could you tell me where the lift is?
Direct questions are less polite than indirect ones in formal occasions, as in a job interview. That's why you must study them in order to make your speech more polite and adequate.
As you can notice, the indirect question has an introductory part and then the question itself:
Introductory part: Could you tell me (Auxiliar + subject + verb)
Question: where the lift is? (wh- + subject + verb)
In the second part the subject comes in front of the verb. That’s the reason why the following indirect question would be incorrect:
* Could you tell me where is the lift?
A direct yes/no question:
Do you speak German?
An indirect question:
Could you tell me if/whether you speak German?
As you can see from the example, now the second part of the indirect question is introduced by if/whether since there is no wh- item in the direct question.
Do you need anything else?
I wonder if you need anything else.
Does she live here?
I’m not sure whether/if she lives here.
Did Frank stay at Paradise Hotel?
I’d like to find out if Frank stayed at Paradise Hotel.
Where were you born?
I can’t remember where you were born.
Are you interested in our offer?
Could you tell me if/whether you are interested in our offer?
Can I use your telephone?
Do you think I could use your telephone?
Does the train leave at 10 o’clock?
Would you mind telling me if/whether the train leaves at 10 o’clock?
Can you fill in this form?
Would it be possible for you to fill in this form?
All these indirect questions are more polite and more formal than their corresponding direct questions.