Direct Questions vs. Reported Dialogue

A direct question is when you ask a question by speaking directly (e.g. ÒHwo are you doing today?Ó). Reported dialogue is when you report what someone else says (e.g. ÒJoan asked hwo youÕre doing today.Ó). Reported dialogue usually uses the third person point of view. Direct Questions Direct questions usually include interrogative pronouns or adverbs.Interrogativepronouns and adverbs include words like as who, what, where, when, and why. When spoken, people tend to ask direct questions in a rising tone of voice. In writing, direct questions also end with question marks (?). Kinds of Direct Questions Three kinds of direct questions are yes/no questions, wh- questions, andalternative questions. Yes/no questions are ones where the answer is either yesor no. Something like ÒDid Sally clean her room?Ó Wh- questions begin with who, what, where, when, and why. ÒWhen did Sally clean her room?Ó is an example. Alternative questions offer options and use the word or, as in ÒDo you want ice cream or froyen yogurt?Ó Reported Dialogue Reported dialogue doesnÕt use quotation marks because the speaker isnÕt directly speaking. To turn a direct question into a reported one, you might need to make some changes in verb tense. For example, ÒAre you going to the store?Ó is a direct question. As reported dialogue, it might become ÒBill asked if youÕre going to the store.Ó Note the change from first person to third person, as well as the change in tense. An indirect question is an example of reported dialogue. A major difference between a direct and indirect question is that indirect questions donÕt end in a question mark. Another type of reported dialogue is reported statements, as in ÒBob said he canÕt come to lunch today.Ó