Tenses Questions Medium
The simple past tense is used in indirect questions to report or ask about past events or actions. It is commonly used when we want to be more polite or formal in our language.
In indirect questions, the verb tense changes from the present tense to the simple past tense. For example, instead of saying "Can you tell me where the library is?" in a direct question, we would say "Could you tell me where the library was?" in an indirect question.
Here are some examples of indirect questions using the simple past tense:
1. Direct question: "What time does the movie start?"
Indirect question: "Do you know what time the movie started?"
2. Direct question: "Where did you go on vacation?"
Indirect question: "I was wondering where you went on vacation."
3. Direct question: "Did she finish her homework?"
Indirect question: "Could you tell me if she finished her homework?"
4. Direct question: "How much did the concert tickets cost?"
Indirect question: "I wanted to know how much the concert tickets cost."
In indirect questions, the word order is also changed. The subject comes before the verb, and the question word (if present) is placed at the beginning of the sentence.
It is important to note that when using the simple past tense in indirect questions, we are referring to past events or actions, even if the original question was asked in the present tense.