By Word order

Hi KooyeenI'd agree that the word order in "He asked what was the matter" has more to do with idiom than anything else.The verb 'be' doesn't always follow the usual word order that you find in other indirect or reported questions. I would say that this depends somewhat on how far away from the...

Khoff wrote: 3. This would make more sense with "have" instead of "had." But the word order is okay. Barb -- I don't think you really want "have" instead of "had" in that sentence, which was "Do you have any idea what had just happened?" Maybe "Do you have any idea what has just happened?" ...

3. This would make more sense with "have" instead of "had." But the word order is okay.Barb -- I don't think you really want "have" instead of "had" in that sentence, which was "Do you have any idea what had just happened?" Maybe "Do you have any idea what has just happened?" Or "Do you have...

1. Okay. 2. I don't understand this sentence. 3. This would make more sense with "have" instead of "had." But the word order is okay.

Hi Kooyen,Would the following extract from perfectyourenglish.com help answer the question or create more confusion?"Wh-questions are reported by using ask (or another verb like ask) + question word + clause. We use normal word order. "What is your name?" he asked me. He asked what my name was....

Hi Kooyen,Would the following extract from perfectyourenglish.com help answer the question or create more confusion?"Wh-questions are reported by using ask (or another verb like ask) + question word + clause. We use normal word order. "What is your name?" he asked me. He asked what my name was....

Espeland wrote:Hello everybody !Does one have to say1) Press the button, then on comes this light.This could be considered an exclamation.or2) Press the button, then comes on this light.This must be: ..then the light comes on. ? cheers

Hello everybody !Does one have to say1) Press the button, then on comes this light.or2) Press the button, then comes on this light.?

Clive wrote:Please at least inform us of the present situation.Please inform us of at least the present situation.Please inform us of the present situation at least.At least please inform us of the present situation. I wouldn't say any of these are incorrect, although #2 would be less common.....

Welcome to EF, ZhukThere is no unanimous "correct" reply to your last question. As a rule, English is very flexible and in many cases liberal grammarians accept more than one alternative while some others insist on only one that they think is right. I would go for has, like you."Our teacher of...