On the other hand, we don't usually need to 'backshift' (change the tense of the verb) as we do with reported questions. This is the same as for reported 'yes / no' questions. To make an indirect 'yes / no' question, we use 'if' and the word order of a normal positive sentence. They are very, very common in English, especially when you're talking to someone you don't know. Indirect questions are a way of being polite. However, we use indirect questions in a different way from reported questions. This is very similar to the grammar of reported questions. This is called inversion, and it is used to make direct questions in many verb tenses in English, but we don't use inversion in indirect questions.
Notice that in the indirect question I put the verb ('is') after the subject ('the bank'), in the same way as I do with a normal positive sentence ('the bank is over there'), but in the direct question I put the verb 'is' before the subject 'the bank'. Indirect question: Could you tell me where the bank is? Indirect questions start with a phrase like 'could you tell me.' or 'do you know.'. I use indirect questions when I'm asking for help in the street, because they are very polite. And do you know if there's a supermarket near here? Person in the street: Yes, there's one next to the station. Could you tell me where the nearest station is? Person in the street: Certainly.
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