She asked me where did I come from

This might help: http://www.eslgold.com/grammar/embedded_questions.html

Hi,

I know the sentence "She asked me where did I come from" is wrong. The correct answer is "She asked me where I came from," but how do I explain the nature of the error to the students? This is best discussed when you are teaching your class about reported speech and indirect questions. Have you done this yet?

AnonymousI know the sentence "She asked me where did I come from" is wrong. The correct answer is "She asked me where I came from," but how do I explain the nature of the error to the students?

See

CJ

Hi again! Thanks for the answer about the first sentence! The second sentence is actually "The coffee machine is spoilt" i think it should be "the coffee machine is broken" or should it be "the coffee machine is broken?" it could also be "the coffee machine was spoilt".... any suggestions?! so confusing

Anonymous"the coffee machine is broken"

Broken - makes more sense. We speak of foods being spoiled; i.e. milk, eggs, pies etc....

Anonymous"the coffee machine was spoilt".

Sometimes, we spoil the people we adore and love; like our children and spouse. No, machines don't get spoiled.

We also spoil our chances.

Thanks!

The link you provided gives and introductory but doesn't answer the original posters question. Can you explain why the first sentence is wrong?

Thanks

The link you provided gives and introductory but doesn't answer the original posters question. Can you explain why the first sentence is wrong?— The link by Anonymous answers your question very precisely at its very beginning:

Embedded questions are questions within another statement or question. They function as noun clauses and as such should generally follow stat