After polite openings like Do you know…? Can you tell me…? I wonder…, the question goes back to statement order, with no do/does/did: Where is the station? → Do you know where the station is? For yes/no questions, use if or whether: Can you tell me if the shop is open?
Do you know where the station is?
The opening is the question. After it, the words go back to normal statement order.
| With be | Where is the station? → Do you know where the station is? |
|---|---|
| With do/does/did | What time does it start? → Could you tell me what time it starts? |
| Yes/no questions | Is it open? → Do you know if it's open? |
| Openings | Do you know…? Can you tell me…? Could you tell me…? I wonder… I'd like to know… |
| Punctuation | A question mark only if the opening is a question: I wonder where she is. |
Could you tell me what time the meeting starts?
No does: the -s goes back on the verb, as in a statement.
Do you know if the museum is open today?
With no question word, link with if or whether.
I wonder why she left so early.
A statement, not a question, so it ends with a full stop.
Common expressions worth learning as they are.
Do you know where _____?
The sentence skeleton, and every word-order lesson.
Paste an email or an essay. Clarigram marks the mistakes you actually make, shows the rule behind each one as a picture, and builds your practice from them.
They sound more polite and softer, which helps with strangers, at work, and in emails.
Mostly the same. Whether is a little more formal and is used before or not: I don't know whether or not she's coming.