【明報專訊】The Smarties are going to have a picnic. What will they do?

“ Pat: MoMo, have you checked the Observatory's website? (1) Do you know if the weather will be fine on Sunday? ”

“ MoMo: It will be cloudy but it is all right. (2) I have also checked how we can get to the picnic site. We can take the coach at the cafe downstairs. ”

“ Bill: Great. My mom said she will help me fix some snacks too. (3) I wonder what she will make. I hope we can have chicken wings! ”

“ Dr Panda: Let's prepare some wings in a couple of flavours and bring them with your mom's snacks. I'm sure we can finish them. ”

An embedded question is a question inside a sentence or another question. Unlike a simple question, an embedded question follows normal sentence word order, with the subject before the main verb.

e.g. Where does Tommy live? ("Tommy" comes after "does")

→ Do you know where Tommy lives? ("Tommy" comes before "lives").

For yes / no questions, use the word "if" or "whether".

e.g. Will Mary come to the party tomorrow?

→ I wonder whether Mary will come to the party tomorrow.

■Gear up

Rewrite the following sentences.

(1) What time does the show start?

→ I forgot ______________________________.

(2) When will Miss Chan arrive at the airport?

→ Do you know __________________________?

(3) Has Sammy sent the present to the guests?

→ Please check _________________________.

(Answers on next text)

■Glossary

observatory (n) 天文台

coach (n) 巴士／長途車

fix (food) (v) 準備(食物)

flavour (n) 味道

[Smarties' Power English 第255期]