Indirect questions: Ez dakit non dagoen
A direct question becomes a clause: the question word stays, and the verb takes -(e)n — and the question mark disappears: Non dago posta bulegoa? — but Ez dakit non dagoen — I do not know where it is. The word order does not change: the verb still comes last. For example: “Ez dakit non dagoen posta bulegoa” — I do not know where the post office is. A rule from the Basque course: worked out on examples, not memorized…
How it works
A direct question becomes a clause: the question word stays, and the verb takes -(e)n — and the question mark disappears: Non dago posta bulegoa? — but Ez dakit non dagoen — I do not know where it is. The word order does not change: the verb still comes last.
Such a clause is introduced by verbs of mind and speech: jakin — to know, pentsatu — to think, galdetu — to ask, esan — to say: Galdetu noiz hasten den klasea — ask when the lesson begins. The future is preserved: ez dakit noiz helduko den — I do not know when he will arrive. The yes/no question is introduced by the particle (e)a: ez dakit ea etorriko den — I do not know whether he will come.
Table
| the direct question | the indirect one | the example |
|---|---|---|
| Non dago? | non dagoen | ez dakit non dagoen |
| Noiz hasten da? | noiz hasten den | galdetu noiz hasten den |
| Etorriko da? | ea etorriko den | ez dakit ea etorriko den |
By example
- Ez dakit non dagoen posta bulegoaI do not know where the post office is
- Galdetu noiz hasten den klaseaAsk when the lesson begins
- Ez dakit ea euria egingo duen biharI do not know whether it will rain tomorrow
How the rule settles in your head
A rule is not memorized from an explanation. It is memorized from an attempt to use it and a mistake — that is why the app delivers it mixed in with words, not as a separate lesson: it resurfaces exactly where you forgot it.
Frequently asked
Indirect questions: how does it work in Basque?
A direct question becomes a clause: the question word stays, and the verb takes -(e)n — and the question mark disappears: Non dago posta bulegoa? — but Ez dakit non dagoen — I do not know where it is. The word order does not change: the verb still comes last.
What does it look like in an example sentence Basque?
“Ez dakit non dagoen posta bulegoa” — I do not know where the post office is. A rule is easier to test on sentences like this than to memorize as a wording: what surfaces in conversation is the sentence.