These questions ask you to report an instruction or polite request rather than copy its imperative wording. You need to choose a suitable reporting verb, name the person addressed and turn the action into an infinitive phrase.
Build the report around the person addressed
Use a three-part frame after the speaker: tell or ask, then the recipient, then to plus the base form of the action verb. Tell commonly presents an instruction or command, while ask commonly presents a polite request. The recipient is essential because it identifies who is expected to act. Once that frame is in place, add the rest of the action phrase and adjust time or place expressions if the reporting viewpoint has changed.
| Meaning in the direct speech | Reporting pattern |
|---|---|
| an affirmative command | tell plus recipient plus to plus base verb |
| a polite affirmative request | ask plus recipient plus to plus base verb |
| a negative command or request | tell or ask plus recipient plus not to plus base verb |
For a negative instruction, not to is the neutral British English order and is the clearest form to produce. The split infinitive to not is also grammatical, so do not treat the position of not by itself as a universal right-or-wrong contrast. The dependable checks are whether the recipient is present and whether the action has a complete infinitive structure.
Where the mistakes come from
| Trap | How to reject it |
|---|---|
| Tell or ask is followed directly by the action | The person addressed has disappeared. In this reporting pattern, place the recipient between the reporting verb and the infinitive. |
| A bare action verb follows the recipient | The imperative has been copied instead of converted. Insert to before the base verb to complete the infinitive. |
| That is mixed into an object-plus-infinitive frame | Do not combine two clause patterns. For the structure tested here, use the recipient directly after tell or ask and follow it with a to-infinitive, without that. |
| A negative uses not plus a bare verb, with or without that | Not cannot replace the infinitive marker. Keep a complete negative infinitive, normally not to plus the base verb, after the recipient. |
Try it
Complete the report with the full negative infinitive phrase using enter. Direct: "Do not enter the greenhouse." The keeper told the children ___ the greenhouse.
Complete the report with the full requested action phrase. Direct: "Maya, please carry the lantern." The guide asked Maya ___.
Complete the report with the full commanded action phrase. Direct: "Tenants, close the shutters." The landlord told the tenants ___.