In this question on reported speech and word order, find the incorrect part of the sentence: "I courteously asked him where was he going but he did not reply."

Introduction / Context:
This question checks understanding of indirect speech and correct word order in embedded questions. The sentence is "I courteously asked him where was he going but he did not reply." Learners must recognise that when a question is reported within a statement, the word order changes compared to a direct question. Correct mastery of this rule is essential for formal writing and for converting direct questions into indirect speech accurately.

Given Data / Assumptions:

• The sentence describes a polite question that received no response.
• Segment (a) is "I courteously asked him".
• Segment (b) is "where was he going".
• Segment (c) is "but he did not reply".
• Segment (d) is "No error".
• We assume the speaker is reporting the question indirectly, not quoting exact words.

Concept / Approach:
In direct questions, English uses inversion, placing the auxiliary verb before the subject: "Where was he going?" However, in indirect or reported questions embedded inside a larger sentence, normal statement word order is used. The clause should be "where he was going", not "where was he going". Therefore, segment (b) contains an error in word order. The rest of the sentence, including the reporting verb "asked" and the clause "but he did not reply", is structurally correct.

Step-by-Step Solution:
Step 1: Identify that "I courteously asked him" introduces reported speech or an indirect question. Step 2: Recognise that the original direct question would be "Where are you going?" or in past tense "Where were you going?" Step 3: Recall that in indirect questions we use normal statement order: subject followed by verb, as in "where he was going". Step 4: Notice that segment (b) uses the inverted question order "where was he going", which is incorrect inside a reported clause. Step 5: Check segment (a) and segment (c) and confirm that they are grammatically sound. Step 6: Conclude that the error lies only in segment (b).

Verification / Alternative check:
Rewrite the sentence correctly to confirm: "I courteously asked him where he was going but he did not reply." Now the sentence flows smoothly and follows the standard pattern for indirect questions. Another example for comparison is "She asked him what he was doing", where the clause is "what he was doing" and not "what was he doing". This comparison clearly shows that inversion is not used inside reported question clauses. Therefore, the conclusion about segment (b) is fully supported.

Why Other Options Are Wrong:
Option (a) "I courteously asked him" is a correct and polite introduction to the indirect question. Option (c) "but he did not reply" is a correct coordinating clause describing the outcome. Option (d) "No error" cannot be correct because segment (b) has a clear word order mistake.

Common Pitfalls:
A frequent mistake is to keep question word order when converting from direct to indirect speech, especially after introductory verbs like "ask", "wonder", or "want to know". Learners often write "He asked me where was I going" instead of the correct "where I was going". To avoid this, remember that once question marks and quotation marks are removed, the embedded clause behaves like a normal statement clause. Practising several pairs of direct and indirect questions helps make this pattern automatic.

Final Answer:
The incorrect part is in option (b) "where was he going". It should be "where he was going". Therefore, the correct answer is "where was he going".