Cambridge Grammar of English Hardback with cd-rom a comprehensive Guide

ECHO QUESTIONS 

99

Echo questions are very common in spoken language. They typically have

declarative word order and include a wh- word:

A: Big day tomorrow. Got to go to the Phoenix. 

B: Got to go to where?

A: Got to go to this very formal meeting of all these academic people.

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also 432

One common type of echo question involves requests to clarify noun phrases or

parts of them which may not have been heard correctly. They are formed with a

determiner and what:

[talking of problems with European bureaucracy]

A: What was it? The European Commission? 

B: Mm. 

Translation service

. 

A: The what, sorry? 

B: 

Translation service

. And they were just so badly organized. It was just

unbelievable. 

A: That looks like 

a dinosaur

.

B: Like a what?

A: 

A dinosaur

.

A: But apparently the president of the guild, he’s a really nice bloke Alex says,

cos, you know, she does all 

the party stuff

. 

B: Does the what stuff? 

A: She does all 

the politics

of the department stuff. 

B: Politics.