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Is there any difference between these sentences?

Please let me know when you are available for a meeting.

Please let me know when are you available for a meeting.

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  • The second is not in the normal form for a question. See this and many other posts on the theme of word order in questions. May 27, 2022 at 7:51

1 Answer 1

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Your two examples are not questions. They are statements, and hence there should be no inversion.

Only example 1 is right.

Please let me know when you are available for a meeting.

We do subject-verb inversion when we ask certain questions:

When are you available for a meeting?

We could use the above construction if we prefer the question form.

The statement Please let me know when you are available for a meeting. can have 2 interpretations. In oral form, the way we stress the when would determine whether we want the reply now or only when the date of meeting is decided.

In Please let me know when you are available for a meeting. if "when you are available for a meeting" is nominal, you are asking for a reply now. If "when you are available for a meeting" is adverbial, you are not asking for a reply now.

There are hence 2 possibilities.

In written form, context would determine the meaning.

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  • I wanted to receive an exact time for a meeting. Can we understand first example as only should be answered when they are available and with an answer like "I am available now"?
    – Ozan
    May 27, 2022 at 8:48
  • In Seowjooheng's examples, the first means "Please tell me (now) when you will be available (in the future)" and the second "Please let me know (in the future) when you become available". May 27, 2022 at 10:40

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