Error correction: My brother has been getting so nervous with me recently...

[monica]

Hello. In the following exercise I'm supposed to spot the mistake:
"My brother has been getting so nervous with me recently - I've no idea what's the matter with him.
Apparently, the only mistake, according to the answer key is the word "nervous", which should be "irritable", but surely isn't "what's the matter with him" a mistake too? Being an indirect question, shouldn't it be "what the matter with him is"? Thank you very much.

[Yankee]

Hi Monica

The word order in the question "What's the matter (with someone)" does not usually change in an indirect question. It can be changed, but most native speakers probably wouldn't. This is usage is also considered to be grammatically correct.
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Amy
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ESL teacher, translator, and a native speaker of American English