INDERECT
SPEECH
Indirect
Speech (also called Reported Speech) is used to communicate what someone else
said, but without using the exact words. The tenses of the verbs are often
changed. Technical a way of reporting what someone said without repeating their
exact words. For example, in the sentence 'Julia said that she didn't want to
go', the clause 'that she didn't want to go' is indirect speech. Her actual
words were 'I don't want to go'.
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DIRECT
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INDIRECT
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now
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=>
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Then
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Tonight
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=>
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that night
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yesterday
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=>
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the
day before / the previous day
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tomorrow
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=>
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the
next day / the following day
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last
(year, month...)
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=>
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the
last / previous (year, month...)
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next
(month, week...)
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=>
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the
next / following (month, week...)
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PRESENT
TENSE
If the introductory clause is in the simple present, however (e.g. He
says), then the tense remains unchanged, because the introductory clause
already indicates that the statement is being immediately repeated (and not at
a later point in time).
Example:
He says, “I saw a
TV presenter.”
He says that he saw a TV presenter.
He says that he saw a TV presenter.
In some cases, however, we have to change the verb form.
Example:
He says, “I work every
day.”
He says that he works every day.
He says that he works every day.
He says, “She was sitting where you are
sitting.”
He says that she was sitting where I am sitting.
He says that she was sitting where I am sitting.
SIMPLE PAST
If the introductory clause is in the simple past (e.g. He said),
the tense has to be set back by one degree (see the table). The term for this
in English is backshift.
Example:
He said, “I work every
day.”
He said that he worked every day.
He said that he worked every day.
He said, “I saw a
TV presenter.”
He said that he had seen a TV presenter.
He said that he had seen a TV presenter.
He said, “She was sitting where
you are sitting.”
He said that she had been sitting where I was sitting.
He said that she had been sitting where I was sitting.
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direct speech
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indirect speech
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simple present
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simple past
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present progressive
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past progressive
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simple past
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past perfect simple
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present perfect simple
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past perfect simple
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past progressive
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past perfect progressive
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present perfect progressive
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past perfect progressive
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future I (going to)
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was / were going to
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future I (will)
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conditional I (would)
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conditional I (would)
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The verbs could, should, would, might, must, needn’t, ought to,
used to normally do not change.
Example:
He said, “I could have
asked her for an autograph.” – He said that he could have
asked her for an autograph.
FUTURE
TENSE
future tense of the verb ir one uses the preterit
imperfect indicative tense.
o Indirect
speech: Dijo que iba a llegar temprano. (He said that he was
going to arrive early.)
future tense one uses the conditional tense.
o Indirect
speech: Dijo que terminarÃa la tarea. (He said he would finish
the homework.)
QUESTION SENTENCES
When turning questions into indirect speech, we have to pay
attention to the following points:
§ As
in a declarative sentence, we have to change the pronouns and the time and
place information, and set back the tense (backshift).
§ Instead
of that (as in a declarative sentence), we use
the question word. If there is no question word, we use whether/if instead.
§ Besides
this, we also need to use an indirect question in indirect speech. This means
that after the question word or after whether/if, we simply write a declarative sentence
(subject-verb etc.).
§ The
helping verb do from the direct speech construction is
removed.
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type
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example
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with question word
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direct speech
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“What do you think of that TV presenter?”
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indirect speech
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He asked me what I thought of that TV presenter.
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without question word
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direct speech
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“Do you like her?”
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indirect speech
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He asked me whether/if I liked her.
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REFERENSI :
