Indirect speech future tense. Translation into indirect speech in English: playing Reported Speech
Everyone has probably heard of such grammatical terms as "direct and indirect speech." In Russian, it is not difficult for us to translate direct speech into indirect speech. "Who is that girl at the window?" - "She's my sister". This is direct speech, i.e. dialogue between two people. In indirect speech, it looks like this: "Sasha asked me who this girl was at the window, and I answered that this was my sister."
How to translate direct speech into indirect
We translate direct speech in English without difficulty, but how can we turn it into indirect? There are certain rules for this. As usual, such sentences begin with a main clause, such as "he says, she said, I was asked, she asked, etc.", followed by a subordinate clause.
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He says she is sick
In this case, “he says” is the main clause, and “that she got sick” is a subordinate clause. There are no particular difficulties with the translation of declarative sentences into indirect speech: the words of the author become the main sentence, and direct speech becomes a subordinate clause, which is introduced by the union that : He says she has fallen ill.
| Mary says: “Yesterday I saw a new film with Brad Pitt” | Mary says that yesterday she saw a new film with Brad Pitt. |
| Mr. Smith says: “I like traveling. I have been to many countries” | Mr. Smith says that he likes traveling and he has been to many countries. |
Question in indirect speech
When we translate interrogative sentences into indirect speech, it is necessary to take into account some nuances.
1. Word order in an English indirect direct question , that is, as in the affirmative sentence:
- Sentences with let's are translated into indirect speech in two ways: 1) using a verb suggest - suggest and union that + should :
- Let's watch a new film on TV. — He suggested that we should watch a new film on TV. - Let's watch a new movie on TV - He suggested watching a new movie on TV.
Let's go to the beach - She suggested that we should go to the beach. - Let's go to the beach - She suggested going to the beach.
2) using a verb suggest - suggest + ING form of the verb
The basic elements of written speech are the sentence and the paragraph. Using them, you can write essays, essays and stories. If you are into writing stories, you may need to use direct speech.
The rules of direct speech differ from the design of ordinary sentences and paragraphs, so we will consider them in more detail.
Direct and indirect speech
Direct speech is used when you reproduce the direct words of the speaker in writing.
- "I'm going to London for two weeks," said Alice.
- "Put on your jacket, please," mother said to him. "It's freezing today."
Indirect speech is used when you convey the content of someone's remarks without quoting them verbatim. For example:
- Alice said she was going to London for two weeks.
- Mother told him to put on his jacket, because it was freezing.
What is direct speech used for?
Direct speech is rarely used in, since, as a rule, there are no actors in them. But when you're writing a story with multiple characters, it can be very helpful to convey the conversation in direct speech for several reasons:
- It helps to describe the character. Every person speaks differently, and how you convey the way a character speaks will tell a lot about him to the reader.
- This helps to make the story more exciting and suspenseful. Disputes, conflicts and action-packed moments become more alive thanks to direct speech.
Rules for the design of direct speech
When using direct speech, it is important to remember:
- Direct speech should be separated from the rest of the text.
- The reader must understand which of the characters is speaking at the moment.
Follow these rules and you won't have any problems:
Each replica must be opened and closed with quotation marks.
Must be only words that are part of the cue, and punctuation marks related to it. For example:
Right
- "It's my umbrella," he said crossly. "Yours is in your room."
Wrong
- "I'll call you tomorrow, she said. take care.”
- "It's my umbrella, he said crossly. Yours is in your room.”
Speech-related punctuation must be inside quotation marks.
Right
- "What is the weather like today?" she asked.
Wrong
- "What is the weather like today"? she asked.
Be clear about who is speaking
It should be perfectly clear to the reader who is speaking. If there are only two actors, it is not necessary to put 'said X' or 'said Y' after each line, but you must specify the speaker after the first line of person X and after the first line of person Y.
- "Are you saying the house is haunted?" the man asked.
- "Well, it's supposed to be haunted, but so far nobody has seen any ghosts," Blakely replied.
- "So, will you give us a tour?"
- "I can't see why not."
- "Alright, it's settled then."
If more than two people are involved in a conversation, it is even more important to let the reader know who is speaking. In this case, you will have to specify the speaker more often. For example:
- "What's the plan for today?" Jack asked.
- "So what are we going to do?" Helen sighed. "I'm bored."
Short forms I'm, you're, he'll, don't, wouldn't
In direct speech (but not in indirect speech), it is allowed to use short forms: I’m, you’re, he’ll, don’t, wouldn’t, etc.
Some notes about punctuation.
Notice the punctuation in this sentence:
- "I don't know," Martin said. "Watch a movie, maybe."
In case the replica is a question:
- "Do you know what to do?" asked Martin. "Because I don't."
Here speech is separated from ‘asked Martin’ by a question mark. At the same time, it acts as a comma, so it is followed by a lowercase letter.
Sometimes you can see a replica like this:
- "I think," said Martin, "we should watch a movie."
In this case, the first half of the line is not , so the author's words are followed by a comma instead of a period, and the line continues with a lowercase letter.
Indication of tone and mood
The most commonly used is 'said X' or 'said Y'. But the verb 'say' does not tell us anything about the tone of the speaker or the volume of his voice. If you want to make it clear that the speech is being spoken in an angry voice, or loudly, or very quietly, you should use . Their choice is great.
Today we will consider with you one of the most interesting topics of the English language - indirect (indirect) speech (Reported Speech). What is indirect (indirect) speech? In fact, these are other people's words that we want to retell.
For example:
Elya said: "I want to go to the park."
- Elya said: “I want to go to the park” - this is a direct speech (Direct Speech), a literal quotation of Eli's words.
If we want to tell our friend about Elina's plans, use indirect (indirect) speech, it will sound like this:
Elya said she wanted to go to the park. Elya said she wanted to go to the park.
The government said it would increase taxes for farmers the following year. I protest!
We will talk in more detail about what changes need to be made to the sentence when translating from direct speech into indirect speech in English.
In indirect (indirect) speech you can translate:
1) Affirmative sentences (Statements);
2) Questions (Questions);
3) Commands or requests (Commands or requests).
How to build indirect speech in English. Instruction.
affirmative proposals.
Diana says: "I'm happy." Diana says: "I'm happy."
Diana says (that) she is happy. Diana says she is happy.
2. It is necessary to change the pronoun I to she, and, accordingly, the form of the verb “to be”, since we are retelling her words, and not our personal ones.
3. The union “that” can be put or not put - the meaning will not change from this.
4. If the verb (say) is in the past tense (said), then when retelling the sentence, we will need to “take a step back” in the tense of the main sentence, in our case, translate it into the past tense as well:
Diana said: "I am happy." Diana said: "I'm happy."
Diana said (that) she was happy. Diana said she was happy. 
She said she would buy you a pet parrot.
Translation of direct speech into indirect. Table.
|
Direct speech (Direct Speech) |
Indirect speech (Reported Speech) |
|---|---|
|
present simple Mary said “I want to have a rest.” |
past simple Mary said she wanted to have a rest. |
|
Present Continuous |
Past continuous |
|
past simple |
past perfect |
|
Present Perfect |
past perfect |
|
past perfect |
past perfect |
|
Past continuous |
Past Perfect Continuous |
|
Present Perfect Continuous |
Past Perfect Continuous |
|
Past Perfect Continuous |
Past Perfect Continuous |
|
Future Simple (will+verb) |
Future-in-the-Past (would+verb) |
|
Future-in-the-Past or Conditional (would+verb) |
Conditional (would+verb) |
They promised to take me for a walk.
Questions
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Indirect speech in English is considered a real stumbling block. In fact, the devil is not so "terrible as he is painted." If you want to make sure of this, then our material will come in handy for you.
There are 2 types of speech: direct (Direct Speech) and indirect (Indirect Speech or Reported Speech). The direct is transmitted using ordinary quoting, and the indirect is transmitted using special constructions and introductory verbs.
| 1) Julia said, “I like green leaves in early spring.” Julia said: "I love green leaves in early spring" | 1) Julia said that she liked green leaves in early spring. Julia said she loves green leaves in early spring. |
| 2) Mother told her, “Open the door, please!” The mother told her: “Please open the door!” | 2) Mother asked her to open the door. The mother asked her to open the door. |
| 3) The tutor said to me, “I have been to London this year.” The teacher told me: "This year I went to London." | 3) The tutor said that he had been to London that year. The teacher said that he was in London that year. |
As you can see, indirect speech and English are friends with numerous changes in sentences, the table reflects only a few of them. You will read more about the rules for translating direct statements into narrative below.
Stages of translating direct speech into indirect
- The punctuation stage implies the omission of the quotes that enclose the replica, and the comma that separates 2 simple sentences as part of a complex one. The last one can be replaced by the union that, but this is not necessary. When sending interrogative sentences, do not forget to put a period instead of a question mark.
- At the lexical stage, all the necessary verbal transformations take place.
Changes in adverbs
Examples of such modifications:
The boy said that he was reading at that moment. The boy said that he was reading at that moment.
(In the original, the boy said: "I am reading now.")
This woman tells me she has lost the key that week. This woman says she lost her key last week.
(In the original, the woman says: "I have lost the key this week.")
The librarian asked to return the book the following week. The librarian asked to return the book next week.
(Original "Return the book next week, please!")
Rules for coordinating tenses in indirect speech
Let's take a closer look at all the necessary changes regarding the time frame.
He says, “I swim very well.” (direct speech)
He says that he swims very well. (indirect speech)
NB! Indirect speech in English to convey what has already happened and the construction of appropriate statements can cause some difficulties. If the introductory verbs are in the past tense, the tenses of the verbs from the quotations are subject to the following modifications.
|
Direct Speech |
Indirect Speech |
| Present Simple (Indefinite)“I want to buy a car” | Past Simple (Indefinite) He said (that) he wanted to buy a car. |
| Present Progressive (Continuous)“I am looking for a kitten” | She said (that) she was looking for a kitten. |
| Present Perfect“He has won this game” | past perfect She said (that) he had won that game. |
| Past Simple (Indefinite)“She found me at the seaside yesterday” | past perfect He said (that) she had found him at the seaside the day before. |
| Past Progressive (Continuous)“He was playing football” | Past Perfect Progressive (Continuous) Mother said (that) he had been playing football. |
| Future Simple (Indefinite)“I will catch this butterfly” | Future-in-the-Past (= Conditional Would) The boy said (that) he would catch that butterfly. |
| modals: “I can dive very well” “You must be here at 5 p.m.” “I may be late a bit” |
modals:
He said (that) he could dive very well. She told me (that) I had to be there at 5 p.m. He said he might be late |
If you learn 2 main tables (temporary and adverbial changes), it will be easy and simple to modify sentences from direct speech to indirect speech. There will be only nuances that will need to be monitored.
Light (upper) cloud - thought transmission in the present, dark (lower) cloud - thought transmission in indirect speech (past tense)
Indirect speech: features of the transition of various types of sentences
Get acquainted with these simple principles and easily delve into grammar: now English, in particular direct and indirect speech, will not cause any special difficulties.
- Translation of affirmative sentences is carried out using the union that. Introductory verbs to tell (with addition), to say (without addition).
They said, "We have never been here before." – They said (that) they had never been there before.
He said, "I will clean the car." – He told me he would clean the car.
He said, "I will have finished this paper by tomorrow." – He told his teacher that he would have finished that paper by the following day.
She said, "It is very quiet here." She said that it was very quiet there.
- When changing negative sentences, pay special attention to the particle not.
She said, "I don't know where my shoes are." – She said that she didn’t know where her shoes were.
He said, "They won't sleep." – He said that they would not sleep.
“I don't speak Italian,” she says. - She says that she does not speak Italian.
"I cannot find a book anywhere," she said to him. – She told me that she could not find a book anywhere.
- The imperative mood is transformed with the help of the infinitive. Introductory verbs to order - to order, to ask - to ask, to tell - to order, to beg - to beg, etc.
"Take off your shoes," she told us. – She told us to take off our shoes.
"Stop talking, Joe," the teacher said - The teacher asked Joe to stop talking.
"Don" t go out without me, "he begged her. - He begged her not to go out without him.
"Don" t repair the computer yourself," she warned him. - She warned him not to repair the computer himself.
- Interrogative sentences acquire direct word order. At the same time, general questions become subordinate clauses, joined by unions if or whether. Special questions are attached with appropriate question words. Introductory verbs: to ask - to ask, to wonder - to be interested, to want to know, to want to know - to want to know, to be interested - to be interested, etc.
Helen: What does she say? – He wanted to know what Helen said.
"Where is my umbrella?" she asked. – She wondered where her umbrella was.
Are you going to the cinema? he asked me. – He asked me if I was going to the cinema.
"Have you tidied up your room?" the mother asked the twins. – The mother asked the twins whether they had tidied up their room.
- To convey replicas with an exclamation, you can use the verb to exclaim - exclaim by adding the appropriate emotion word (for example, joy - joy, sorrow - grief, wonder - surprise, etc.)
“Hurrah! I've got the first prize!” – Tomas exclaimed with joy (that) he had got the first prize.
“Wow! What a marvelous dress you are having on.” – She exclaimed with wonder (that) I was having a marvelous dress on.
“Oh, my… I’ve lost my wallet!” – He exclaimed with sorrow (that) he had lost his wallet.
“Come on! You'll cope with this task.” – She exclaimed with enthusiasm (that) I would cope with that task.
And, finally, we present to your attention the transmission of a small dialogue in indirect speech.
— Hello Mike! How are you?
— Hey Jane! I am not well, I have a sore throat. Sorry, I can't speak to you now…
— Ok, hold on then… I’ll call you in a couple of days.
Reported Speech: Jane greeted Mike and asked him how he was. Mike greeted Jane in response and explained that he was not well. He exclaimed with sorrow that he could not speak to Jane. She expressed her support and added that she would call him in a couple of days.
Admit it, now indirect speech does not seem so difficult, English is so scary, and repeated exercises will increase your skills and improve your grammatical skills.
See the video for the basic rules of indirect speech with examples.
Every person, sooner or later, is faced with the need to convey orally or in writing what he was told. However, the method of quoting with putting speech in quotation marks is not always suitable, because few people literally remember the words of the interlocutor. Then such a phenomenon as indirect speech comes to the rescue. In Russian, it has some of its own characteristics, which will be discussed in the article. Let's deal with this issue in more detail.
What is indirect speech
Indirect speech in Russian is one of the syntactic ways to communicate other people's words in the stream of one's own words, while retaining the meaning of the original statement. It is conveyed by declarative, motivating and interrogative sentences. In form, indirect speech is a complex sentence. The main part of a sentence is one in which reference is made to the words of another person. For example, "he said", "she asked", "they asked". The subordinate part is the one that directly reflects the words that convey. For example, “that the weather is good”, “so that he goes outside”, “why a passport is needed there”. A comma is placed between the two parts: “He said the weather was good”, “She asked him to go outside”, “They asked why they needed a passport there”.
Rules related to unions
Now it is worth considering how indirect speech is expressed. The rules have their own characteristics. Let's look at the main ones. If the speaker just shared information, then you need to use the preposition "what". For example, Ivan says: “Today I will go to the theater.” In the form of indirect speech, it will look like this: "Ivan said that today he will go to the theater." If the speaker asked the interlocutor to do something, then the preposition “to” is used. For example, Irina says: "Help me with my homework." This can be conveyed as follows: "Irina told me to help her with her homework."
When transmitting, speech in Russian uses two methods, which depend on the type of sentence. If the speaker, when asking, uses an interrogative word (“where”, “when”, “why”, “why”, “how” and others), then it becomes a conjunction. For example, Anna asked: “Where can you eat delicious food in Moscow?” Then her words are transmitted like this: "Anna asked where in Moscow you can eat deliciously." And the second method is used when there was no question word. For example, Nikita asked: “Will you go to the cinema today?” This is conveyed using the “li” particle: “Nikita asked if you would go to the cinema today.”
Rules related to pronouns
It is worth noting how pronouns usually change in indirect speech. So, “I”, “we” are replaced by “he/she” and “they”, respectively, because the one whose speech is being transmitted will no longer be an active subject of the conversation. But “you” and “you / you”, on the contrary, are replaced by “we” and “I”. "He/she" and "they" are sometimes replaced as well. If a person said something about someone, and then his words are passed on to this person or these people, then “you / you” or “you” are used.
Also, if necessary, pronouns are added to a person’s speech. For example, if the boss gives the order: "Do this work by Thursday," then the speaker will add the pronoun "we": "The boss ordered that we do this work by Thursday."
Rules related to verbs
Also, sometimes indirect speech in Russian requires some grammatical manipulations with verbs. For example, the imperative mood is replaced by the indicative in the past tense. Suppose Victor asked: "Pass me a pen." In indirect speech, it will look like this: "Victor asked me to give him a pen."
Also, sometimes you need to change the tense of the verb - present to past. For example, Daria said: "Today I'm going to cook borscht." If her words are transmitted the next day, then you can say this: "Daria said that yesterday she was going to cook borscht." The adverb "today" is logically replaced by "yesterday".
Exercises for understanding indirect speech
It is not immediately easy to get used to such a feature of the Russian language as indirect speech. The exercises below will help you figure it out faster.
You can try to translate the following simple sentences into indirect speech:
- Tyutchev wrote: "I love a thunderstorm in early May."
- Irina asked: "Pass me the salt."
- Nietzsche said, "What doesn't kill me makes me stronger."
- Dmitry asked: “What should I do with this cat now?”
- Elina asked: “Will you come to the university today?”
- Katya thought: “Do I need to go there tomorrow?”
- Konstantin thought: “I wonder if she likes me?”
Conclusion
As a conclusion, it is worth saying that, of course, there are pitfalls for such a phenomenon as indirect speech. The Russian language is rich in various tricks that are difficult to understand for a foreigner, and sometimes even for a native speaker. However, this phenomenon is always subject to rules that do not even contain exceptions. So it’s easy enough to understand the patterns by which indirect speech is formed. And when understanding comes, it will become much easier to use these rules in practice. Try it and you will see that everything is much simpler than it seemed at first glance.