Reported Speech
Reported speech (косвенная речь) используется для передачи слов другого человека. Для этого используются вводные фразы типа: Она сказала, что; Меня спросили; Он рассказал мне, что…
При обращении повествовательного предложения из прямой речи в косвенную производятся следующие изменения:
1) запятая и кавычки опускаются, вводится союз that (часто опускается);
2) личные и притяжательные местоимения прямой речи заменяются по смыслу;
3) соблюдается правило согласования времен;
4) глагол to say без дополнения сохраняется, с дополнением — заменяется глаголом to tell.
- Вместо глагола say можно употреблять любые другие, подразумевающие передачу информации: inform, explain, report.
- Если глагол, который вводит косвенную речь стоит в прошедшем времени, товремя глагола придаточного предложения прямой речи заменяется косвенной речью и употребляется согласно правилу согласования времен.
Прямая речь | Косвенная речь |
Present Simple e.g. I love you. |
Past Simple e.g. He said he loved me. |
Present Continuous e.g. Are you cooking. |
Past Continuous e.g. He asked if I was cooking. |
Present Perfect e.g. I’ve seen this film. |
Past Perfect e.g. He said he had seen that film. |
Past Simple e.g. I had dinner. |
Past Perfect e.g. He said he had had dinner |
Will e.g. I will come later. |
Would e.g. He said he would come later. |
Can e.g. I can swim. |
Could e.g. He said he could swim. |
Must e.g. I must leave. |
Had to e.g. I had to leave. |
May e.g. She may come. |
Might e.g. She might come. |
- Указательные местоимения и наречия времени и места в прямой речи заменяются в косвенной речи по смыслу другими словами:
I’m working now. – He said he was working then.
Exercise 1.
Choose the correct word.
1) “I’ll call you tomorrow” – He said he would/will call me tomorrow.
2) “I like fish.” – She said she liked/had liked fish.
3) “I studied English a year ago”. – He said he had studied English a year ago/a year before.
4) “I can run very fast” – She said she had could/could run very fast.
5) “I argued with my husband” – She said she has argued/had argued with her husband.
6) “I never watch TV” – He said he never watched/had never watched TV.
7) “I have seen that film yesterday.” – I had seen that film the next day/the day before.
Answers: 1.would, 2.liked, 3.a year before, 4.could, 5. Had argued, 6. Never watched, 7. The day before.
Exercise 2.
Rewrite the sentences using “he said”.
1) “I want to see you.”
2) “I’ve never been to Spain.”
3) “She decided to become a pilot.”
4) “I’ll come back next week.”
5) “They are visiting their parents tomorrow.”
6) “I didn’t go to the party yesterday.”
7) “Two years ago I went to Turkey.”
Answers: 1. He said he wanted to see me. 2. He said he had never been to Spain. 3. He said she had decided to become a pilot. 4. He said he would come back the next week.5. He said they were visiting their parents the next day. 6. He said he hadn’t been to the party the day before. 7. He said that two years before he had been to Turkey.
Exercise 3.
Put the words in the correct order.
1) Would me said forgive he everything he
2) Said wanted hotdog she a she
3) Job he for applied he had a said
4) Hadn’t she that she done said
5) Wasn’t said going she to she clean
6) Said really he sorry was he
7) Said her had Kate she of man seen the dreams
Answers: 1. He said he would forgive me everything. 2. She said she wanted a hotdog. 3. He said he had applied for a job. 4. She said she hadn’t done that. 5. She said she wasn’t going to clean. 6. He said he was really sorry. 7. Kate said she had seen the man of her dreams.