Reported speech

• 8 Reported speech

  8.1

  Reporting Statements

  

  

  Reported speech is used to report what someone said, without quotation marks. Common reporting verbs are said or told:

  • say is followed without the listener: He said (that) …
  • tell is followed with the listener: He told me (that) …

  他He 说said （连词）that 他he （过去）was 累tired.

  He said he was tired. (Original quote: "I am tired.")

  Note that can be omitted: He said he was tired. The meaning remains the same.

  8.2

  Backshifting Tenses

  When reporting, if the reporting verb is in the past tense (said / told), the tense in the reported clause usually shifts back one step:

  • am / is → was; are → were; do / does → did.
  • will → would; can → could; present perfect / past simple → past perfect.

  Direct Speech: "I will help you," she said.

  Indirect Speech:

  她She 说said 她she 会would 帮help 我me.

  She said she would help me. (will → would, I → she, you → me)

  Pronouns and time expressions also change: I → he / she, now → then, today → that day, tomorrow → the next day.

  Note If reporting a general truth, tenses need not shift: He said the sun rises in the east.

  Common Errors

  • ❌ ~~He said me the truth.~~ / ~~He told that he was busy.~~ → ✓ He told me… / He said (that)… — say does not take a listener, tell must take a listener; this is the opposite of common mistakes.
  • ❌ ~~He asked me where did I live.~~ → ✓ He asked me where I lived. — Reported questions must change to statement word order, removing did.
  • ❌ ~~She asked me that I was hungry.~~ → ✓ She asked me if / whether I was hungry. — Report yes/no questions using if / whether, not that.
  • ❌ ~~He said he will come tomorrow.~~ → ✓ He said he would come the next day. — Tenses and time expressions must shift together.

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