2
votes
Indirect speech in future
Both question and answer are in the simple past.
The question is, "What time did she say...", and the answer is, "She said...".
If you're asking about the reported speech parts, it'...
- 37.3k
2
votes
Reported speech for questions - optional back-shifting - past tense
When you report something you are telling a narrative. If the narrative is in the past, then events at that narrative time take the past tense. But facts that are generally true and are still true ...
- 183k
2
votes
Reported speech (Would vs Would have)
The answer is a.
You can only backshift those modals which have a past form (even when that past form can also be used independently): will-> would, can-> could, and for some speakers shall->...
- 72.1k
2
votes
Accepted
Backshift in time to distance yourself from indirect speech if introductory sentence in present?
It would be unusual to make a backshift in time in this case. Since the statement you are discussing is one that is presented as a universal truth, (in particular one that is presented as true now), ...
- 2,096
1
vote
Changing from are to were in reported speech
Yes, generally, but it really depends on the context.
In the context of your particular example it's not absolutely necessary to switch to the past tense because in this situation, what the reporter ...
- 3,079
1
vote
How to change into indirect speech " She said to me, Where were you living before you came here?"
You don’t backshift I came in the before clause:
Direct: She asked me, “Where were you living before you came to
England?”
Indirect: She asked me where I had been living before I came to
England. (...
- 568
1
vote
Indirect narration
There isn't necessarily just one way to make speech indirect.
The most obvious way to me is:
He wished John a good morning.
Without the article I would be inclined to consider it direct speech and ...
- 241
1
vote
He says/is saying that he has or had a dog". He asks me, what I am or what i was eating"
Yes, your assumption is mostly correct. When reporting speech in the present or future tense, it's common to use the present tense forms of verbs like "say," "tell," or "ask&...
- 44
1
vote
Accepted
Choosing between two possible 'translations' to reported speech
Yes, you have understood the fundamental fact about reporting speech. You report the meaning, not the content. This means that there can never be a mechanical process to "convert" direct ...
- 183k
1
vote
How to change Conditional sentence of Present unreal into reported speech
Were in If I were you isn't the plural but the subjunctive. We use the subjunctive when talking about something that couldn't possibly happen, or is very unlikely to. (There's a famous song If I were ...
- 43.7k
1
vote
I asked if she knew French.(I asked if she knows French)
Both the cited examples are syntactically fine, but usually, native speakers "backshift" the verb in the complement (knew) to match the main verb (asked).
Whether backshifted or not, the ...
- 64.6k
1
vote
Accepted
I asked if she knew French.(I asked if she knows French)
I would always say knew, and would regard knows as a little odd here.
- 72.1k
1
vote
I asked if she knew French.(I asked if she knows French)
Both can be used. The second one slightly implies that she is someone "present" in your life, but the nuance can be ignored.
- 623
1
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someone asked if we have something or had something?
Correct: 1 Last night, one of our neighbors knocked on our door and asked if we had a pair of pliers to lend.
- 1,710
1
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Changing present tense to past tense in indirect speech
Assuming that the time reference remains unchanged (i.e., it is still the time at which these sentences are spoken), the verb should be in the past tense, because it describes action before the ...
- 13.1k
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