Indirect questions

There are two main ways of asking questions – directly and indirectly. Both have the
same meaning but indirect questions are used when we try to be more polite, more
formal or less confrontational. We usually use them when talking to a person we
don’t know very well, or in professional situations, and their form is a little different.

They are introduced by constructions like:

Do you know...?
Can you tell me...?
Can I ask you…?
Could you tell me…?
Do you think I could ask you…?
Would you mind telling me…?

I’d like to know...

I wonder... Me pregunto….
I wonder if I could ask you…
I wonder if you could tell me…

Compare the following sentences:

Direct question: Have they arrived?

Indirect question: I’d like to know if they have arrived.

The first sentence expresses a direct question, the second one expresses an indirect
question, but the information we are asking for is the same.

As we can see, there are some differences between them:

In one case it is not necessary to use a question mark at the end. Nevertheless, when
we use constructions like “Do you know...?” or “Can you tell me...?” we need to use
a question mark, because these constructions are introduced by direct questions.

We introduced the sentence by using “if”, so we expect an answer which is “yes” or

“no”. If the direct question is introduced by interrogative pronouns like “Why”, “How”,
“Where”, “What”, etc., in indirect questions, the question mark disappears.

Direct question: Why is he so angry?

Indirect question: I’d like to know why he is so angry.

The order of subject and verb in the second sentence is affirmative, that means:
subject + verb.

Have a look at some examples about how to form indirect questions based on direct
questions.

Direct question: What time is it?

Indirect questions:
 Do you know what time it is?
Can you tell me what time it is?
I wonder what time it is.
I’d like to know what time it is.

Direct question: Can she swim?

Indirect questions:
Do you know if she can swim?
Can you tell me if she can swim?
I wonder if she can swim.
I’d like to know if she can swim.

In the first example, the sentence is introduced by the interrogative pronoun “what”
and it maintains the indirect question. But in the second case, when we expect “yes”
or “no as an answer, we need the particle “if” (or also “whether”) to form the indirect
question.

Asking for and expressing opinions

Asking for opinions

When we want to know somebody’s opinion of something, we use the following

questions:

What do you think about / of ... ?

(the weather, my new car, your boss, etc.)
What’s your opinion of ... ?
(the team, the President, etc.)

Expressing opinions

In English, there are many forms to express our opinion. The most prevalent ones
are:

In my opinion ...
I think ...
I believe + phrase
I feel
I find it / ... / -ing

Have a look at some examples for every form:

In my opinion people shouldn’t smoke.

I think you should study law.
I believe things will be different in the future.
I feel I am not studying enough.
 I find this movie / it / watching movies quite interesting.

We use the verb “to agree” to express that we share an opinion with somebody else.:

I agree with Jim.

I agree that most people have no time for sports nowadays.

To express the opposite we use the verb “to agree” in its negative form or the verb “to
disagree”:

I don’t agree with you.

OR I disagree with you.

Agree and disagree can also be expressed in the following ways:

“Agreements”:

When we agree with an affirmative sentence that was said just before:

So + auxiliary + I

When we agree with a negative sentence that was said just before:

Neither + auxiliary + I

See some examples:

A- I like pop music.

B- So do I.

A-I don’t like rock music.

B- Neither do I.

A- I can understand him.

B- So can I.

A- I can’t imagine such a world.

B- Neither can I.

Note: Remember that, when we talk of auxiliaries that substitute a verb, the auxiliaries
that are required for the simple tenses is “do” and “does” (present) or “did” (past).

I believe I could easily get used to not eating meat. Creo que podría acostumbrarme
fácilmente a no comer carne.

Verb + object + infinitive

Some verbs are followed by "to" + infinitive. Sometimes it is also possible for an
object to come before "to" + infinitive. Compare:
Verb + "to" + infinitive

He wants to live with you.

Verb + object + "to" + infinitive

He wants you to live with him.

Look at the table below to see some common examples of this structure:

VERB EXAMPLE
advise He advised me to leave.
allow They allowed me to use their car.
ask He asked her not to open the box.
challenge She challenged me to do something dangerous.
encourage She encouraged me to live on my own.
expect I expected him to come earlier.
forbid Their parents forbid them to go out at night.
force She forced him to eat the cake.
invite His family invited me to stay with them.
permit They will not permit her to go swimming.
persuade Jane persuaded me to attend the lecture.
remind You didn't remind me to bring the food.
teach Who taught you to cook?
tell I told you not to send that letter.
want I want you to pay more attention.
warn She warned me not to touch it.
would like I would like you to rethink your decision.
would preferI would prefer you not to make such a mess.

Verb + object + infinitive without "to"

Some verbs are followed by an object + infinitive (without "to"):

VERB EXAMPLE
make He made his pupils repeat the exercise.
let My parents let me stay out late.
help She helped me understand it.*
can, could, will, must, etc. (modal verbs)I will see you next week.

* the verb "to help" can be followed by an infinitive with or without "to":

I helped the old woman cross the road.

I helped the old woman to cross the road.

Permission and ability

Permission

We can use "can", "could", "may" and "be allowed to" to ask for and give/deny
permission:

Can I use your phone? Yes, you can. / No, you cannot.
Could I use your phone? (more formal / polite) Yes, you can. / No, you cannot.

May I use your phone? (more formal / polite) Yes, you may. /No, you may not.

Am I allowed to use* your phone? Yes, you are. /No, you are not.

* "To be allowed to" is not a modal verb. It follows normal grammar rules:

Am I allowed to sing a song?

You aren't allowed to talk in the library.

She is allowed to use the printer in the office.

Ability

We can use "can" to express present ability:

My cousin can ride a unicycle.

It's also possible to use "could" to express an ability in the past, when the ability is
over a long period of time, i.e. not just once. If the ability was a one-off event, we
use "be able to + infinitive":

I could swim when I was five years old.

Eventually I was able to start the car. (NOT Eventually I could start the car.)

"Be able to + infinitive" can be used in all other structures and tenses to express
ability:

He is able to drive.

I'm sorry I haven't been able to call sooner.

Will you be able to come to the party?

Connectors: expressing cause and effect

To express the cause of or the reason for something, we can use the connectors
"because", "as" and "since". They are followed by a clause and when they go at the
beginning of a sentence, they must be separated by a comma:

I didn't write you a letter as / because / since I was very busy.

As / Because / Since I was very busy, I didn’t write you a letter.

Note: To express cause we can also use “because of” / “due to” + noun or verb + -
ing. Compare:

As / Because / Since + Clause

She was late because there was a lot of traffic.

Because of / Due to + Noun

She was late because of the traffic.

Reported speech: questions

When we report questions that require a "Yes" or "No" answer, we use "if" or
"whether". The order is subject + verb:

“Do you like swimming?” she asked me. (direct)

She asked me if I liked swimming. (indirect / reported)

"Are you coming to the beach or not?" I asked her. (direct)

I asked her whether or not she was going to the beach. (indirect / reported)

"Whether" is more common than "if" in formal situations, and we also use
"whether" with infinitives and prepositions:

I said I wasn't sure whether to visit them. (NOT I said I wasn't sure if to visit
them.)

She asked about whether I was married. (NOT She asked about if I was married.)

For questions with interrogative pronouns (where, who, which, etc.), the order is
usually subject + verb:

“Where did you buy this shirt?” Anne asked Peter.

Anne asked Peter where he had bought that shirt. (NOT Anne asked Peter where
had he bought that shirt.)

“Who came with you yesterday?” I asked Anne.

I asked Anne who had gone with her the day before. (Subject same as
interrogative pronoun. See "Subject questions")

“What have you eaten?” I asked her.

I asked her what she had eaten. (NOT I asked her what had she eaten.)

Reported speech: commands

Commands in reported speech

For commands, we often use the verb "to tell" followed by "(not) to + infinitive".

“Open the door.”

Anne told me to open the door.

“Be quiet!”

She told him to be quiet.

“Don’t do that!”

I told Susan not to do that.

“Don’t play with that!”

She told me not to play with that.

Tell and say

TELL + person + “that” + clause

“You are wrong”, he told me.

He told me (that) I was wrong.

When “tell” is used in this context, it is similar to the verb “say”. However, “tell” is
followed by an indirect object, while “say” doesn't require an indirect object:

She told me that she was tired.

She said that she was tired.

She said to me that she was tired.

NOT

She told that she was tired.

She told to me that she was tired.

She said me that she was tired.

Reported speech: characteristics

When we report what has been said, we can use direct or reported speech. In direct speech,
we quote the exact phrase word for word using quotation marks:

"I am hungry." said Katie.

In reported speech, we make changes to the original sentence:

Katie said that she was hungry.

Statements in reported speech

When we report speech, the context of when, where, who, etc. all has to be taken into account.
When the time of reporting changes, often the tense and time adverbials change too.
Compare:

"I'm going home. I have to work tomorrow." Alex (on Friday night).

"Alex says he's going home. He has to work tomorrow." Bill (on Friday night).

"Alex said he was going home. He had to work today." Bill (on Saturday morning).

"Alex said he was going home. He had to work the next day." Bill (on Sunday).

As a general rule, we often "shift" the tense of the original statement back in time. See the table
below for common tense changes after reporting verbs.

DIRECT INDIRECT
Present simple Past simple

He studies maths He said he studied maths

Present continuous Past continuous

He is studying maths He said he was studying maths

Present perfect Past perfect

He has studied maths He said he had studied maths

Past simple Past perfect

He studied maths He said he had studied maths

Past continuous Past perfect continuous

He was studying mathsHe said he had been studying maths

Past perfect No change

He had studied maths He said he had studied maths

Will Would

He will study maths He said he would study maths

Where the reporter is in relation to the original speaker can also affect words like "here" and
"there":

"My sister is here." Alex (at the party).

"Alex says his sister is here." Bill (at the party).

"Alex said his sister was there." Bill (at home).

DIRECT INDIRECT
Time adverbials
now then
today that day
yesterday the day before
tomorrow the following day / the day after / the next day
next week / month / year the following week / month / year
last week / month / year the week / month / year before
a week / month / year agothe week / month / year before
Other changes
this that
these those
here there

Reported questions

When we report questions that require a "Yes" or "No" answer, we use "if" or "whether". The
order is subject + verb:

“Do you like swimming?” she asked me. (direct)

She asked me if I liked swimming. (indirect / reported)

"Are you coming to the beach or not?" I asked her. (direct)

I asked her whether or not she was going to the beach. (indirect / reported)

For questions with interrogative pronouns (where, who, which, etc.), the order is also subject +
verb:

“Where did you buy this shirt?” Anne asked Peter.

Anne asked Peter where he had bought that shirt. (NOT Anne asked Peter where had he
bought that shirt.)

“Who came with you yesterday?” I asked Anne.

I asked Anne who had gone with her the day before.

“What have you eaten?” I asked her.

I asked her what she had eaten.

Commands in reported speech

For commands, we often use the verb "to tell" followed by "(not) to + infinitive".

“Open the door.”

Anne told me to open the door.

“Be quiet!”

She told him to be quiet.

“Don’t do that!”

I told Susan not to do that.

“Don’t play with that!”

She told me not to play with that.

Reporting verbs
Reporting verbs can be used to paraphrase direct speech. Compare:

“Do you want to come to my house?” he asked Cathy. (direct)

He asked Cathy if she wanted to go to his house. (reported / indirect)

He invited Cathy to go to his house. (reporting verb)

The structure for the reporting verb here is:

INVITE + object + infinitive with “to”

Below are some common reporting verbs and examples:

OFFER + infinitive with “to” = ofrecer

“I’ll do that for you.” Anne said to Peter.

Anne offered to do it for him.

PROMISE + infinitive with “to”

“I’ll write to you every day.” Anne said to Peter.

Anne promised to write to him every day.

REFUSE + infinitive with “to” negarse

“I won’t do it.” Anne said to Peter.

Anne refused to do it.

SUGGEST + verb + -ing

“Why don’t we give her a present for her birthday?” Anne said to Peter.

Anne suggested giving her a present for her birthday.

DENY + verb + -ing

“I didn't throw the ball.” he said.

He denied throwing the ball that had broken the window.

ADMIT + (TO) + verb + -ing

“I lied. I’m sorry.” Anne said.

She admitted lying to him.

AGREE + infinitive with “to”

“OK. I’ll talk to the troublemakers.” Peter said.

He agreed to talk to the troublemakers.

THREATEN + infinitive with “to”

“If you don’t behave yourself, I’ll punish you.” her teacher said.

Her teacher threatened to punish her if she didn't behave herself.

INSIST + on + gerund

“We need to take her to the doctor. I insist.” he said.

He insisted on taking her to the doctor.

CLAIM + infinitive with “to”

“I’m the person who invented this system.” he said.

He claimed to be the inventor of the system.

ORDER + person + infinitive with “to”

“Don’t eat in class!” the teacher shouted to Jim.

The teacher ordered Jim not to eat in class.

Tell and say

TELL + person + “that” + clause

“You are wrong”, he told me.

He told me (that) I was wrong.

When “tell” is used in this context, it is similar to the verb “say”. However, “tell” is followed by an
indirect object, while “say” doesn't require an indirect object:

She told me that she was tired.

She said that she was tired.

She said to me that she was tired.

NOT

She told that she was tired.

She told to me that she was tired.

She said me that she was tired.

1: SAY

Let's look first at the verbs we've already talked about. The basic verb pattern for using 'say' for
 reported speech is:

say + (that) + clause

 She said (that) she had already eaten.

(The direct speech for this is "I've already eaten".)

2: TELL

On the other hand, with 'tell' we need to use an object, a person who we tell the information
to. See also my page about the difference between 'say' and 'tell' here.

tell + someone + (that) + clause

 I told John (that) I had seen the new film.

(The direct speech for this is "I've seen the new film".)

When we are reporting orders, we can also use another pattern with 'tell':

tell + someone + to + infinitive

 She told the children to go to bed.

3: ASK

We use 'ask' to report questions or requests. For questions we use the pattern:

ask + someone + if / question word + clause

 I asked my boss if I could leave early.

 She asked them where the station was.

For requests we use the pattern:

ask + someone + to + infinitive

 I asked Lucy to pass me the salt.

(Remember, my first two examples with 'ask' are no longer real questions, so we use the normal
sentence word order. We don't use inversion. We say 'she asked them where the station was',
NOT 'she asked them where was the station'. You can read more about this on my page
about indirect questions and on my page about reported speech.)

Other reporting verbs follow a variety of patterns. I'm afraid there aren't any rules about which
verbs follow which patterns. You need to learn each one.

4: ADVISE* = aconsejar

(= Give someone advice. Notice the different spelling for the verb and the noun.)

Advise + someone + to + infinitive

 She advised him to see a doctor.

Advise + (that) + clause

 The staff advise that you carry water at all times.

Advise + against + verb-ing

 I'd advise against leaving early.

5: AGREE = acordar

Agree + to + infinitive

 We agreed to meet the following day.

Agree + (that) + clause

 I agreed that the children could do their homework later.

6: APOLOGISE

Apologise + (to + someone) + for + verb-ing

 They apologised to us for being late.

 She apologised for forgetting the book.

Apologise (+ to + someone) + for + noun

 She apologised for the delay.

7: DECIDE = decidir

Decide + to + infinitive

 They decided to go to the cinema.

Decide + (that) + clause

 They decided that they would go to the cinema.

8: ENCOURAGE

Encourage + someone + to + infinitive

 She encouraged him to take the exam again.

 The teacher encouraged the students to ask questions.

9: EXPLAIN = explicar

Explain + (that) + clause

 The teacher explained that the course was finished.

Explain + noun + to + someone

 She explained the grammar to the students.

 NOT: She explained me the grammar.

Explain + question word + to + infinitive

 They explained how to buy a train ticket on the internet.

 John explained where to find the restaurant.

Explain + question word + clause

 We explained what the exams would cover.

10: INSIST* = Insistir

Insist + on + verb-ing

 He insisted on paying.

Insist + (that) + clause

 He insisted that we sit down.

11: PROMISE = prometer

Promise + to + infinitive

 He promised to arrive early.

Promise + (someone) + (that) + clause

 I promised him that I wouldn't do it again.

12: RECOMMEND*

Recommend + verb-ing

 I recommend visiting the British Museum while you're in London.

Recommend + (that) + clause

 I recommend that you visit the British Museum

13: REMIND

Remind + someone + to + infinitive

 She reminded him to take his keys.

Remind + someone + (that) + clause

 They reminded me that there is a party tonight.

14: SUGGEST* = sugerir, proponer

 Suggest + verb-ing

 I suggest leaving soon

Suggest + (that) + clause

 I suggest that you come as soon as you can.

NOT: I suggest him to come.

15: WARN = = avisar, advertir

Warn + someone + (not) + to + infinitive

 I warned them not to go in the water.

Warn + someone + about + something

 She warned us about the dangerous roads.

Accuse = acusar

Announce = anunciar

Assure = asegurar

Point out = señalar

verb + infinitive:

agree, decide, offer, promise, refuse, threaten

acceder, decidir, ofrecer, prometer, rechazar (negarse), chantajear

They agreed to meet on Friday.

Accedió a quedar el viernes.

He refused to take his coat off.

Rechazó quitarse el abrigo.

verb + object + infinitive :

advise, encourage, invite, remind, warn

aconsejar,animar, invitar, recordar, advertir

Tom advised me to go home early.

Tom me aconsejó que me fuera a casa temprano.

She reminded me to telephone my mother.

Me recordó que llamara a mi madre.

verb + gerund:

deny, recommend, suggest

denegar, recomendar, sugerir

They recommended taking the bus.

Ellos recomendaron coger el bus.

She suggested meeting a little earlier.

Sugirió quedar un poco más temprano.

verb + object + preposition (+ gerund):

accuse, blame, congratulate

acusar, culpar, felicitar

He accused me of taking the money.

Me acusó de coger dinero

They congratulated me on passing all my exams.

Ellos me felicitaron por aprobar todos mis exámenes.

verb + preposition + gerund:

apologize, insist

disculpar, insistir

They apologized for not coming.

Ellos se disculparon por no venir.

He insisted on having dinner.

Insistió en cenar.

verb + (that):

admit, agree, decide, deny, explain, insist, promise, recommend, suggest

admitir, acceder, decidir, denegar, explicar, insistir, prometer, recomendar, sugerir

Sarah decided (that) the house needed cleaning.

Sarah decidió que la casa necesitaba limpieza.

They recommended (that) we take the bus.

Ellos recomendaron que tomáramos el autobús.

Modal verbs / other verbs in reported speech

In the table below, we see some common modal verbs / other structures that do not change in
reported / indirect speech:

VERB DIRECT / INDIRECT

“Would you mind opening the door?”
would
He asked me if I would mind opening the door.
“You should / ought to buy a new house.”
should / ought to
She said (that) I should / ought to buy a new house.
 “Could you come to my house?”
could
She asked me if I could come to her house.
“It might rain.”
might
She said (that) it might rain.
“You needn't do the washing up.”
needn't
She told me (that) I needn't do the washing up.
“I used to go swimming as a child.”
used to
He said (that) he used to go swimming as a child.
“We had better call the police.”
had better
She said (that) they had better call the police.

However, there are some modals that change in reported speech:

DIRECT INDIRECT
may might

“I may go to the theatre.” She said (that) she might go to the theatre.
must had to

“You must wear a uniform.”She said (that) I had to wear a uniform.

can could

“I can’t hear very well.” She said (that) she couldn't hear very well.
shall should

“Shall I call your sister?” She asked if she should call my sister.

What time did you come in last night?

My mother asked me what time I had come in the night before.

¿Qué es el "reported speech" [ri'ported sspiich]?

Al "reported speech" yo le llamo "el estilo cotilla", porque suele ser la forma que empleamos
para narrar o contar lo que ha dicho otra persona. Además de "reported" que es un adjetivo en
este caso, hay en inglés un verbo "to report" que significa informar sobre, reportar o reportear.
El "reported speech" es un estilo frecuentemente utilizado en el lenguaje periodístico dado que
los periodistas cuentan o narran lo que dijeron otras personas.

Cuando hablamos sobre lo que dijo otra persona podemos hacerlo de dos maneras:

1) Directamente. Direct Speech [direct sspiich].

Por ejemplo: Mark said, 'I want to be rich.' [mark sed aiguant tu birich]. Mark dijo: "Quiero ser
rico".

Como véis repito exactamente lo que dijo Mark, es decir, lo digo "directamente". De ahí que se
llame "estilo directo" y en inglés "direct speech" [direct sspiich].

Si decido escribir la frase que ha dicho Mark, debo entrecomillarla.

Nota: ¿Cómo se dice en inglés "comillas"? Se dice: "Quotation marks" [kuoteishon marks].
En inglés se usa ' (una comilla para abrir y cerrar la frase que citamos) y en español " (dos
comillas a cada lado). Fíjate como después de "said" en inglés pongo una coma (,) y en
español dos puntos (:)

2) Indirectamente. Indirect Speech or Reported Speech.[indirect spiich or ri'ported spiich]

Por ejemplo: 'Mark said (that) he wanted to be rich [mark sed higuanted tubi rich].' "Mark dijo
que quería ser rico." "

¿Que he hecho en este segundo ejemplo? No he repetido directamente las palabras de Mark,
sino que "las he hecho mias". ¿Cómo?

He añadido una conjunción (es decir, una palabra que sirve para unir a dos palabras) "that"
(que en este caso se puede omitir). Además he cambiado el tiempo verbal. En el primer
ejemplo he usado el "Present Tense" y en el segundo ejemplo "Past Tense."

El tema es largo, así que nos dará para más de una clase. Iremos poco a poco. (cuando algo
se atasca, divide y vencerás)

1) En las oraciones indirectas hay dos tipos de oraciones, una oración principal y otra
subordinada. La principal llamada en inglés "reporting clause", es la que lleva generalmente
los verbos "say" o "tell". Por ejemplo: He said [hised] Él dijo - He told me [hi toldmi] "Él me
contó" ó "Él me dijo".

La oración subordinada llamada "reported clause" es la segunda oración en la que indicamos

qué nos dijeron. Por ejemplo: "...(that) he went to Brazil." [hi güent tuBrazzzil]."... que fue a
Brasil."

2)Diferencias entre "say" y "tell"

- "Say" [sei] y tell [tel] pueden ser traducidos como "decir".

- "Say" [sei] se utiliza más que "tell"[tel] en el Estilo directo, es decir, cuando decidimos
reproducir exactamente lo que dijo la otra persona.

- "Say"[sei] se puede utilizar con cualquier tipo de estructura, "tell" [tel] en cambio se utiliza
para "informar" o "dar órdenes". Por ejemplo: He told me to shut up. [hi toldmi tusshatap] Me
dijo (ordenó) que me callase.

- Cuando en la frase no hay un objeto indirecto (es decir, no aparece la persona a la que
estamos hablando- "no personal object"), sólo se usa "say" [sei]. No utilizamos "tell". Por
ejemplo: He says, 'You should walk'. [hi ses iushud guok]. Él dice: "Deberías caminar." No
podemos decir: He tells, "You should walk".

- Cuando sí hay un objeto indirecto (si aparece la persona a la que estamos hablando-
personal object) caben dos posibilidades:

a) Utilizar "Say"[sei]. En este caso "say" [sei] siempre va acompañado de "to". Por ejemplo.
He said to me. [He sedtumi] Él me dijo. Nunca hay que decir: "He said me.".

La regla es: Sujeto + "say" conjugado + to + Objeto Indirecto (persona a la cual nos
dirigimos/(personal object). Nota: Un error típico al hablar consiste en "comerse" el "to", así
que hay que repetir muchas veces esta regla. Recuerda, siempre es: They say to him, He
said to you, etc. "To" despues de "say".

b)Utilizar "Tell"[tel]. . En este caso, es decir cuando aparece el "personal object" se omite el
"to". Por ejemplo: He told me. [hitoldmi] He told us. [hitoldas]. Él me dijo..El nos dijo.

3)Supresión del "that". En inglés la conjunción "that" que significa "que" puede en ocasiones
suprimirse. Especialmente, tras ciertos verbos que se utilizan habitualmente para hablar en
estilo indirecto, por ejemplo: "say" [sei] y "think" [zink]. "He said he thought". [hi sed hizot].
Él dijo que creía/pensaba... En español nunca se suprime.

¿Por qué cambian los tiempos cuando se pasa de un estilo a otro?

Con un ejemplo en español lo veremos más claro.

Supongamos que estás con Susana esperando a Juan para ir a comer y Susana te dice:
"Tengo hambre". (Ha empleado el estilo directo). Tú escuchas esa frase de Susana y decides
llamar por teléfono a Juan.

Puedes reproducir la frase de Susana de dos maneras según el momento.

1) Si Susana está todavía al lado tuyo y la situación es todavía cierta dirás:

- ¡Hola Juan! "Susana dice que tiene hambre".

- Hi John!, Susan says she is hungry. [Susan ses shiishangri]

Fíjate que en ambos idiomas el reported verb -el verbo subordinado que reproduce las
palabras de Susana- está en tiempo presente. Susana "tiene hambre" o Susan "is hungry."

2) Juan no contesta y decides irte a comer con Susana. Un poco más tarde -cuando ya estáis
comiendo- te llama Juan y decides explicarle por qué no lo habéis esperado.

-"Susana dijo que tenía hambre".

-"Susan said she was hungry." [Susan sed shiguashangri]

En ambos idiomas he empleado el Past Tense (tenía/was) para reproducir las palabras de
Susana.

Nota: el verbo principal (reporting verb) "decir" puede ir en Present Perfect (have/has said),
Past Tense (said) o Past Perfect (had said)

¿Cuál es la diferencia entre ambas frases?

En el primer ejemplo "que tiene hambre" "she is hungry" decides poner énfasis en que la
situación es todavía cierta. En el segundo ejemplo en cambio, como es un poco más tarde y
ya estáis comiendo, decides hablar de una situación ya pasada y le dices a Juan que "tenía
hambre"/she was hungry".

Ambas construcciones son posibles y se utiliza una u otra dependiendo de si algo es todavía
cierto en la presente o ya pasó.

Esta formula de poner en el estilo indirecto los verbos en un tiempo más pasado al que se
habla en estilo directo se llama en inglés "back shift" (cambio hacia atrás).

En algunos casos no hacemos ése cambio hacia atrás porque la situación sigue siendo cierta,
por ejemplo:

"Ella me dijo que habla (Presente) francés."

- She told me that she speaks French. [Shitoldmi shiispiiksFrench] Todavía es cierto que ella
habla francés.

En otros casos no es posible ir hacia más hacia atrás.

Por ejemplo:

-Pedro dice: "Yo vivi aquí".

-Pedro says, 'I lived here.' [Pedro ses ailIvdhiir]

-Pedro me dijo que vivió aquí .

-Pedro said he lived here. [Pedro sed hilIvdhiir] .

Como véis en ambos casos he empleado el pasado.

En la siguiente tabla podemos ver cuáles son los cambios de los tiempos verbales cuando se
pasa del estilo directo al indirecto.

Cambio de tiempos Reported Speech

Direct Speech Indirect Speech

1.Present 1.Past

2.Simple Past 2.Simple Past or Past Perfect

3.Present Continuous 3.Past Continuous

4.Past Continuous 4.Past Continuous

5.Present Perfect 5. Past Perfect

6.Past Perfect 6. Past Perfect

7. Can 7. Could

8.Shall 8. Should

9.Will 9.Would

10.May 10. Might

11.Need 11. Had to or Need

12.Must 12. Had to or Must

Àl pasar de estilo directo a indirecto, no cambian los verbos modales: would (condicional),
might (podría), should (debería), could (podría, pude), ni ought (debería). Tampoco la
construcción "used to" (solía).

Comentario: Estas reglas sirven para pasar un examen, pero no son realmente necesarias
para hablar ya que debe predominar la lógica.

Connectors: expressing purpose

When we want to express purpose, we can use the particle “to" + infinitive, or “for" + -ing verb or
noun:

I came here to have a coffee.

I came here for a coffee.

It's a product to clean windows with.

It's a product for cleaning windows.

“In order to” + infinitive works in a similar way to “to" + infinitive. It is slightly more formal:

I came here in order to have a coffee.

“So that” can also be used to express purpose. It is often used with modal verbs, when a new
subject is introduced, or when we want to say that one action makes another action possible. "So
that" is followed by a clause:

I came here so that I could have a coffee.

She speaks slowly so that he can understand.

She spoke slowly so that he could understand.

Some students have to work so that they can pay for their studies.

In spoken English, it's common for speakers to omit the word "that":

We took a taxi so (that) we wouldn't get wet.

You can see a summary of these structures in the table below:

FORMS OF EXPRESSING PURPOSE

Structure Example
He went to the chemist to buy
To + infinitive
some medicine.
In order to + He went to the chemist in order to
infinitive buy some medicine.
He went to the chemist so that he
So that + clause
could buy some medicine.
He went to the chemist for some
For + Noun
medicine.

The passive voice

The passive voice is commonly used in English. To form it we use different tenses and structures
with the verb "To be" with the past participle form of the verb.

We often use the passive voice when the agent of an action is unknown, not important, or not
specified:

My car was stolen. (Agent is unknown - I don't know who stole it)

English is spoken all over the world. (NOT People speak English all over the world. - Agent
"People" is not important)

We also use the passive voice when we want to emphasise the action or the subject (receiver):

His brother was advised to study Law. (His brother or the fact that he was advised is more
important than who advised him)

The table below shows how the passive voice is formed with different tenses and verbal structures:

ACTIVE / PASSIVE
present form
present simple
He pays the bill.
 am / is / are + past participle

The bill is paid.

am / is / are + gerund

He is paying the bill.

present continuous
am / is / are + being + past
participle

The bill is being paid.

past form

He paid the bill.

past simple
was / were + past participle

The bill was paid.

was / were + gerund

He was paying the bill.

past continuous
was / were + being + past
participle

The bill was being paid.

have / has + past participle

He has paid the bill.

present perfect
have / has + been + past
participle

The bill has been paid.

had + past participle

He had paid the bill.

past perfect
had + been + past participle

The bill had been paid.

will + infinitive

He will pay the bill.

future simple
will + be + participle

The bill will be paid.

be going to + infinitive
be going to
 He is going to pay the bill.

be going to + be + participle

The bill is going to be paid.

modal + infinitive

He can pay the bill.

He must pay the bill.

modal verbs
He would pay the bill.
For present and
modal + be + participle
future
The bill can be paid.

The bill must be paid.

The bill would be paid.

Note: future progressive and perfect progressive tenses (e.g. "the bill will be being paid for or "the
bill has been being paid for") in the passive voice are uncommon.

Past modals Should, may, must, might, ought to, HAVE BEEN + PARTICIPLE

The agent of a passive structure is introduced with the particle “by”. It's not necessary mention the
agent, especially when the agent is obvious/implied, unknown, or unimportant. Compare:

Romeo and Juliet was written in the sixteenth century. (Agent is not important)

Romeo and Juliet was written by Shakespeare. (Agent is important)

Verbs with two objects can also exist in the passive voice:

They sent me the new catalogue. (active form)

The new catalogue was sent to me. (passive form with direct object as subject)

I was sent the new catalogue. (passive form with indirect object as subject)

He is said to...

When we want to express a general opinion or speculation of a group of people with verbs like say,
believe, think, etc., it's common to use the passive voice:

He is said to have a child. (People say he has a child)

The prime minister is expected to arrive at lunchtime today. (People expect the prime minister to
arrive at lunchtime today)
Prepositions/phrasal verbs in the passive voice

Prepositions tend to maintain their position after the verb:

Will you read to me?

I like being read to.

Don’t shout at me!

I hate being shouted at.

Thanks for cooking for me.

I appreciate being cooked for.

Phrasal verbs generally maintain their particles after the verb too:

Don’t worry, someone is looking after the children.

Don’t worry, the children are being looked after.

Subject questions

The preposition “by”, which is used to indicate the agent in passive voice, can also appear at the
end of subject questions (when the question word is also the subject):

Who were The Canterbury Tales written by?

The Canterbury Tales were written by G. Chaucer.

Who was the radio invented by?

The radio was invented by Marconi.

Who was “Sunflowers” painted by?

“Sunflowers” was painted by Vincent Van Gogh.

The causative: 'to have something done'

We can use the structure "to have / get + something + past participle" to refer to a service or
procedure that someone or something does for us. The structure is often referred to as the
causative:

To have / get Something Past participle

I'm having my hair cut tomorrow.
She needs to get her car cleaned.
Are you having your house painted?
This structure is similar to the passive voice in that we give little importance to the agent of the
action. Compare:

My car is being repaired (by the mechanic). (passive)

I'm having my car repaired (by the mechanic). (causative)