Indirect and Direct Sentences in English

In English, there are two main ways to convey what a person is saying: direct and indirect sentences. In direct sentences, the expression that someone says is conveyed exactly, while in indirect sentences, a more indirect transfer is made by changing the structure of the sentence. Using these two structures effectively will improve your ability to communicate in English.

Direct Speech

Direct sentences convey the statement that a person says directly, as it is. In such sentences, the spoken sentence is conveyed verbatim using quotation marks.

For example:

• Jane said, "I am going to the store."
• He said, "I will call you tomorrow."

In these examples, the wording is quoted verbatim and no grammatical changes have been made.

Indirect Speech

In indirect sentences, the spoken phrase is conveyed by restructuring it in a different way. Expressions such as "said", "told" are often used, and certain changes are made to the sentence. In indirect sentences, it is important to pay attention to the time harmony; this is known as "backshift" in English.

Time Change (Backshift)

When converting to indirect sentences, the verb tense of the sentence is usually pulled back one step:

• The present tense is translated to the past tense (for example, "am" → "was").
• The story of the present is translated into the story of the past (e.g., "is doing" → "was doing").
• The future tense "will" is changed to "would".

For example:

• He said, "I am studying English." → He said that he was studying English.
• She said, "I will visit you tomorrow." → She said that she would visit me the next day.

In the above examples, the verb "am" has changed to "was" and the verb "will" has been withdrawn to "would". The phrase "tomorrow" has been changed to "the next day".

Pronoun Change

In the indirect sentence, the pronouns also vary depending on the person speaking and the context of the sentence. For example, the pronoun "I" can change to "he" or "she", while the pronoun "my" can be edited to "his" or "her".

For example:

• He said, "I have finished my homework." → He said that he had finished his homework.

In this sentence, the pronoun "I" has been changed to "he" and the pronoun "my" has been changed to "his".

Change of Place and Time Determinants

In indirect clauses, "here" is changed to "there", and "now" is changed to "then". "Today" is changed to "that day," "tomorrow" to "the next day," and "yesterday" to "the previous day."

For example:

• She said, "I am here now." → She said that she was there then.

In this example, "here" has changed to "there" and "now" has changed to "then".

Another example:

• He said, "I saw her yesterday." → He said that he had seen her the previous day.

In this sentence, the phrase "yesterday" has been changed to "the previous day".

Translating Questions into Indirect Sentences

When interrogative sentences are translated into indirect sentences, conjunctions such as "if" or "whether" are added. The auxiliary verb is placed after the subject and the interrogative statement is restructured.

For example:

• She asked, "Are you coming to the party?" → She asked if I was coming to the party.

In this example, "Are you coming" has been rearranged to "if I was coming".

Another example:

• He asked, "What time does the meeting start?" → He asked what time the meeting started.

Here, the structure "does the meeting start" has been changed to "the meeting started" in the indirect sentence.

Translating Imperative Sentences to Indirect Sentences

In imperative sentences, the verbs "tell" (to say) or "ask" (to ask) are used, and the main verb is used in conjunction with the conjunction "to".

For example:

• She said, "Please sit down." → She asked me to sit down.

In this example, "Please sit down" translates as "asked me to sit down".

Another example:

• He said, "Don't be late." → He told me not to be late.

In this sentence, "Don't be late" is translated as "not to be late".

In English, direct and indirect sentences are basic structures to be able to accurately convey a speech or event. In direct sentences, we convey exactly what is said, but in indirect sentences, we change the tense, pronouns, and locators by restructuring the sentence. Using these structures effectively helps you improve your English communication skills.