Le Discours Indirect / Reported Speech

1 - Définition

On emploie le discours indirect pour rapporter ce que quelqu’un a dit.

En français la subordonnée est introduite par que (obligatoire) alors qu'en anglais
elle est introduite par that (facultatif).

exemples: direct speech / style direct Peter said :"I am ill."

reported speech / style indirect Peter said (that) he was ill.

direct speech / style direct Mary said :"I am working."

reported speech / style indirect Mary said (that) she was working.

2 - Les transformations nécessaires

Lorsque l’on passe du style direct au style indirect :

■ La ponctuation change et les deux points : ainsi que les guillemets " " disparaissent.
■ Les pronoms personnels changent : you → we - I we → they I → he - she

exemples : direct speech He says :"I am not guilty."

reported speech He says (that) he is not guilty.

direct speech Dad says :"You can’t go out tonight."

reported speech Dad says (that) we can’t go out tonight.

■ Les adjectifs et les pronoms possessifs changent :

your - yours → my - mine ou our - ours our - ours → their - theirs

my - mine → his ou her - hers

exemples : direct speech John told me :"It’s not your car. It’s mine."
reported speech John told me (that) it wasn’t my car but his.

direct speech My neighbour shouted :"Our house is bigger than yours."

reported speech My neighbour shouted (that) their house was bigger than ours.

3 - Les changements de temps

■ Lorsque le verbe introducteur/rapporteur : say , tell (dire/raconter), announce (annoncer), ask
(demander), confess (avouer/confesser/reconnaître), inform (informer) est au présent simple, au present
perfect ou au futur simple, il n’y a pas de changement de temps dans les paroles rapportées.

Il n’y a pas non plus de changement de temps dans la subordonnée qui rapporte les paroles lorsque ce
que l’on rapporte est toujours vrai.
exemples : direct speech He has told me :"I went to London yesterday."
reported speech He has toldme (that) he went to London yesterday.

direct speech They will tell you :"We don’t like English."
reported speech They will tell you (that) they don’t like English.

direct speech The jeweller said :"Gold is more expensive than silver."
reported speech The jeweller said (that) gold is more expensive than silver.
 ■ Lorsque le verbe rapporteur/ introducteur est au prétérit ou au past perfect, le discours est
lointain, on parle du passé et il y a des changements de temps dans les paroles rapportées

Discours direct => Discours indirect

La concordance des temps se fait comme en français:
Elle a dit: 'il est malade => Elle a dit qu'il était malade
futur 'I will always love you.' => conditionnel He said (that) he would always love me.
present simple .'He is ill.' => past simple She said(that) he was ill.
present be-ing 'I'm leaving today.' => past be-ing He said (that) he was leaving that day.
present perfect 'You have bought a dress.' => past perfect He said (that) she had bought a dress.
present perf- past perf
'I've been working all day.' => He said (that) he had been working all day.
ing -ing
past simple 'I went to London.' => past perfect He said (that) he had gone to London.
'My friends were playing past perfect He said (that) his friends had been playing
past be-ing =>
chess.' -ing chess.
past perfect 'I had lost my bag' . . pas de changement

Les modaux: could, should, would, might, ought to ne changent pas

can => could 'She can cook delicious meals.' He said she could cook delicious meals.
May => might 'It may not rain this night.' He said it might not rain that night.
must => had to 'I must leave now.' She said she had to leave then.

4 - Les changements des démonstratifs et des repères de temps et de lieu

■ Au style indirect passé, certains repères sont modifiés :

discours direct discours indirect

now => then
tonight => that night
today => That day / the same day
yesterday => the day before / the previous day
tomorrow => the next day / the following day
last (year, month...) => the previous (year, month...)
next (month, week...) => the following (month, week...)
Two days ago => two days before
here => there
there => there
this => that
that => that
these => those
those => those
exemples : direct speech "I’ll go to Spain next month," he said.
reported speech He said (that) he would go to Spain the following month.

direct speech "I met Sue yesterday," Clara told me.

reported speech Clara told me (that) she had met Sue the day before.

5 - Say / Tell

■ En général on emploie Say quand on rapporte des paroles sans préciser leur destinataire et Tell
lorsque l’on précise à qui on s’adresse.

She said (that) she couldn’t stand John. mais She told me (that) she couldn’t stand John.

Si on emploie Say, il faut introduire le destinataire avec la préposition to. (say something to someone)

She said to me (that) she couldn’t stand John. Mais le verbe TELL est préférable et plus
courant.

6 - Les questions rapportées

■ Au style indirect, quand les paroles rapportées sont des questions, on n’inverse jamais le sujet
et l’auxiliaire.

exemples : direct speech "Where is the post office ?", she asked me.
reported speech She asked me where the post office was.

Pour les questions fermées (= Yes / No questions), on utilise if ou whether (= si)

direct speech "Can you drive?", the boss asked me.
reported speech The boss asked me if / whether I could drive.

Il n’y a pas non plus d’inversion sujet-auxiliaire dans les questions indirectes :

exemples : Do you know what time it is ?

Could you tell me how much money you have in your purse ?

7 - Les ordres

■ Quand les paroles prononcées sont des ordres, on emploie les verbes ASK ou TELL suivis d’un
verbe à l’infinitif pour les rapporter.

Exemples : direct speech The teacher said to him : "Don’t be late !"
reported speech The teacher told him not to be late.

direct speech Ania asked me: "Will you open the window, please?"
reported speech Ania asked me to open the window.