Usa el estilo indirecto con pretéritos para contar lo que alguien dijo en el pasado.
(Use reported speech with past tenses to tell what someone said in the past.)
- Verbs such as decir, recordar, preguntar are used to form reported speech.
| Estilo Directo (Direct Speech) | Estilo Indirecto (Reported Speech) |
|---|---|
| Juan: "Me gusta negociar la oferta." (Juan: "I like to negotiate the offer.") | Juan me dijo que le gustaba negociar la oferta. (Juan told me that he liked to negotiate the offer.) |
| Ana: "Creo que la oferta es positiva." (Ana: "I think the offer is positive.") | Ana me dijo que creía que la oferta era positiva. (Ana told me that she thought the offer was positive.) |
| Pedro: "¿Vas a rechazar la contraoferta?" (Pedro: "Are you going to reject the counteroffer?") | Pedro me preguntó si iba a rechazar la contraoferta. (Pedro asked me if I was going to reject the counteroffer.) |
| Eva: "Sin duda, la oferta es excelente." (Eva: "Without a doubt, the offer is excellent.") | Eva me dijo que, sin duda, la oferta era excelente. (Eva told me that, without a doubt, the offer was excellent.) |
Exceptions!
- Pronouns can change according to the context, such as me, le, les. For example: Me gusta esta oferta. - Ella dijo que le gusta esta oferta.
Exercise 1: Estilo indirecto con pretéritos simples
Instruction: Fill in the correct word.
dijo que, iba a rechazar, tenía, preguntó, negociaban, era, es
1.
Decir que + ser:
Juan: La negociación es exitosa. : Juan me ... la negociación ... exitosa.
(Juan: The negotiation is successful. : Juan told me that the negotiation was successful.)
2.
Decir que + ser:
Marta: La contraoferta ... interesante. : Marta me ... la contraoferta ... interesante.
(Marta: The counteroffer is interesting. Marta told me that the counteroffer was interesting.)
3.
Decir que + negociar:
Juan: Nosotros negociamos con ellos. : Juan me ... ellos ... con ellos.
(Juan: We negotiate with them. : Juan told me that they negotiated with them.)
4.
Decir que + ser:
Eva: Sin duda, la oferta es excelente. : Eva me dijo que, sin duda, la oferta ... excelente.
(Eva: Without a doubt, the offer is excellent. : Eva told me that, without a doubt, the offer was excellent.)
5.
Decir que + negociar:
Ana: Nosotros negociamos una buena oferta. : Ana me ... ellos ... una buena oferta.
(Ana: We negotiate a good deal. : Ana told me that they were negotiating a good deal.)
6.
Decir que + tener:
Eva: Tengo el compromiso con ellos. : Eva me ... ... el compromiso con ellos.
(Eva: I have a commitment to them. : Eva told me that she had a commitment to them.)
7.
Preguntar + rechazar:
Pedro: ¿Vas a rechazar la oferta? : Pedro me ... si ... la oferta.
(Pedro: Are you going to reject the offer? : Pedro asked me if I was going to reject the offer.)
8.
Decir que + ser:
Ana: El compromiso es importante. : Ana me ... el compromiso ... importante.
(Ana: Commitment is important. : Ana told me that commitment was important.)
Exercise 2: Multiple Choice
Instruction: Choose the correct sentence in indirect speech using the past tense that accurately reflects what someone said in the past.
1.
Incorrect: the simple past is used instead of the past imperfect for the main verb in indirect speech after a past tense verb.
Incorrect: the pronoun 'me' is missing to indicate to whom the indirect speech is addressed.
2.
Incorrect: the main verb should not be in the simple past but in the past imperfect to match indirect speech.
Incorrect: the verb shouldn’t remain in the present after a past tense verb; it needs to change to the past imperfect.
3.
Incorrect: using conditional is not appropriate here; the correct form is past imperfect.
Incorrect: the verb should not remain in the present in indirect speech when the introducing verb is in the past.
4.
Incorrect: the verb in indirect speech must be in the past imperfect to express background information, not in simple past.
Incorrect: the verb cannot remain in the present after a past tense verb in indirect speech.
Exercise 3: Rewrite the phrases
Instruction: Rewrite the sentences in the past indirect style to report what someone else said earlier. Use verbs such as decir (to say), comentar (to comment), preguntar (to ask), recordar (to remind) and adapt pronouns and verb tenses. Example: Juan: "Voy mañana." → Juan dijo que iba al día siguiente.
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Marcos: "Quiero aceptar la oferta hoy."⇒ _______________________________________________ ExampleMarcos dijo que quería aceptar la oferta ese día.(Marcos said that he wanted to accept the offer that day.)
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La jefa: "Estamos muy contentos con vuestra propuesta."⇒ _______________________________________________ ExampleLa jefa dijo que estaban muy contentos con vuestra propuesta.(The boss said they were very pleased with your proposal.)
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El cliente: "¿Puedes enviarme el contrato mañana?"⇒ _______________________________________________ ExampleEl cliente preguntó si podía enviarle el contrato al día siguiente.(The client asked if you could send him the contract the next day.)
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Ana: "No entiendo bien las condiciones del contrato."⇒ _______________________________________________ ExampleAna comentó que no entendía bien las condiciones del contrato.(Ana said she didn't fully understand the terms of the contract.)
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El abogado: "Recordad que la reunión es el lunes."⇒ _______________________________________________ ExampleEl abogado recordó que la reunión era el lunes.(The lawyer reminded you that the meeting was on Monday.)
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Mi compañero: "Esta contraoferta no es justa para nosotros."⇒ _______________________________________________ ExampleMi compañero dijo que esa contraoferta no era justa para ellos.(My colleague said that the counteroffer wasn't fair to us.)
