Reported Speech

تانية بكالوريا English

الدرس ده عن إيه؟

Reported speech is how we tell someone what another person said, without repeating their exact words. We report the idea, not the exact sentence.

الدرس ده عن إزاي تنقل كلام حد تاني. يعني بدل ما تقول الكلام بالحرف بين علامات تنصيص، بتحكيه بأسلوبك: «هو قال إن…»، «هي سألت إذا كان…».

في الكتاب الدرس ده موجود في Book 2 · Unit 6: The Space We Share، جزء Grammar Focus: Reported Speech (صفحة 12-15)، وبييجي تاني في Consolidation Review C. الكتاب بيقول إنه مفيد جدًا علشان ننقل رأي الـ conservationists (الناس اللي بتحمي الطبيعة) والفلاحين والصيادين والعلماء، وعلشان ننقل الادعاءات (claims) والأدلة في الـ JRE.

الفكرة ببساطة: كلام مباشر وكلام منقول

Direct speech repeats the exact words inside inverted commas. Reported speech has no inverted commas: it starts with a reporting verb (said, told, explained…) and the words change to fit the reporter's point of view.

تخيل إن صاحبك قالك في التليفون: «أنا تعبان النهارده». وبعدين مامتك سألتك هو قال إيه، فإنت قلت: «قال إنه كان تعبان اليوم ده». لاحظ إن فيه 3 حاجات اتغيرت:

1. الضمير: «أنا» بقت «هو» (I ← he).
2. الزمن: رجع خطوة لورا (am ← was). ودي اسمها backshift.
3. كلمة الوقت: «النهارده» بقت «اليوم ده» (today ← that day).

• "I protect this wetland," she said.Direct speech: الكلام بالحرف بين علامات تنصيص (inverted commas).
• She said (that) she protected that wetland.Reported speech: مفيش علامات تنصيص. I بقت she، وprotect بقت protected، وthis بقت that.

أفعال القول (Reporting Verbs) و say ولا tell؟

A reported sentence begins with a reporting verb such as said, told, explained, added, replied or claimed, followed by (that) and a clause. That is optional and often dropped in speech.

أشهر غلطة في الدرس ده هي الفرق بين say وtell. القاعدة بسيطة:

وفيه أفعال تانية بتخلي كلامك أدق، لأن كل فعل بيوضح نوع الكلام:

تغيير الزمن: Backshift (خطوة لورا)

When the reporting verb is in the past (said, told, explained…), the verb in the reported clause usually moves one step back into the past. This is called backshift.

فكّر في الأزمنة كأنها سلّم. لما فعل القول يكون ماضي، كل فعل في الكلام المنقول بينزل درجة واحدة لتحت ناحية الماضي:

خلي بالك: would / could / should / might مش بيتغيروا، لأنهم أصلاً «ماضي» ومفيش درجة تحتهم.

• "Fishing is our livelihood," the fisherman said. → The fisherman said (that) fishing was their livelihood.is ← was، وour ← their (لأنه بيتكلم عن نفسه وعن الصيادين اللي زيه).
• "Elephants destroy my crops every year," Grace said. → Grace said that elephants destroyed her crops every year.destroy ← destroyed، وmy ← her لأن Grace بنت.
• "The river is drying up," the farmer explained. → The farmer explained that the river was drying up.is drying ← was drying (present continuous ← past continuous).
• "Funding will decrease," the experts warned. → The experts warned that funding would decrease.will ← would. وwarned أدق من said لأن الكلام فيه خطر.
• "Farms and reserves can be managed together," researchers said. → Researchers said that farms and reserves could be managed together.can be ← could be. لاحظ إن be + managed فضلوا زي ما هم (مبني للمجهول).
• "We have built a corridor for elephants," the officer said. → The officer said they had built a corridor for elephants.have built ← had built (present perfect ← past perfect).

تغيير الضمائر والملكية

We are now speaking about the person, not as the person, so pronouns and possessive adjectives usually change to match the reporter's point of view.

إنت دلوقتي بتتكلم عن الشخص، مش بلسانه. فالضمائر لازم تتغير حسب مين بيحكي ومين اتقال عنه:

تغيير كلمات الوقت والمكان

When the moment of reporting is different from the moment of speaking, time and place words usually shift too, because "now" for the speaker may not be "now" for the reporter.

لو الكلام اتقال من أسبوع، فكلمة «بكرة» اللي قالها الشخص مبقتش «بكرة» بالنسبالك. علشان كده بنغيرها:

• "We will release the turtles tomorrow," Nour said. → Nour said they would release the turtles the next day.tomorrow ← the next day، وwill ← would.
• "The birds arrived here two days ago," the guide said. → The guide said the birds had arrived there two days before.here ← there، ago ← before، وarrived ← had arrived.

إمتى مانرجّعش الزمن؟ (When NOT to backshift)

The tense does not need to change when the situation is still true, a general fact, or a scientific / permanent truth. Backshifting could wrongly suggest the situation has ended.

لو الكلام لسه صح لحد دلوقتي أو حقيقة علمية، مش لازم نرجّع الزمن. ليه؟ لأن لو قلنا depended ممكن اللي بيسمع يفهم إن الكلام ده خلص وبقى مش صحيح.

• The conservationist said that migratory birds depend on wetlands.حقيقة عامة لسه صحيحة، فسيبنا depend زي ما هي. (depended كمان مش غلط، بس depend أوضح.)
• Our teacher explained that water boils at 100°C.حقيقة علمية ثابتة: مفيش backshift.
• The scientist says that the Nile is the longest river in Africa.فعل القول هنا مضارع (says)، فمفيش backshift خالص.

نقل الأسئلة (Reported Questions)

When we report a question, we change the question word order to statement order: subject + verb. We do not use do / does / did, and there is no question mark. For yes/no questions we use if or whether.

ده أهم جزء في الامتحان. السؤال لما يتنقل مايبقاش سؤال. يعني:

1. الترتيب يبقى زي الجملة العادية: الفاعل الأول وبعده الفعل (she was / I had finished).
2. نشيل do / does / did خالص.
3. مفيش علامة استفهام في الآخر، نحط نقطة.
4. فعل القول بيبقى asked (أو wanted to know / wondered).

• "Do you live near the river?" the officer asked me. → The officer asked me if I lived near the river.do ← اتشالت، وlive ← lived، وyou ← I.
• "Have you finished your homework?" Ali asked. → Ali asked if I had finished my homework.have you finished ← I had finished (الترتيب اتعدل والزمن رجع).
• "Where are you going?" she asked. → She asked where I was going.مش ✗ where was I going. الفاعل (I) قبل الفعل (was).
• "Why did the fish disappear?" the student asked. → The student asked why the fish had disappeared.did اتشالت، وdisappear ← had disappeared.
• "How old are you?" Zeina asked Mariam. → Zeina asked Mariam how old she was.you ← she لأن Mariam بنت، وare ← was.

نقل الأوامر والطلبات (زيادة على الكتاب)

To report a command or a request, use told / asked + person + to + verb. For a negative, use not to + verb.

الكتاب بيركز على الجمل والأسئلة، بس هتقابل الأوامر والطلبات كتير، خصوصًا مع الـ formal email في نفس الوحدة. الطريقة سهلة جدًا:

إزاي نستخدمه في الـ JRE والكتابة

In academic writing and JRE answers, reported speech helps you present evidence: what experts, officials or local people said or claimed.

الكتاب بيعلّمك تكتب بـ JRE = Justify – Reasoning – Evidence. الـ reported speech بيخدمك في الـ Evidence: بدل ما تقول «أنا شايف كده» وبس، تقول «العلماء قالوا…»، «الصيادين وضحوا…». كده كلامك يبقى أقوى وأكتر إقناعًا. شوف المثال ده:

Justify: Protecting wetlands must be a shared responsibility between countries. Reason: This is because migratory birds cross many borders during a single journey. Evidence: For example, a conservationist explained that the birds needed safe stopovers in every country they visited. She also warned that one destroyed wetland could break the whole route.

لاحظ إن الدليل جاي في صورة reported speech: explained that the birds needed / warned that one destroyed wetland could break …

إزاي بييجي في الأسئلة؟

الأسئلة في الكتاب والمراجعات بتيجي بالأشكال دي. هنحل مثال لكل شكل:

1) Which sentence is grammatically correct? Circle the correct answer from a, b, c or d.

a. The ranger said that the turtles will return in spring.

b. The ranger said that the turtles would return in spring.

c. The ranger said that the turtles return will in spring.

d. The ranger said that the turtles would returned in spring.

الإجابة: b. ليه؟ said ماضي فـ will ترجع would. (a) will مارجعتش، (c) ترتيب غلط، (d) بعد would الفعل يفضل في المصدر (return) مش returned.

2) Fill in the gaps with the correct reported form of the verb in brackets.

The fishermen explained that the lake (1) ______ (be) their only source of income.

الإجابة: (1) was. ليه؟ explained ماضي، وthe lake مفرد، فـ is ترجع was.

3) Report the question.

"Where do the storks spend the winter?" Omar asked the guide.

الإجابة: Omar asked the guide where the storks spent the winter. ليه؟ شلنا do، والفاعل (the storks) جه قبل الفعل، وspend رجعت spent، ومفيش علامة استفهام. (ولأنها حقيقة عامة، spend من غير backshift مقبولة كمان)

تدريب

A. Choose the correct answer from a, b, c or d.

1. 1. The conservationist ______ us that the wetland needed protection. a. said b. told c. explained d. added

   Show answer

   b. told — بعد الفراغ شخص (us) على طول، فلازم tell. said وexplained وadded مايجيش بعدهم شخص مباشرة.

2. 2. The farmer said that he ______ more water for his fields. a. needs b. is needing c. needed d. need

   Show answer

   c. needed — said ماضي، فـ needs ترجع needed.

3. 3. The experts predicted that protecting birds ______ more cooperation in the future. a. will require b. would require c. requires d. require

   Show answer

   b. would require — توقّع عن المستقبل بفعل قول ماضي: will ← would.

4. 4. My friend asked me ______ I had visited the nature reserve. a. that b. what c. if d. did

   Show answer

   c. if — سؤال yes/no منقول بيبدأ بـ if أو whether.

5. 5. She asked me where ______. a. did I live b. I lived c. do I live d. I do live

   Show answer

   b. I lived — ترتيب جملة عادية (فاعل + فعل)، ومن غير did.

6. 6. "We can share the river fairly," the officials said. → The officials said that they ______ the river fairly. a. can share b. could share c. could shared d. shared can

   Show answer

   b. could share — can ← could، والفعل بعدها في المصدر (share).

7. 7. "I am cleaning the beach today," Hoda said. → Hoda said that she was cleaning the beach ______. a. today b. tomorrow c. that day d. the day before

   Show answer

   c. that day — today ← that day.

8. 8. The teacher said that the Earth ______ around the Sun. a. goes b. had gone c. will go d. is going

   Show answer

   a. goes — حقيقة علمية ثابتة، فمش لازم backshift.

B. Only one sentence in each group is grammatically correct. Choose the correct answer.

1. 9. a. The fisherman said me that the fish had gone. b. The fisherman told that the fish had gone. c. The fisherman told me that the fish had gone. d. The fisherman told to me that the fish had gone.

   Show answer

   c — tell + شخص من غير to. (a) said me غلط، (b) told من غير شخص، (d) told to me غلط.

2. 10. a. Sara asked why were the birds leaving. b. Sara asked why the birds were leaving. c. Sara asked why did the birds leave. d. Sara asked why the birds are leaving?

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   b — الفاعل (the birds) قبل الفعل (were)، ومن غير did، ومن غير علامة استفهام.

3. 11. a. The volunteers said that they have planted fifty trees. b. The volunteers said that they had planted fifty trees. c. The volunteers said that they had plant fifty trees. d. The volunteers said that they planting fifty trees.

   Show answer

   b — have planted ← had planted، والتصريف التالت planted.

4. 12. a. The ranger told us not to feed the animals. b. The ranger told us don't feed the animals. c. The ranger said us not to feed the animals. d. The ranger told us to not feeding the animals.

   Show answer

   a — أمر بالنفي: told + شخص + not to + فعل.

C. Read what the speakers said. Then fill in the gaps with the correct reported form of the verb in brackets.

Scientist 1: "The river is losing water every year." Scientist 2: "The farmers use too much water in summer." Village leader: "People don't have any other choice." The scientists: "We will return next month with a new plan."

Last week, a group of scientists visited our village. They explained that the river (13) ______ (lose) water every year. One scientist added that the farmers (14) ______ (use) too much water in summer. The village leader replied that people (15) ______ (not / have) any other choice. Finally, the scientists said they (16) ______ (return) the following month with a new plan.

1. 13. the river ______ (lose)

   Show answer

   was losing — "is losing" (present continuous) ← was losing (past continuous).

2. 14. the farmers ______ (use)

   Show answer

   used — "use" (present simple) ← used (past simple).

3. 15. people ______ (not / have)

   Show answer

   did not have (didn't have) — "People don't have any other choice" ← didn't have.

4. 16. they ______ (return)

   Show answer

   would return — "We will return next month" ← would return the following month.

D. Change the following into reported speech.

1. 17. "Our livelihood depends on this lake," the fishermen said.

   Show answer

   The fishermen said (that) their livelihood depended on that lake. — our ← their، depends ← depended، this ← that.

2. 18. "I am writing an email to the council," Karim told me.

   Show answer

   Karim told me (that) he was writing an email to the council. — I am writing ← he was writing.

3. 19. "Will the new dam affect the farmers?" the student asked.

   Show answer

   The student asked if / whether the new dam would affect the farmers. — سؤال yes/no: if + ترتيب عادي + will ← would.

4. 20. "What are you doing to protect the turtles?" the journalist asked Nour.

   Show answer

   The journalist asked Nour what she was doing to protect the turtles. — you ← she، are doing ← was doing، الفاعل قبل الفعل.

5. 21. "We saw hundreds of storks here yesterday," the guide said.

   Show answer

   The guide said (that) they had seen hundreds of storks there the day before. — saw ← had seen، here ← there، yesterday ← the day before.

6. 22. "Please don't cut down the trees," the villagers said to the company.

   Show answer

   The villagers asked the company not to cut down the trees. — طلب منفي: asked + شخص + not to.

E. Find the mistake and correct it. Then write as asked.

1. 23. Find and correct the mistake: The officer asked me where did I find the injured bird.

   Show answer

   did I find ← I had found (أو I found): The officer asked me where I had found the injured bird. — مفيش did في السؤال المنقول.

2. 24. Find and correct the mistake: The officials said that the new park could opened next year.

   Show answer

   could opened ← could be opened: محتاجين be علشان المعنى مبني للمجهول (الجنينة هتتفتح، مش هي اللي بتفتح).

3. 25. JRE: Should countries share the water of a river fairly? Write a claim, a reason and evidence. Use reported speech in your evidence.

   Show answer

   مثال: Countries should share river water fairly. This is because farmers, fishermen and wildlife on both sides depend on the same river. For example, a water expert explained that unfair sharing could lead to conflict, and local farmers said that they were losing their crops in dry years. — الدليل منقول بـ explained that / said that مع backshift.