O que é o discurso indireto?

Quando falamos sobre o que alguém disse, podemos usar duas formas principais: discurso direto ou discurso indireto.

• Discurso direto utiliza as palavras exatas do interlocutor, geralmente entre aspas. Por exemplo: He said, ‘I don’t want to talk to you.’
• Discurso indireto (também chamada de discurso indireto) nos informa o que foi dito sem usar as palavras exatas. Por exemplo: He said he didn’t want to talk to me.

Costumamos usar verbos de relato como say, tell, ou ask para introduzir o discurso indireto.

Como os tempos verbais mudam no discurso indireto? (Deslocamento temporal)

Quando o verbo de relato (por exemplo, said) se passa no passado, costumamos "retroceder" o tempo verbal da afirmação original. Isso significa deslocar o tempo verbal um passo adiante no passado.

• Present Simple torna-se Past Simple.
  Exemplo: ‘I don’t want to talk.’ → He said he didn’t want to talk.
• Present Continuous torna-se Past Continuous.
  Exemplo: ‘I’m planning to resign.’ → She said she was planning to resign.
• Present Perfect torna-se Past Perfect.
  Exemplo: ‘I’ve already told you.’ → He said he had already told me.
• Past Simple torna-se Past Perfect.
  Exemplo: ‘I saw you break it.’ → I told him I had seen him break it.
• ‘Be going to’ torna-se ‘was/were going to’.
  Exemplo: ‘I’m going to cook tonight.’ → You said you were going to cook that night.
• Will torna-se Would.
  Exemplo: ‘I’ll see you soon.’ → He said he would see me soon.
• Can torna-se Could.
  Exemplo: ‘I can’t hear you.’ → She said she couldn’t hear me.
• May torna-se Might.
  Exemplo: ‘You may be right.’ → He said I might be right.

Todos os verbos modais sofrem alteração?

Não, alguns verbos modais não se alteram no discurso indireto. Esses verbos modais já expressam um grau de possibilidade ou condição.

• Os verbos modais would, could, should, e might geralmente permanecem os mesmos.

Por exemplo:

• Direct: ‘I’d like to go.’ → Reported: He said he’d like to go.
• Direct: ‘It might be difficult.’ → Reported: She said it might be difficult.

Perguntas de relatório: perguntas com “quem”, “o quê”, “onde”, “quando”, “por que” e perguntas do tipo “sim/não”

Ao relatar perguntas, a ordem das palavras muda da forma interrogativa para a forma afirmativa. Além disso, não usamos pontos de interrogação.

Perguntas com “wh-”

• Mantenha a palavra interrogativa (where, why, what, when, how).
• Insira o assunto antes de o verbo.
• Não use os verbos auxiliares do, does, ou did.

Exemplos:

• Direct: ‘Where are you from?’ → Reported: She asked me where I was from.
• Direct: ‘Why did she say that?’ → Reported: He asked me why she had said that.

Perguntas do tipo “sim/não”

• Uso if ou whether após o verbo de relato.
• Whether é, em geral, mais formal do que if.
• Mais uma vez, coloque o assunto antes de o verbo.

Exemplos:

• Direct: ‘Are you going to help?’ → Reported: We asked them if they were going to help.
• Direct: ‘Did you visit the London Eye?’ → Reported: She asked us whether we had visited the London Eye.

Outras mudanças importantes: pronomes, época e local

Além dos tempos verbais, geralmente é preciso alterar os pronomes e os adjetivos possessivos. Isso depende de quem está falando e de quem é o destinatário da fala.

• Direct: ‘I want you to give this message to your boss tonight.’
• Reported: She said she wanted me to give that message to my boss that night.

Alterações comuns em palavras relacionadas a tempo e lugar:

• now → then
• today → that day
• tonight → that night
• yesterday → the day before / the previous day
• tomorrow → the next day / the following day
• last week → the week before / the previous week
• next year → the following year
• here → there
• this → that
• these → those

Quando não devemos mudar o tempo verbal?

Às vezes, não precisamos alterar o tempo verbal no discurso indireto. Isso ocorre em situações específicas:

• Quando a afirmação original ainda é verdadeira ou relevante no momento da divulgação. Por exemplo, se alguém dissesse ‘I don’t want to talk to you’ ontem, e isso continua valendo hoje: I told you yesterday that I don’t want to talk to you.
• Se o verbo de relato estiver no presente (por exemplo, He says...), também não alteramos o tempo verbal da oração relatada. Por exemplo: He says he is happy.
• No caso de verdades gerais ou fatos científicos: She said the Earth is round.

“Dizer” x “Contar”: qual é a diferença?

Esses dois verbos costumam ser confundidos, mas apresentam padrões gramaticais diferentes. Compreendê-los é fundamental para a correta utilização do discurso indireto.

• Say: Uso say quando você não menciona a pessoa com quem está falando. Você pode usar say (that) + clause. For example: He said (that) he had a new car. Você também pode usar say to someone, but tell is more common when an object is present.
• Tell: Sempre use tell with an object (the person you are speaking to). The pattern is tell + object + (that) + clause. For example: He told me (that) he had a new car.

Remember: It is incorrect to say He said me he had a new car.

Exemplos

• He said, ‘I don’t want to talk to you.’
• He said he didn’t want to talk to me.
• She said she was planning to resign.
• He said he had already told me.
• I told him I had seen him break it.
• You said you were going to cook that night.
• He said he would see me soon.
• She said she couldn’t hear me.
• He said I might be right.
• He said he’d like to go.
• She said it might be difficult.
• She asked me where I was from.
• He asked me why she had said that.
• We asked them if they were going to help.
• She asked us whether we had visited the London Eye.
• She said she wanted me to give that message to my boss that night.
• I told you yesterday that I don’t want to talk to you.
• Tom said he had a new car.
• Tom told me he had a new car.

Prática

Erros comuns entre falantes de espanhol

Many Spanish speakers often make these mistakes when using reported speech:

• Confuso say e tell: Direct translation of "decir a alguien" can lead to errors.
  • Incorreto: She said me she was busy.
  • Correto: She told me she was busy. (Use tell with an object)
  • Correto: She said she was busy. (Use say without an object)
• Forgetting to backshift tenses: Especially from Past Simple to Past Perfect when the reporting verb is in the past.
  • Incorreto: He said he went to the party yesterday.
  • Correto: He said he had gone to the party the day before.
• Not changing the word order in reported questions: Remember to use statement word order (subject + verb).
  • Incorreto: She asked me where was I from.
  • Correto: She asked me where I was from.

Perguntas frequentes

Por que mudamos os tempos verbais no discurso indireto?

We change tenses (called "backshift") because the original words were spoken at an earlier time. The reported speech reflects that past moment. For example, ‘I am hungry’ torna-se He said he was hungry, because at the time of reporting, he *was* hungry.

É sempre necessário recuar os tempos verbais?

No, not always. If the reported statement is still true or relevant at the moment of reporting, or if the reporting verb is in the present tense (e.g., He says...), you don't need to backshift. For example, She said the Earth is round is correct because it's a universal truth.

Posso usar 'that' depois de 'say' ou 'tell'?

Yes, that is optional after say ou tell in reported statements. For example, He said he was tired e He said that he was tired are both correct. It's often omitted in informal speech.

Qual é a principal diferença entre afirmações de relato e perguntas de relato?

The main difference is word order and the use of conjunctions. For statements, we use subject + verb. For questions, we also use subject + verb (not question word order), and we add if/whether for yes/no questions, or keep the question word for Wh- questions.

Aulas relacionadas

• Discurso indireto