B1 · Intermédiaire Chapitre 41

Telling Others' Words: Reported Speech

4 Règles totales
1 min
Règles dans ce chapitre Pratique rapide

Chapter in 30 Seconds

Master the art of relaying conversations and sharing information accurately in Bengali.

  • Identify the difference between direct and indirect speech.
  • Apply necessary tense shifts when reporting past events.
  • Adjust pronouns and time markers to match the new perspective.
Speak for others, report with confidence.

Ce que tu vas apprendre

Learn how to report what someone else has said, both directly and indirectly. This involves changes in tense and pronouns.

Learning Objectives

By the end of this chapter, you will be able to:

  1. 1
    By the end you will be able to: convert simple direct statements into indirect reported speech.

Conseils et astuces (4)

💡

Keep it exact

Always copy the words exactly. Don't change the tense.
frontend.learn_grammar.from_rule: Direct Speech (প্রত্যক্ষ উক্তি - protokkho ukti)
🎯

The 'Je' Shortcut

In fast casual speech, 'je' is sometimes dropped, but as a learner, always keep it to ensure your sentence is clear.
frontend.learn_grammar.from_rule: Indirect Speech (পরোক্ষ উক্তি - porokkho ukti)
💡

Check the Reporting Verb

Always look at the first verb. If it's in the past, shift the second one.
frontend.learn_grammar.from_rule: Tense Changes in Reported Speech
💡

Check the Time

Always check if the time has passed.
frontend.learn_grammar.from_rule: Pronoun & Adverb Changes in Reported Speech

Vocabulaire clé (5)

উক্তি Speech/Statement বলেছেন Said/Told যে That কাল Yesterday/Tomorrow পরিবর্তন Change

Real-World Preview

mic

Sharing News

Review Summary

  • Subject + verb + 'Quote'
  • Subject + said + that + sentence
  • Present -> Past
  • Now -> Then, Tomorrow -> Next day

Erreurs courantes

If the main verb is in the past, the reported statement must also shift.

Wrong: সে বলেছে যে সে আজ যাবে।
Correct: সে বলেছিল যে সে ওইদিন যাবে।

Ensure the direct quote matches the original tense exactly.

Wrong: সে বলল, 'আমি যাই।' (when he meant he was going)
Correct: সে বলল, 'আমি যাচ্ছি।' (He said, 'I am going.')

Pronouns must shift to reflect the speaker, not the reporter.

Wrong: সে বলল যে আমি যাব।
Correct: সে বলল যে সে যাবে।

Next Steps

You've tackled reported speech with grace! Keep practicing these shifts and you'll sound like a native speaker in no time.

Listen to a news report and summarize it in indirect speech.

Continue to: Verbs as Nouns: Gerunds & Infinitives

Pratique rapide (10)

Fill in the linker for indirect speech.

মা বললেন ___ খাবার তৈরি।

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: যে
'Je' is the standard linker for statements.

frontend.learn_grammar.from_rule: Indirect Speech (পরোক্ষ উক্তি - porokkho ukti)

Choose the correct sentence.

Which is correct?

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: সে বলল, "আমি যাব।"
Correct punctuation.

frontend.learn_grammar.from_rule: Direct Speech (প্রত্যক্ষ উক্তি - protokkho ukti)

Choose the correct indirect form: সে বলল, "আমি আসব।"

সে বলল, "আমি আসব।"

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: সে বলল যে সে আসবে।
The pronoun 'I' changes to 'He' and the verb 'asbo' changes to 'asbe'.

frontend.learn_grammar.from_rule: Indirect Speech (পরোক্ষ উক্তি - porokkho ukti)

Correct the error.

Find and fix the mistake:

সে বলল যে, "আমি আসব।"

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: সে বলল, "আমি আসব।"
Remove 'যে'.

frontend.learn_grammar.from_rule: Direct Speech (প্রত্যক্ষ উক্তি - protokkho ukti)

Fix the error.

Find and fix the mistake:

সে বলল যে সে আসছে। (Reported as past)

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: সে বলল যে সে আসছিল
Present continuous to past continuous.

frontend.learn_grammar.from_rule: Tense Changes in Reported Speech

Fill in the blank.

সে বলল, ___ "আমি যাব।"

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: ,
Comma is needed.

frontend.learn_grammar.from_rule: Direct Speech (প্রত্যক্ষ উক্তি - protokkho ukti)

Correct the mistake: সে জিজ্ঞেস করল আমি যাব কি?

Find and fix the mistake:

সে জিজ্ঞেস করল আমি যাব কি?

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: সে জিজ্ঞেস করল আমি যাব কিনা।
Indirect yes/no questions use 'kina' and no question mark.

frontend.learn_grammar.from_rule: Indirect Speech (পরোক্ষ উক্তি - porokkho ukti)

Fill in the blank.

সে বলল যে সে ___। (will go)

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: যাবে
Future tense in reported speech.

frontend.learn_grammar.from_rule: Tense Changes in Reported Speech

Choose the correct punctuation.

সে জিজ্ঞাসা করল ___ "তুমি কি আসবে?"

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: ,
Comma is needed.

frontend.learn_grammar.from_rule: Direct Speech (প্রত্যক্ষ উক্তি - protokkho ukti)

Fill in the blank.

মা বললেন, "___ খাও।"

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: ভাত
Correct word.

frontend.learn_grammar.from_rule: Direct Speech (প্রত্যক্ষ উক্তি - protokkho ukti)

Score: /10

Questions fréquentes (6)

No, 'যে' is for indirect speech.
After the reporting verb.
In formal writing, yes. In very fast casual conversation, it is sometimes omitted, but it's better to use it to avoid confusion.
Usually, they stay as aj (today) and kal (tomorrow) if you are reporting on the same day. If reporting much later, aj might become sedin (that day).
If the statement is still true or a universal fact, you don't have to. But for most events, yes.
Then you don't shift the tense. 'সে বলে যে সে খায়'.
Chapitre précédent
Actions Done to Us: The Passive Voice (Basic)
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Verbs as Nouns: Gerunds & Infinitives
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