reported speech
Secondhand verbal account
Reported speech is the grammatical construction for conveying what someone said without quoting them directly.
Direct speech uses quotation marks: She said, "I'm leaving.".
Reported speech shifts pronouns and tenses: She said she was leaving.
Also called indirect speech.
In identical wording
- citationMention of a source
- quoteRepeated words from another
- attributionAssigning origin or cause
- excerptPortion taken from larger work
Tense adjustment in reporting
- tenseStrained or nervous
- pronounNoun's grammatical replacement
- clauseProvision in agreement
- syntaxRules for arranging words
indirect · declarative · interrogative · imperative · conditional · modal · auxiliary · infinitive
Claimed but unproven
- secondhandHaving had prior ownership
- rumorUnconfirmed circulating story
- gossipInformal talk spreading rumors
- anecdoteBrief account of incident
account · relayed · circulated · unverified · attributed · sourced · anonymous · off-the-record
One who tells events
- perspectiveAttitude or spatial rendering
- voiceSound from throat
- omniscientUnlimited in awareness
- third-personGrammatical category for others
focalization · interior monologue · stream of consciousness · point of view · storyteller
Express differently
- summarizeState main points briefly
- restatementRewording of something said
- conveyCommunicate or transport
- retellingNarrating something anew
gist · rendering · recasting · rewording · condensing · approximation
verbatim
In identical wording
- citationMention of a source
- quoteRepeated words from another
- attributionAssigning origin or cause
excerpt · saying · scare quotes · block quote · misquote
backshift
Tense adjustment in reporting
syntax · indirect · declarative · interrogative · imperative · conditional · modal · auxiliary · infinitive · subjunctive
alleged
Claimed but unproven
- secondhandHaving had prior ownership
- rumorUnconfirmed circulating story
- gossipInformal talk spreading rumors
anecdote · account · relayed · circulated · unverified · attributed · sourced · anonymous · off-the-record · leaked
narrator
One who tells events
- perspectiveAttitude or spatial rendering
- voiceSound from throat
- omniscientUnlimited in awareness
third-person · focalization · interior monologue · stream of consciousness · point of view · storyteller
rephrase
Express differently
- summarizeState main points briefly
- restatementRewording of something said
- conveyCommunicate or transport
retelling · gist · rendering · recasting · rewording · condensing · approximation
speech, report, reporter, reporting, reports, reported, unreported, reportedly, misreport