how to write direct speech in french

French Grammar: Direct and Indirect Speech

How to Speak About Someone Else's Words in French

• Pronunciation & Conversation
• Resources For Teachers

Learning to use proper grammar is an important part of studying the French language . One element of that is direct and indirect speech, or when you are speaking about what someone else has said.

There are a few grammar rules that you should know when it comes to these styles of speech and this French grammar lesson will walk you through the basics.

French Direct and Indirect Speech ( Discours direct et indirec t)

In French, there are two different ways to express the words of another person: direct speech (or direct style) and indirect speech (indirect style).

• In direct speech, you are quoting the words of another person.
• In indirect speech, you are referencing what another person has said without quoting them directly.

Direct Speech ( Discours direct )

Direct speech is very simple. You will use it to impart the exact words of the original speaker are reported in quotes.

• Paul dit : « J'aime les fraises ». -  Paul says, "I like strawberries."
• Lise répond : « Jean les déteste ». -  Lisa replies, "Jean hates them."
• « Jean est stupide » déclare Paul.* -  "Jean is stupid" Paul declares.

Notice the use of « » around the quoted sentences.  The quotation marks used in English (" ") don't exist in French, instead the  guillemets ( « ») are used. 

Indirect Speech ( Discours indirect )

In indirect speech, the original speaker's words are reported without quotes in a subordinate clause (introduced by  que ). 

• Paul dit qu'il aime les fraises. -  Paul says that he loves strawberries.
• Lise répond que Jean les déteste. -  Lisa replies that Jean hates them.
• Paul déclare que Jean est stupide. -  Paul declares that Jean is stupid.

The rules associated with indirect speech are not as simple as they are with direct speech and this subject requires further examination.

Reporting Verbs for Indirect Speech

There are many verbs, called reporting verbs, that can be used to introduce indirect speech:

• affirmer - to assert
• ajouter - to add
• annoncer - to announce
• crier - to shout
• déclarer - to declare
• dire - to say
• expliquer - to explain
• insister - to insist
• prétendre - to claim
• proclamer - to proclaim
• répondre - to answer
• soutenir - to maintain

Switching From Direct to Indirect Speech

Indirect speech tends to be more complicated than direct speech because it requires certain changes (in both English and French). There are three primary changes that may need to be made.

#1 -  Personal pronouns  and  possessives  may need to be changed:

#2 -  Verb conjugations  need to change to agree with the new subject:

#3 - In the above examples, there is no change in the tense because the statements are in the present. However, if the main clause is in the past tense, the  verb tense  of the subordinate clause may also need to change:

The following chart shows the correlation between verb tenses in  direct  and  indirect speech . Use it to determine how to rewrite direct speech as indirect speech or vice versa.

Note:  Présent/Imparfait  to  Imparfait  is by far the most common - you don't need to worry too much about the rest.

• Personal Pronouns: French Grammar and Pronunciation Glossary
• French Direct Objects and Direct Object Pronouns
• Understanding Object Pronoun Verb Order in French
• French Grammar Glossary: Future Subjunctive Is Present Subjunctive
• French Subordinate Clause: French Grammar and Pronunciation Glossary
• Intransitive Verbs: French Grammar and Pronunciation Glossary
• French Comparative Adverbs: How They're Formed
• Learn the French Sequence of Tenses
• How to Conjugate "Diriger" (to Direct)
• French Indirect Objects and Indirect Object Pronouns
• How to Use French Punctuation
• French Object Pronouns
• French Transitive Verbs
• Auxiliary Verbs: French Grammar and Pronunciation Glossary
• Index of French Grammar and Pronunciation Glossary Terms
• How to Express Exclamations in French

How To Form French Direct vs. Indirect Speech

What is direct vs. indirect speech in French?

In French there are two kinds of speech: direct speech (le discours direct) and indirect speech (le discours indirect). When using direct speech you quote what another person says with quotation marks. The French use the following quotation marks: « ». Also, note that some textbooks refer to this as direct and indirect discourse.

par example:

• Paul dit: «J’ai faim». Paul says, “I’m hungry.”
• Marie demande: «Où sont les toilettes?». Marie asks, “Where’s the restroom?”

In indirect speech (le discours indirect) you’re referring to what another person said without using any quotation marks. Indirect speech can become a bit complicated because several grammatical elements such as personal pronouns and possessive adjectives can change.

• Paul dit qu’il a faim. Paul says he’s hungry.
• Marie demande ou sont les toilettes. Marie asks where’s the rest room.

Agreement of tenses – la concordance des temps

When switching from direct speech to indirect speech the present tense and passé composé are maintained. This doesn’t apply to the imperative, which we’ll look at further below.

In the examples below we’ll look at specific elements of speech which change between the direct and indirect speech.

Example 1 – Le présent

In this first example there’s no change in tense (présent), but the possessive adjective (mes amis -> ses amis) changes as well as the indirect object pronoun (me -> lui).

Example 2 – Le passé composé

In this second example there’s no change in tense (passé composé), but the possessive adjective changes (mon mari -> son mari) as well as the personal pronoun (moi -> elle).

Example 3 – L’impératif

When dealing with the imperative, the imperative in the direct speech becomes the infinitive in the indirect speech. In the indirect speech, the personal pronoun (il) and indirect object pronouns (me) come into play. Additionally, moi becomes lui.

Example 4 – Indirect question

When dealing with an indirect question the word “si” (if) is used in the indirect speech. The personal pronoun tu becomes je.

Example 5 – Qu’est-ce qui

Qu’est-ce qui in a question becomes ce qui.

Example 6 – Qu’est-ce que

Qu’est-ce que becomes ce que.

Example 7 – Information questions

For questions seeking information using «Ou est-ce que?», «Quand est-ce que?», «Comment est-ce que» etc., the est-ce que is disappears in the indirect speech.

Verbs which can be used with indirect speech

The following is a list of words that can be used in indirect speech. In the main clause (beginning of the sentence) they can be followed by que (that), si (if), où (where) etc.

• affirmer to say, claim
• annoncer to announce
• assurer to ensure, maintain
• avouer to admit, confess
• confier to confide
• constater to note, notice
• crier to shout
• délarer to state
• dire to say
• expliquer to explain
• insister to insist
• observer to observe, notice
• prétendre to claim
• proclamer to proclaim
• promettre to promise
• remarquer to notice
• répondre to answer
• réléver to reveal
• s’apercevoir to realize
• savoir to know
• se rendre compte to realize
• soutenir to maintain

more resources:

• francais.lingolia.com (exercise)
• laits.utexas.edu (exercise)

related lessons:

• Ce qui, ce que
• French imperative
• Indirect object pronouns
• French grammar overview

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David Issokson

David Issokson is a lifelong language enthusiast. His head is swimming with words and sounds as he speaks over six languages. Of all the languages he speaks, he's the most passionate about French! David has helped hundreds of students to improve their French in his private online lessons. When procrastinating working on his site, FrenchLearner.com, David enjoys his time skiing and hiking in Teton Valley, Idaho.

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Guide to Indirect and Direct Speech in French

In French, you have two main ways of getting your point across or expressing what someone has said, reported speech and indirect speech. Indirect speech is used to report what someone said without repeating their exact words. And direct speech is used in the opposite way, you convey what someone said using their exact words. But when would you use each of them correctly?

How to Use Indirect Speech?

As we briefly mentioned in the introduction to this lesson, indirect speech is used to express what someone said without saying their exact words , you might want to use it to paraphrase a quote or a brief summary of what was said. The sentences using indirect speech use que to introduce the indirect action.

This speech mode is not as simple as the direct one. There is a certain number of verbs, also known as reporting verbs, that can be used to introduce indirect speech sentences.

Fatima affirme que les choses vont changer.

Fatima says that things are going to change.

Il crie que des fourmis se baladent sur lui.

He screams he has ants all over him.

Elles expliquent que les classes sont difficiles.

They explain that the classes are difficult.

Direct Speech in French

Contrary to indirect speech, direct speech is easier to use and form. You use it to quote word by word what was said by another person. This speech is usually introduced by quotation marks.

Ma plus jeune fille dit : “Je vais être ecrivaine”.

My youngest daughter says: “I’m going to be a writer”.

Ta mére nous dit toujours : “Je suis très fier de vous deux”.

Your mother always tells us: “I am very proud of you two”.

Sa soeur prononce au milieu du dejeuner: “J’ai tombé enceinte.”

His sister utters in the middle of lunch: “I got pregnant.”

How to Turn Direct Speech into Indirect Speech in French?

Indirect speech is in fact a little more complicated than direct speech because there are certain details that you have to keep in mind if you want to go back and forth between the two of them.

• Direct Speech:

David déclare a son épouse: “ Je veux voir la mer”.

David says to his wife: “I want to see the sea”.

• Indirect Speech:

David déclare qu’ il veut voir la mer.

David says that he wants to see the sea.

Silvie a dit: “Je veux voir ma mère.”

Silvie said: “I want to see my mother.”

Silvie dit qu’elle veut voir sa mère.

Silvie says she wants to see her mother.

• Direct Speech

Theo a déclaré : “Je veux jouer au foot.”

Theo said: “I want to play soccer.”

• Indirect Speech

Theo a déclaré qu’il voulait jouer au foot.

Theo said he wanted to play soccer.

You’re Ready to Use the Reported Speech in French

As we come to the end of this lesson, we hope you feel ready to use this important tool to express, quote, or even paraphrase what someone else said. With this lesson, the techniques, and the examples we’ve presented, you can start communicating everything you need to get your point across with ease. Remember that practice makes perfect and that we have all the tools you need to speak and write French like a native speaker.

Learn more about: Finally Learn which French Verbs Take Direct or Indirect Object

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How to use direct and indirect reported speech in French?

Use direct and indirect reported speech in French to provide information, such as:

what you or someone else said,

what you were told,

what you heard, or

what you were or someone else was thinking.

There are two varieties of reported speech: direct speech and indirect speech. Direct reported speech is used to report exactly what is said. Let’s see an example.

Manon dit : « J’ai faim. »

Manon says, “I’m hungry.”

On the other hand, indirect reported speech is used to paraphrase a statement or a thought.

J’ai hâte !

I’m looking forward to it!

Elle dit qu’elle a hâte.

She says she’s looking forward to it.

When you report speech indirectly, the part of the sentence that represents what was said fundamentally changes. Did you notice how, above, “J’ai hâte !” became “elle a hâte” ?

In this article, you’ll find out how to report a statement or thought in the present and past, all while learning or reviewing vocabulary, French tenses, punctuation, and much more.

Ready to tackle reported speech?! Allez ! C’est parti !

Table of Contents

What are the french reporting verbs.

Reporting verbs are verbs used to introduce reported speech. They usually tell you something about how someone spoke or thought. Reporting verbs are used for both direct and indirect reported speech.

To report a thought, the most common reporting verb is penser ( to think ) .

« Elle est si jolie », pensait -il.

“She is so pretty,” he thought.

For a statement, we usually use dire ( to say ) .

Il dit qu’il n’y comprend rien.

He says he doesn't understand a thing.

To report a question, we most commonly use demander ( to ask ) .

Elle m’ a demandé : « Tu vas bien ? »

She asked me, “How are you?”

What is direct reported speech in French?

Direct speech reports exactly what is said. It is very common in novels, when translating, and in journalism. Direct reported speech sounds more dynamic; you feel like you’re there because the speech is not altered.

How to use punctuation in French direct reported speech?

There are a couple of ways to use punctuation for direct reported speech in French. The most common one you’ll find, in newspapers for instance, is the use of colons after reporting verbs and the French quotation marks « … » , as opposed to the English ones “...”, before and after the direct reported speech. There is also no period in the quote when the sentence is followed by a reporting verb. Instead, there is a comma, placed outside the end quotation mark, that introduces the reporting verb.

Paola continue : « C’était magique ! »

Paola adds, “It was magical!”

« C’était magique », continue Paola.

“It was magical,” Paola adds.

Did you notice?

In French, we use a space before punctuation marks like exclamation points (!) and question marks (?). The same space is needed between the reporting verb and a colon, the French quotation marks («…») and the direct speech inside them, and the punctuation that follows the direct speech and the end quotation marks. Notice the spaces marked below (red underline):

Emma dit : « J’adore ce film. »

Emma says, “I love this movie.”

Another punctuation rule when reporting a dialogue is the required use of dashes . Unlike English, which requires quotation marks, French uses dashes to indicate the turns of a conversation. Quotation marks are optional and are only used at the beginning and at the end of the entire dialogue. Here’s an example comparing a dialogue in French and in English:

Les deux amis ont parlé de leurs vacances.

The two friends talked about their holidays.

« On partira fin-mai.

“We’ll go at the end of May.”

Ah, nous, on a préféré partir en hiver.

“Will you? We personally preferred going during the wintertime.”

Vous avez raison, il y a moins de touristes. »

“You are right actually, it is less touristy.”

In novels, reporting verbs tagged after direct speech have a different subject-verb order. While in English, it is subject + verb, in French, it is verb + subject linked with a dash.

« Elle est jolie », dit-il.

“She is pretty,” he says.

lit. “She is pretty,” says he.

When your reporting verb ends in "e" you’ll need to add "t" between the verb and the pronouns il , elle , or on . This helps with pronunciation. For those who love a bit of jargon, this is called a “ euphonic t .”

« Il est gentil », raconte -t- elle.

How to use ‘faire’ and ‘sortir’ to speak like a genuine French person?

In English, “to be like” is often used to report a speech when speaking informally; its equivalent in French is faire ( to do ) and it is used just like any other reporting verb for direct reported speech.

You can also add indirect object pronouns No definition set for indirect object pronouns Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum. like me ( to me ) or lui ( to him, to her ) to indicate who the person was talking to.

Il m’a sorti : « Je vais me marier !! »

He was like, “I’m going to get married!!”

Il m’a fait : « Euh… j’suis pas sûr. »

He was like, “Er…I’m not too sure.”

When using faire in direct reported speech, try to imitate the person’s voice!

Right! Now, you know how direct speech works, let’s study indirect speech!

What is indirect reported speech in French?

Indirect reported speech in French is a method of relaying what someone else said, thought, asked, or communicated in some way. As we have seen earlier, indirect reported speech changes the perspective from the speaker to the reporter, which means that you may need to alter the direct speech before reporting it indirectly, the same as you would in English.

For indirect speech, you'll need to be able to conjugate French verbs and use a variety of pronouns. Let’s make sure you have everything you need in your French tool box! Don’t hesitate to click on the links if you need a refresher.

Verbs tenses ( présent , imparfait , passé composé , plus-que-parfait , futur simple , conditionnel présent )

French subject pronouns and stressed pronouns

French reflexive pronouns

If you feel comfortable with conjugation, let’s get started!

How to use indirect reported speech in French?

Use indirect speech when you don’t want to quote exactly what someone said, asked, or thought, and, instead, you refer to what you’ve heard using a subordinate clause No definition set for subordinate clause Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum. , most commonly introduced by que ( that ) .

Elle a dit qu’ elle voulait venir.

She said (that) she wanted to come.

Using indirect reported speech can be a bit trickier than using direct reported speech, because sometimes using indirect speech will require you to change pronouns No definition set for pronouns Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum. , verb tenses, or other words in the sentence. Let’s take a look.

How to use present indirect reported speech?

When the direct reported speech is in the present tense and doesn’t involve the subject pronouns je , tu , nous , vous , no change occurs in the indirect speech:

However, when someone is talking about themselves or to “you,” you need to alter subject pronouns No definition set for subject pronouns Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum. , reflexive pronouns No definition set for reflexive pronouns Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum. , possessive adjectives No definition set for possessive adjectives Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum. , and adapt the verb, just like in English.

In the example below, the subject pronouns and possessive pronouns must change in the indirect reported speech, along with the verb conjugations!

Like in English, verbs of motion differ between direct and indirect reported speech because the point of reference changes from the original speaker’s point of view to the reporter’s point of view.

How to use past indirect reported speech?

If you want to indirectly report something that was said in the past (using phrases like, “He said that…” or “She thought that…”), you’ll need to learn the correspondence of verb tenses that change between direct and indirect past reported speech. Luckily, it is similar in English!

The good news is that all other tenses, like the imperfect or the present conditional, remain the same between direct and indirect reported speech.

Verb correspondences aren’t the only changes you’ll want to learn with past indirect reported speech. Indeed, there are also some adverbial changes that will take place when you alter the tenses. See our list of French adverbs that change in indirect reported speech (p. 2) !

Now, let’s take a look at indirect speech used to report questions and interjections/commands.

How to use indirect speech with questions?

When indirectly reporting a question, que can’t introduce the clause, as it has in our examples above. If the answer is yes or no, you’ll use si , which is the equivalent of “whether.”

Tu es content ? → Il m’a demandé si j’étais content.

Are you happy? → He asked me whether I was happy.

Just like in English, when indirectly reporting a questions with the 4 Ws in French qui, quand, où, pourquoi ( who, when, where, why ) ) and comment ( how ) , you’ll need to use an interrogative pronoun instead of que or si to introduce the indirect speech.

Qu’est-ce que and qu’est-ce qui turn into ce que and ce qui , respectively, in reported questions. But it is quite a common mistake among native French speakers to keep qu’est-ce que in the reported speech.

How to use indirect speech with commands and interjections?

Let’s say you just want to indirectly report an interjection No definition set for interjection Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum. like Merci ( Thank you ) or a short command like Sors ! ( Get out! ) — what would you say?!

Let’s start with commands, because it will help you with interjections. The imperative mood , which expresses an order, can be indirectly reported like so:

Reporting Verb

dire ( to say )

demander ( to ask )

ordonner ( to order )

obliger ( to urge )

Infinitive of the command

Il m’ a demandé d' arrêter .

He asked me to stop.

What about the negation ?

The negation goes after de .

Now, let’s talk about interjections. Just like in English, there are verbs derived from these single words which can be used to describe what was said.

In brief: What to remember about French reported speech?

When reporting speech directly or indirectly in French, remember what you’ve learned in this post! Here’s a recap:

Direct reported speech works the same in French and English, except for with certain punctuation and the subject-verb order, i.e. “he says” = dit-il .

Faire is the equivalent to the English reporting phrase “to be like.”

For indirect reported speech, que ( that ) is not optional, unlike in English.

Some tenses will change between direct and indirect reported speech (present tense → imperfect, future → present conditional), but the other tenses don’t change.

For yes or no questions, use si ( whether ) . In other questions, qu’est-ce que/qui ( what ) turns into ce que/qui .

Use a reporting verb followed by de and an infinitive to indirectly report a command or interjection.

Now that you’ve reviewed the key rules to reported speech, you’re ready to head to our French reported speech activities .

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Introduction to French Direct Speech Sentences

Direct speech, also known as reported speech or quoted speech, is a way of expressing someone’s exact words or thoughts. In French, direct speech sentences play an important role in conversation and storytelling. In this explanation, we will explore the basics of French direct speech sentences, including their structure, punctuation, and common usage. We will provide example sentences to illustrate each concept.

Structure of French Direct Speech Sentences

In French, direct speech sentences are typically introduced by a reporting verb or phrase, followed by the actual words spoken, and closed with appropriate punctuation. The reporting verb or phrase identifies the speaker and sets the context for the reported speech. Here is a typical structure of a French direct speech sentence:

Reporting verb/phrase + Subject + Verb + Complement (Optional) + Punctuation

Let’s consider an example:

Direct speech: “Je suis fatigué.” (I am tired.) Reporting verb: Marie dit (Marie says)

French direct speech sentence: Marie dit : “Je suis fatigué.” (Marie says, “I am tired.”)

In this example, the reporting verb “Marie dit” introduces the direct speech sentence, which is enclosed within quotation marks. The subject of the reported speech remains the same, followed by the verb and any optional complement. The sentence is closed with appropriate punctuation, in this case, a colon and quotation marks.

Punctuation in French Direct Speech Sentences

Punctuation plays a crucial role in French direct speech sentences, as it helps to distinguish between the reported speech and the reporting verb or phrase. Here are some essential punctuation rules to keep in mind:

Quotation marks : In French, quotation marks (« » or ” “) are used to enclose the direct speech. The opening quotation mark is placed before the reported speech, and the closing quotation mark is placed after the reported speech. For example:

Marie dit : “Je suis fatigué.” (Marie says, “I am tired.”)

Colon or Dash : A colon (:) or dash (—) is used after the reporting verb or phrase to introduce the direct speech. The choice between a colon and a dash depends on personal preference or writing style. For example:

Marie dit : “Je suis fatigué.” or Marie dit — “Je suis fatigué.”

Punctuation inside the quotation marks : Punctuation marks, such as commas, periods, exclamation points, or question marks, should be placed inside the closing quotation mark. For example:

Common Usage of French Direct Speech Sentences

French direct speech sentences are commonly used in various situations, such as storytelling, dialogue, and reporting conversations. Here are some examples to illustrate their usage:

Storytelling :

Pierre raconte : “Il était une fois un petit garçon qui vivait dans une petite maison.” (Pierre tells, “Once upon a time, there was a little boy who lived in a small house.”)

In storytelling, direct speech sentences are used to convey the exact words spoken by characters, bringing the story to life.

Sophie demande : “Qu’est-ce que tu veux faire ce soir ?” (Sophie asks, “What do you want to do tonight?”)

In dialogue, direct speech sentences allow for a more engaging and interactive conversation between two or more individuals.

Reporting conversations:

Le journaliste rapporte : “Le président a déclaré : ‘Nous sommes déterminés à résoudre ce problème.’” (The journalist reports, “The president stated, ‘We are determined to solve this problem.’”)

Direct speech sentences are frequently used in journalism to report statements made by public figures or interviewees.

Expressing thoughts and opinions:

Juliette affirme : “Je pense que c’est une excellente idée.” (Juliette asserts, “I think it’s a great idea.”)

Direct speech sentences can be used to express personal thoughts, opinions, or beliefs in a direct and impactful manner.

By using direct speech sentences, French speakers can accurately convey someone’s words, thoughts, or ideas while adding depth and authenticity to their conversations or written works. Remember to pay attention to the structure, punctuation, and appropriate usage of direct speech sentences to ensure clear communication. Practice with various examples and engage in conversations to become more proficient in using French direct speech sentences effectively.

Exercise 1: Choose the correct reporting verb to introduce the direct speech sentence.

Marie __ : “J’adore ce film.”

a) demande b) dit c) répond d) pense

Answer: b) dit Explanation: The correct reporting verb to introduce the direct speech sentence is “dit” (says). It is used to attribute the spoken words to Marie. For example, “Marie dit : ‘J’adore ce film.’” (Marie says, ‘I love this movie.’)

Exercise 2: Select the appropriate punctuation for the given direct speech sentence.

Le professeur demande : “Avez-vous fait vos devoirs ?”

a) Le professeur demande – “Avez-vous fait vos devoirs?” b) Le professeur demande – “Avez-vous fait vos devoirs?” c) Le professeur demande : “Avez-vous fait vos devoirs?” d) Le professeur demande – “Avez-vous fait vos devoirs?”

Answer: c) Le professeur demande : “Avez-vous fait vos devoirs?” Explanation: The appropriate punctuation for the given direct speech sentence is a colon (:) after the reporting phrase and quotation marks (” “) to enclose the reported speech. For example, “Le professeur demande : ‘Avez-vous fait vos devoirs?’” (The teacher asks, ‘Did you do your homework?’)

Exercise 3: Identify the correct placement of punctuation within the direct speech sentence.

Elle s’exclame : “Je suis tellement heureuse !”

a) Elle s’exclame : “Je suis tellement heureuse!” b) Elle s’exclame: “Je suis tellement heureuse !” c) Elle s’exclame : “Je suis tellement heureuse!” d) Elle s’exclame: “Je suis tellement heureuse!”

Answer: a) Elle s’exclame : “Je suis tellement heureuse!” Explanation: The correct placement of punctuation within the direct speech sentence is to have the exclamation point (!) placed inside the closing quotation mark. For example, “Elle s’exclame : ‘Je suis tellement heureuse!’” (She exclaims, ‘I am so happy!’)

Exercise 4: Choose the appropriate reporting verb to introduce the direct speech sentence.

Paul __ : “Je ne comprends pas cette question.”

a) explique b) demande c) affirme d) raconte

Answer: b) demande Explanation: The appropriate reporting verb to introduce the direct speech sentence is “demande” (asks). It indicates that Paul is expressing his confusion about the question. For example, “Paul demande : ‘Je ne comprends pas cette question.’” (Paul asks, ‘I don’t understand this question.’)

Exercise 5: Select the correct punctuation for the given direct speech sentence.

Le chef annonce “Le dîner est prêt.”

a) Le chef annonce “Le dîner est prêt.” b) Le chef annonce : “Le dîner est prêt.” c) Le chef annonce — “Le dîner est prêt.” d) Le chef annonce “Le dîner est prêt.”

Answer: b) Le chef annonce : “Le dîner est prêt.” Explanation: The correct punctuation for the given direct speech sentence is a colon (:) after the reporting verb and quotation marks (” “) to enclose the reported speech. For example, “Le chef annonce : ‘Le dîner est prêt.’” (The chef announces, ‘Dinner is ready.’)

Exercise 6: Identify the appropriate punctuation within the direct speech sentence.

“Nous devons partir maintenant” dit-elle.

a) “Nous devons partir maintenant,” dit-elle. b) “Nous devons partir maintenant” dit-elle. c) “Nous devons partir maintenant,” dit-elle. d) “Nous devons partir maintenant” dit-elle.

Answer: a) “Nous devons partir maintenant,” dit-elle. Explanation: The appropriate punctuation within the direct speech sentence is to have a comma (,) placed inside the closing quotation mark. For example, ‘”Nous devons partir maintenant,” dit-elle.’ (She says, ‘We need to leave now.’)

Exercise 7: Choose the correct reporting verb to introduce the direct speech sentence.

Pierre __ : “J’ai acheté un nouveau téléphone.”

a) répète b) écrit c) explique d) annonce

Answer: d) annonce Explanation: The correct reporting verb to introduce the direct speech sentence is “annonce” (announces). It suggests that Pierre is sharing information about his new phone. For example, “Pierre annonce : ‘J’ai acheté un nouveau téléphone.’” (Pierre announces, ‘I bought a new phone.’)

Exercise 8: Select the appropriate punctuation for the given direct speech sentence.

“Où est la bibliothèque ?” demande-t-il.

a) “Où est la bibliothèque ?” demande-t-il. b) “Où est la bibliothèque ?” demande-t-il. c) “Où est la bibliothèque?” demande-t-il. d) “Où est la bibliothèque?” demande-t-il.

Answer: a) “Où est la bibliothèque ?” demande-t-il. Explanation: The appropriate punctuation for the given direct speech sentence is a question mark (?) placed inside the closing quotation mark. For example, ‘”Où est la bibliothèque?” demande-t-il.’ (He asks, ‘Where is the library?’)

Exercise 9: Identify the correct placement of punctuation within the direct speech sentence.

Elle annonce “La fête commencera à 20 heures.”

a) Elle annonce “La fête commencera à 20 heures.” b) Elle annonce: “La fête commencera à 20 heures.” c) Elle annonce “La fête commencera à 20 heures.” d) Elle annonce: “La fête commencera à 20 heures.”

Answer: c) Elle annonce “La fête commencera à 20 heures.” Explanation: The correct placement of punctuation within the direct speech sentence is to have a period (.) placed inside the closing quotation mark. For example, “Elle annonce : ‘La fête commencera à 20 heures.’” (She announces, ‘The party will start at 8 p.m.’)

Exercise 10: Choose the appropriate reporting verb to introduce the direct speech sentence.

Sarah __ : “Je suis en retard.”

a) demande b) prétend c) déclare d) affirme

Answer: d) affirme Explanation: The appropriate reporting verb to introduce the direct speech sentence is “affirme” (affirms). It indicates that Sarah is stating that she is late. For example, “Sarah affirme : ‘Je suis en retard.’” (Sarah affirms, ‘I am late.’)

By completing these exercises, you can practice and reinforce your understanding of French direct speech sentences. The correct answers provide examples that demonstrate the appropriate usage of reporting verbs, punctuation, and the structure of direct speech sentences.

Originally posted 2023-07-19 02:40:52.

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• Sep 10, 2022

Direct and Indirect Speech

Direct and Indirect speech are two types of speech used to report someone else's words.

1. Direct Speech

Direct speech ( le discours direct ) shows a person's exact words. In English, quotation marks "..." are used to show these exact words. In French, guillemets are used instead «...» .

Jacques dit : « j'adore le français ».

Jacques says, " I love French ".

Note that a colon is used in the French sentence before the guillemets.

2. Indirect Speech

Indirect speech ( le discours indirect ) reports the speaker's words or ideas into a sentence without quotation marks; they are a paraphrase. The reader therefore does not assume that the words are the speaker's exact words.

Jacques dit qu'il adore le français.

Jacques says (that) he loves French

Note that the words are reported in a subordinate clause introduced by que (that) . Since another person's point of view is reported, the subject pronoun must change from the first to the third person in the subordinate clause.

The subordinate clause is sometimes introduced by si (if) , ce que (what) or de + infinitive (for an order).

3. Reporting verbs

Here is a list of reporting verbs that can be used to report someone's speech and their translation.

4. Switching from Direct to Indirect Speech

There are three changes that may need to be made when switching from direct to indirect speech.

1. Personal and possessive adjectives

Direct Speech: Sophie affirme: « je dois faire mes devoirs ».

Indirect Speech: Sophie affirme qu' elle doit faire ses devoirs.

2. Verb conjugations need to agree with the new subject.

Direct Speech: Marc déclare: « je veux vivre à l'étranger ».

Indirect Speech: Marc déclare qu'il veut vivre à l'étranger.

3. The verb tense in the subordinate clause may need to change if the main clause is in the past tense .

Direct Speech: Joseph a dit : « je ne suis pas fatigué ».

Indirect Speech: Joseph a dit qu'il n' était pas fatigué.

Note that there is no change of tense if the main clause is in the present tense

Direct Speech: Jessica explique : « je n'y suis pas allée ».

Indirect Speech: Jessica explique qu'elle n'y est pas allée .

5. Tense changes in subordinate clauses

As mentioned above if the main clause is in the present tense, then the tense in the subordinate clause does not change when switching from direct to indirect speech.

However, when the main clause is in the past tense then the tense from the subordinate clause must sometimes be modified when switching from direct to indirect speech and vice versa.

Here is a table showing the tense changes:

Direct Speech: Elle a dit: « je vais au cinéma ».

Indirect Speech: Elle a dit qu'elle allait au cinéma.

Direct Speech: Elle a dit: « je suis allée au cinéma ».

Indirect Speech: Elle a dit qu'elle était allée au cinéma.

Direct Speech: Elle a dit: « j'allais au cinéma ».

Direct Speech: Elle a dit: « j'irai au cinéma ».

Indirect Speech: Elle a dit qu'elle irait au cinéma.

Direct Speech: Elle a dit: « j'irais au cinéma ».

Direct Speech: Elle a dit: « j'étais allée au cinéma ».

Direct Speech: Elle a dit: « je serai allée au cinéma ».

Indirect Speech: Elle a dit qu'elle serait allée au cinéma.

Direct Speech: Elle a dit: « je serais allée au cinéma ».

Direct Speech: Elle a dit: « Il faut que j'aille au cinéma ».

Indirect Speech: Elle a dit qu'il fallait qu'elle aille au cinéma.

Example 10:

Direct Speech: Elle a dit: « Va au cinéma ».

Indirect Speech: Elle a dit d'aller au cinéma.

Recommendation:

For French A Level students with any exam board:

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Speech in French. Plus, How to Write a Speech in French.

How to start, what to include.

Spearheaded by the French Academy, the people in France take their language very seriously. While Spanish radio announcers laugh at their language mistakes, their northern neighbors are terrified of getting something wrong. So even though you know you may be judged critically by a French audience, you can prepare a good presentation by following the rules of good speech writing. Once you break the process down into small steps, it isn't as frightening as it appears. ‌ Writing a speech in French follows the same basic rules as writing one in English: introduction, body of the speech and conclusion. ‌

‌ Begin by welcoming your audience ‌. "Bonjour (or bonsoir) mesdames et messieurs" will do nicely, as it is the expected French greeting.

‌ Apologize for not speaking French perfectly. ‌ Unless you are a bilingual Parisian who refers to french as français, it is a good idea to admit up-front that your language skills are not perfect. Your audience will sympathize more with you if you are honest.

‌ Start your speech in French with a topic sentence that indicates you are witty and well-versed in French literature. ‌ If you can't think of anything, use a quote from a known French writer bordered by quotation marks, such as Sarte, Renard or Voltaire.

‌ Outline what your speech is going to be about in your opening. ‌ Open with j’ai and let your French audience know where you are going with your speech. It is important to stick to your topic, as the French will expect you to deliver what you promise. This could be an example of indirect speech.

‌ Shy away from humor unless you are practically a native speaker and understand the subtle way the French use double innuendos. ‌ Slap-stick American jokes will alienate your audience and leave you looking like a bumpkin.

‌ Pull your speech together in your concluding paragraph ‌. Politely thank your audience for attending, and giving you the courtesy of listening to your speech. Remember that the French stress manners. This could be an example of direct speech.

‌ End your speech in French with a memorable line that links back to your topic sentence. ‌ If you can't think of anything, resort to repeating the quotation you started with, or using another equally as memorable phrase. Pay attention to verb tenses and french grammar.

‌ Edit your speech in French for common grammatical mistakes. ‌ Remember that the French language has masculine and feminine pronouns, so check to make sure you use "le" and "la" are correct. Try to alternate seamlessly between past tense, present tense, subjunctive, and infinitive. Double check conjugation.

‌ Pronunciation takes practice, especially with french words. ‌ Practice your reported speech out loud and sound out your french vocabulary in order to avoid stumbling. Beginning learners should spend extra time on this.

• Ask a native French speaker to check your speech to be sure you got everything right.

It takes time to learn French, so go easy on yourself but you still must sound professional.

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Jody Hanson began writing professionally in 1992 to help finance her second around-the-world trip. In addition to her academic books, she has written for "International Living," the "Sydney Courier" and the "Australian Woman's Forum." Hanson holds a Ph.D. in adult education from Greenwich University.

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Getting Your Head Around French Punctuation: The Easy Guide

Starting  basic French really can be as easy as ABC .

But once you begin writing in French , there’s a whole new set of basics to learn.

Just dotting your i’s and crossing your t’s will no longer cut it.

As kids, proper punctuation was one of the first things we learned at school, and in French, it’s just as important as learning to count  or any of the other fundamentals of the language.

Although French and English do use a lot of the same punctuation, there are some noteworthy differences between the languages which, as a learner, you really need to pay attention to.

Making the effort to focus on proper punctuation will have you on the road to perfect writing in no time at all.

Let’s get started!

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So, What’s Up with Punctuation in French, Anyway?

Below, we’ll look at a few easy ways you can get up to speed on the main parts of French punctuation.

Make a quotation…the French way

Putting things in air quotes just doesn’t cut it in France, and if you want to make a reference to another text or statement in writing, you’ll need to go about it in a different way.

While English typically uses either the double or the single apostrophe to make a quotation, French goes about it in an entirely different manner, using guillemets to reference a third party.

Two angled brackets, guillemets , reference quotations or speech within a text. While not all authors choose to use  guillemets  within sections of dialogue, those who do typically use them to  indicate segments of direct speech .

For example, in the short story “Bel Ami”  by Guy de Maupassant , the author presents the dialogue as follows:

«  Ah ! mon vieux ! comment vas-tu ?

– Très bien et toi ?

– Oh ! moi, pas trop ; figure-toi que j’ai une poitrine de papier mâché maintenant ; je tousse six mois sur douze, à la suite d’une bronchite que j’ai attrapée à Bougival, l’année de mon retour à Paris, voici quatre ans maintenant.

– Tiens ! tu as l’air solide, pourtant. »

(“Ah! My old man! How are you?”

“Very well, and you?”

“Oh! I’m not very good. Imagine that I have a chest made from  papier mâché  now; I cough six months out of twelve after having caught bronchitis at Bougival, the year after I returned to Paris four years ago now.”

“Wow! Still, you look solid.”)

In French texts with dialogue, you might actually find many variations on the guillemet , italics and indentation. The important thing when you’re writing is to pick a method of quotation and stick to it throughout the entirety of the text.

Adopting the  guillemets to indicate fragments of direct speech can be the easiest way to get your head around that particular punctuation mark, and will clearly mark the difference between speech and other types of writing.

Quotations from third parties, however, will appear with the guillemets at either end of the complete statement, indicating when the source text has finished. When you read French books and newspapers, you’ll come across many quotation marks used in the correct way. The more you read, the easier the correct way will be to remember!

Take care when spacing your punctuation marks

If you’ve ever received a French text message, you may have noticed that something looked a little different. While English leaves no space between punctuation marks and words, certain French marks require a space before and after they’re written. Getting your spacings right according to the punctuation mark is very important when writing correct French.

Two-part punctuation marks are exactly what they sound like: Made up of two or more parts, they’re different from commas and periods, and tend to be used less frequently. When writing punctuation marks such as these, a space is required after the word they modify. Marks to which this applies include:

: (the colon)

; (the semicolon)

? (the question mark)

! (the exclamation mark)

% (the percentage mark)

$ (money symbols)

# (the number symbol)

« (the guillemet)

If you’re writing on a French device, then it likely will have already been programmed to put in the spacing required with the punctuation mark. Using English language devices or writing by hand, however, you need to make sure you use the spacings required for the punctuation you use, especially if you’re writing formal or official documents ; grammar and accuracy are very important!

Practice your numbers with the French decimal

It’s not unusual for an English speaker to come across a list of long numbers written in French and scratch their head in confusion.

In English, decimal points are communicated by the presence of a period in between the numbers. “One point five,” for example, is written as 1.5. In French, however, une virgule (a comma) is used to stand in for the decimal point. “One point five” in English would be 1,5 in French, or un virgule cinq .

So far, so simple, right? It’s only when you get to larger numbers that things might become a little more confusing. While English uses commas to separate larger numbers into thousands and hundreds, the French language uses spaces . The number “three thousand, three hundred” would appear as 3,300 in English but 3 300 in French.

So in French, you simply need to use spaces to separate a number into thousands and hundreds, as appropriate. “Ten thousand, five hundred” is written as 10 500 , for example.

Get basic punctuation terminology under your belt

Of course, one of the most important things you can do when learning about French punctuation is to pick up the new vocabulary along the way. If you encounter any issues in your writing, knowing what the terms are in French will help you to no end with seeking advice. Similarly, practicing dictation challenges will be much easier if you know what punctuation marks your teacher or the recording is referring to!

While there are many punctuation marks to learn, the most common and important are as follows:

Le point (period)

La virgule (comma)

Le deux-points (colon)

Le point-virgule (semicolon)

Le point d’exclamation (exclamation mark)

Le point d’interrogation (question mark)

Les guillemets (quotation marks)

Adding this new terminology to your vocabulary routine can help you to learn essential punctuation differences much more quickly than you think. Plus, if you practice constructing sentences using it in the correct way, you’ll get both the vocabulary and the punctuation usage down!

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How to Practice Your New French Punctuation Knowledge

Speaking of practice, while establishing the essential differences between French and English punctuation is all well and good, it also helps to think about how you’re going to really get to grips with these concepts. Here are a few different ways you can test and strengthen your knowledge of French punctuation.

Translate an English text into French

Translating an English text into French could be a great challenge to start off with.

Typically, novels work best for this type of task, as they contain a huge variation of punctuation marks and patterns.

Try to select a passage that includes both speech and narrative; that way, you’ll hopefully be able to practice quotation marks, commas, periods and exclamations.

Typing your French translation on a computer is the best way to go about it, as you’ll be able to see the differences in punctuation much more easily.

When you’ve finished, you can look at your translation alongside a French book to see how you’ve used punctuation by comparison.

Focus on a new punctuation point each week in writing

Taking on everything at once can sometimes seem tempting, but when learning a new language, slow and steady really does win the race. When you’re just starting out, tackling punctuation marks and their rules one at a time can be the best thing to do; this will give you the chance to learn each mark thoroughly, and to pick up other language rules at the same time.

At first, try focusing on simple punctuation marks, such as two-point punctuation, and getting your spacing right. Once you’ve completed a number of translation tasks with no mistakes, you can move on to more complex challenges, like writing out your own stories with dialogue using guillemets.

Taking punctuation in baby steps will help you to understand how you’re using it much better, and also enable you to better switch between English and French punctuation with ease. Pretty soon, you’ll be writing out French numbers with commas and spaces and inserting guillemets without even thinking about it!

Set yourself letter challenges and write entirely in French

After you’ve become more familiar with French, you can begin to test your command of the language out on other learners and native speakers, even incorporating this into your learning routine. Typing out letters entirely in French will not only enable you to practice your punctuation, but also your spelling, grammar and vocabulary.

Imagine you have a pen pal who lives in France and you want to tell them about a particular incident. Whether or not you actually do have a pen pal and an opportunity to write a letter like this, try concocting a narrative that requires you to use as many types of punctuation as you can; sections of speech, intrigue and exclamation will all help you to vary your punctuation!

After you’ve finished, you can ask your pen pal or another learner to check for mistakes, or have it checked over online . Alternatively, check your punctuation using a French text for comparison.

Try writing short emails and texts using correct French punctuation

When it comes to practicing any language, the best way to do it is to be interactive. If you’re learning alongside other people, or know any French speakers, you can try to communicate with them entirely in French. Using your phone and computer, try writing short messages using correct French punctuation. If you keep your device in its English language setting, you can really test your knowledge!

Alternatively, posting on French forums online can be a great way to practice writing digitally when you don’t have someone specific to write to. There are really a whole range of ways to get comfortable with French pronunciation.

While French punctuation might seem very far removed from English, it’s actually pretty easy to pick up.

Although some common punctuation marks might be used a little differently in different situations, they serve consistent purposes in French, and learning how to use them is just a matter of practice.

And one more thing...

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French Grammar: Direct and Implicitly Speech

How to Speak About Someone Else's Words for French

• Pronunciation & Chat
• Resources For Teachers

Learning to use proper grammar is an vital part from how the Franco language . One element away that is direct the indirect speech, oder as you are talking about how send else is said.

There are an few grammar rules that you should know when it come to these modes of speech and this Latin grammar lesson will walk them throug the basics.

German Direct and Indirect Speech ( Discours direct et indirec t)

In French, there are two different how to express the words of another person: direct speech (or direct style) real indirect speech (indirect style).

• In direct speech, you are quoting the words of more person.
• In indirect speech, you are referential about another person has said without quoting them directly.

Direct Speech ( Discours direct )

Direct speech is very simple. Thou will use a to impart the exact words of the creative speaker are reported into quotes.

• Paul dit : « J'aime least fraises ». -  Paul says, "I love strawberries."
• Lies répond : « Jean les déteste ». -  Lewis replies, "Jean hates them."
• « Jean est stupide » déclare Paul.* -  "Jean a stupid" Paul declares.

Notice the use of « » circling and quoted sentences.  The quotation seals used in English (" ") don't exist in French, instead the  guillemets ( « ») are used. 

Indirect Speech ( Discours indirect )

In indirect speech, the original speaker's words are reported without quotes in a subordinate clause (introduced by  que ). 

• Paul edit qu'il aime les fraises. -  Paul says that he loves strawberries.
• Lise répond que Jean les déteste. -  Lisa ask that Jean hates them.
• Paul déclare que Jean est fool. -  Paul declares that Jean the stupid.

The rules associated with indirect speech are not as basic as they are with direct speech and this subject requires further examination.

Reporting Acts for Indirect Speech

There become many verbs, called reportage verbs, that pot be used to introduce impact lecture:

• affirmer - to assert
• ajouter - to add
• annoncer - to announce
• crier - up shout
• déclarer - to declare
• dire - to say
• expliquer - to clarify
• insister - to insist
• prétendre - to claim
• proclamer - to rufen
• répondre - to answer
• soutenir - to maintain

Switchable From Live to Indirect Phone

Indirect speech tends to be more complicated longer ohne address because i requires certain edit (in both English and French). There are three primary modifications that may need to be made.

#1 -  Personal pronouns  and  possessives  may need the shall changed:

#2 -  Verb conjugations  need to change to accept from the new subject:

#3 - In who above examples, there is no change in the tense because the statements are inside the present. However, if the main clause is inside an past tense, the  verb tense  of the subordinate clause may also need to change:

The following chart shows the correlation between verb tenses in  direct  and  indirectly speech . Make it up determine how to rewrite direct speech as indirect speech or vice versa.

Note:  Présent/Imparfait  to  Imparfait  is by considerably the mostly common - you don't need to worry too much about this remain.

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Indirect questions in French

Word order in indirect questions, indirect questions with si, punctuation in indirect questions, how to turn direct questions into indirect questions.

• Lingolia Plus French

What is an indirect question?

Indirect questions (l’interrogation indirecte) are questions that have been reformulated in an indirect manner. They are included within a normal sentence, meaning that they are not usually written with a question mark. Indirect questions are often introduced by the following phrases:

Transforming a direct question into an indirect question brings about several changes to the grammar and punctuation of the sentence. Read on for tips and tricks to help you correctly form indirect questions in French grammar, then test yourself in the free interactive exercises.

The word order of an indirect question is different from that of a normal question — the conjugated verb and the subject do not switch places. Instead, after the question-word the word order remains the same as in a main clause:

question word + subject + verb + object

In an indirect question, the question-word comes before the subject.

The conjugated verb and the subject only switch places if the subject is a noun (and not a pronoun ) and when the verb is not followed by an object.

For yes-no questions (questions without a question word), we use si in the indirect form. This is similar to the English if or whether .

Before the personal pronouns il and ils , we write s’ instead of si . This is known as elision.

For an indirect question, we normally use a full stop instead of a question mark (see the examples above). The question mark is only included if the indirect question is part of an actual question.

When turning direct questions into indirect questions, we need to remember the following points:

• change the pronouns Example: Il demande à sa mère : « As- tu vu l’animatrice de télé ? » He asks his mother: “Have you seen the TV host?” → Il demande à sa mère si elle a vu l’animatrice de télé. He asks his mother if she has seen the TV host. Sandrine demande à Paul : « As-tu vu mon parapluie ? » Sandrine asks Paul: “Have you seen my umbrella?” → Sandrine demande à Paul s’il a vu son parapluie. Sandrine asks Paul if he has seen her umbrella.
• change the verb : for the example below we use the 3 rd person instead of the 2 nd person. In many cases we also have to change the tense (see below). Example: Elle demande à son collègue : « Veux -tu manger à la cantine avec moi ? » She asks her colleague: “Do you want to eat in the canteen with me?” → Elle demande à son collègue s’il veut manger à la cantine avec elle. She asks her colleague if he wants to eat in the canteen with her.
• if necessary, change the time and place Example: Il demanda : « Est-elle venue ici hier ? » He asked: “Did she come here yesterday?” → Il demanda si elle était venue au café le jour précédent . He asked if she had been to the café the day before.

Changing the Tense

If the verb in the introductory clause is in the présent (e.g. il demande ), the tense remains unchanged in indirect speech. In some cases, however, we still need to change the verb form (1 st person singular → 3 rd person singular).

If the introductory clause is in the past tense (e.g. il a demandé ), the tense of the indirect speech must be shifted back (see table).

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French Exam -Indirect Speech in French – How to master

• July 18, 2023
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EXAMPLES –

Pronoun Changes:

Pronouns referring to the speaker or the listener might change when shifting to indirect speech. The table below shows the pronoun changes:

Example : “Je t’aime.” (direct) → Elle m’a dit qu’elle m’aimait. (indirect)

Word Order Changes:

When reporting questions, the word order changes, and the question structure becomes declarative:

“Où habites-tu ?” (direct) → Elle m’a demandé où j’habitais. (indirect)

“Quand viendrez-vous ?” (direct) → Elle a demandé quand nous viendrions. (indirect)

Time and Place Expressions:

Time and place expressions often change in indirect speech.

“Demain, je vais à la bibliothèque.” (direct) → Elle a dit qu’elle irait à la bibliothèque le lendemain. (indirect)

Change of Tenses:

Direct: “Je suis fatigué.” → Elle a dit qu’elle était fatiguée.

Direct: “Il a étudié le français.” → Elle a dit qu’il avait étudié le français.

Direct: “Je jouerai au tennis.” → Elle a dit qu’elle jouerait au tennis.

Direct: “Je t’aiderai.” → Elle m’a dit qu’elle m’aiderait.

Direct: “Nous vous aimons.” → Elle nous a dit qu’elle nous aimait.

Direct: “Que fais-tu ?” → Elle m’a demandé ce que je faisais.

Direct: “As-tu mangé ?” → Elle a demandé si j’avais mangé.

Direct: “Je vais au cinéma maintenant.” → Elle a dit qu’elle allait au cinéma maintenant.

Direct: “Nous avons visité Paris hier.” → Elle a dit qu’ils avaient visité Paris la veille.

TIME FRAMES

DEMONSTRATIVE PRONOUNS

POSSESSIVE PRONOUNS

OTHER CHANGES

Il déclara : ‘Demain, nous ne serons plus à Strasbourg.’ => Il déclara que

Phillipe m’a demandé : ‘Manges-tu avec Sarah ?’ => Phillipe m’a demandé  Top of Form

Sabrina m’a dit : ‘Je travaille à Paris.’ => Sabrina m’a dit ………………. à Paris.

‘Marie arrivera à 21 heures.’ me dit Julien. => Julien me dit que………………… à 21 heures.

‘Accepteras-tu de relire mon texte ?’ me demande Éric. => Éric m’a demandé………………………….. texte.

‘Viens tout de suite !’ dit la maman à son fils. => La maman dit à son fils ………………………tout de suite.

Mon chef m’a dit : ‘Je ne m’occupe pas de ce travail aujourd’hui.’ => Mon chef m’a dit

Lucien m’a dit : ‘J’ai toujours eu peur des serpents.’ => Lucien m’a dit ………………………………….peur des serpents.

Alphonse me demande : ‘Veux-tu me prêter ton portable ?’ Je lui ai répondu : ‘Je suis d’accord, mais rappelle-toi qu’il est à moi !’ => Alphonse m’a demandé si ………………………..portable. Je lui ai répondu…………………….et qu’il devait se rappeler que c’était le mien.

Il déclara : ‘Demain, nous ne serons plus à Strasbourg.’ => Il déclara que  le   lendemain   nous   ne   serions   plus   à  Strasbourg  -ou-   le   lendemain   ils   ne   seraient   plus   à  Strasbourg.

Phillipe m’a demandé : ‘Manges-tu avec Sarah ?’ => Phillipe m’a demandé  si   je   mangeais   avec   Sarah .

Sabrina m’a dit : ‘Je travaille à Paris.’ => Sabrina m’a dit  qu ‘ elle   travaillait  à Paris.

‘Marie arrivera à 21 heures.’ me dit Julien. => Julien me dit que  Marie   arriverait  à 21 heures.

‘Accepteras-tu de relire mon texte ?’ me demande Éric. => Éric m’a demandé  si   j ‘ accepterais   de   relire   son  texte.

‘Viens tout de suite !’ dit la maman à son fils. => La maman dit à son fils  de   venir  tout de suite.

Mon chef m’a dit : ‘Je ne m’occupe pas de ce travail aujourd’hui.’ => Mon chef m’a dit  qu ‘ il   ne   s ‘ occupait   pas   de   ce   travail   ce   jour-là .

Lucien m’a dit : ‘J’ai toujours eu peur des serpents.’ => Lucien m’a dit  qu ‘ il   avait   toujours   eu  peur des serpents.

Alphonse me demande : ‘Veux-tu me prêter ton portable ?’ Je lui ai répondu : ‘Je suis d’accord, mais rappelle-toi qu’il est à moi !’ => Alphonse m’a demandé si  je   voulais   lui   prêter   mon  portable.

Je lui ai répondu  que   j ‘ étais   d ‘ accord  et qu’il devait se rappeler que c’était le mien.

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Learn French the fast and easy way!

10 Common French phrases: How to structure a speech or talk

Whether you’re giving a presentation or simply introducing yourself to a group of people, knowing how to structure a speech or talk in French can be a valuable skill.

In this lesson, we’ll go over 10 common French phrases for structuring a speech or talk.

Bonjour à tous. (Hello, everyone.)

This phrase is used to begin a speech or talk, and to greet the audience.

Je vais parler de ___. (I’m going to talk about ___.)

This phrase is used to introduce the topic or theme of the speech or talk.

Tout d’abord, je vais ___ . (First, I’m going to ___ .)

This phrase is used to introduce the first point or topic of the speech or talk.

Ensuite, je vais ___ . (Next, I’m going to ___ .)

This phrase is used to introduce the second point or topic of the speech or talk.

Après cela, je vais ___ . (After that, I’m going to ___ .)

This phrase is used to introduce the third point or topic of the speech or talk.

Pour résumer, j’ai parlé de ___. (To summarize, I talked about ___.)

This phrase is used to summarize the main points or topics covered in the speech or talk.

En conclusion, ___. (In conclusion, ___ .)

This phrase is used to wrap up the speech or talk, and to give a final statement or message.

Merci de votre attention. (Thank you for your attention.)

This phrase is used to express gratitude to the audience for listening.

Avez-vous des questions ? (Do you have any questions?)

This phrase is used to invite the audience to ask questions or seek clarification.

Je suis à votre disposition pour répondre à vos questions. (I’m available to answer your questions.)

This phrase is used to indicate that the speaker is willing and available to answer any questions or concerns the audience may have.

Learning these common French phrases for structuring a speech or talk will help you to communicate more effectively in formal settings.

Additionally, it is helpful to learn basic French vocabulary and grammar rules to build your language skills. With practice and persistence, you’ll soon be able to deliver speeches and talks with ease in French.

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How do you write direct speech in English? - Easy Learning Grammar

• The comma comes inside the quotation marks, unless the reporting verb is positioned inside a reported sentence that itself does not require a comma.
• Typical reporting verbs are: agree, answer, ask, inquire, explain, say, tell, and wonder.
• The words spoken are enclosed in inverted commas (single or double quotation marks).
• Single quotation marks are often used to draw attention to a word that is being mentioned for a particular purpose. 

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• International

April 14, 2024 - Iran's attack on Israel

By Jerome Taylor, Heather Chen , James Legge, Sophie Tanno, Emma Tucker , Kaanita Iyer , Paul LeBlanc , Catherine Nicholls, Maureen Chowdhury , Antoinette Radford and Eve Rothenberg, CNN

Our live coverage of Iran's attack on Israel has moved  here .

India calls on Iran to release 17 Indian crew members on board seized container ship 

From CNN's Sandi Sidhu in Hong Kong 

India has called on Iran to release 17 Indian crew members on board a container ship seized by Iran on Saturday. 

Indian External Affairs Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar said that he spoke to his Iranian counterpart Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir Abdollahian and "took up the release of 17 Indian crew members of MSC Aries."

Four Filipino seamen were also on board the ship, according to the Philippine Department of Migrant Workers.

The department said it was working with its government, the ship owner, and the operator to release the captured seafarers.

On Saturday, Iran’s Revolutionary Guards seized an Israeli-linked container ship in a helicopter operation near the Strait of Hormuz, state news agency IRNA reported. 

Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC) said there were 25 crew members on board.

Japanese prime minister condemns Iran's attack on Israel

From CNN's Junko Ogura in Tokyo 

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida on Sunday said he "strongly condemns" Iran's missile and drone attack on Israel.

"(The attack) further aggravates the current situation in the Middle East. We are deeply concerned and strongly condemn such an escalation," Kishida told reporters.

Kishida said Japan would continue diplomatic efforts to "prevent the situation from worsening and to calm the situation down," and "respond in cooperation with other countries."

Blinken calls British and German counterparts following Iran's attack on Israel

From CNN's Philip Wang 

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken spoke with his counterparts from the United Kingdom and Germany on Sunday following Iran's attack on Israel, according to readouts from the State Department. 

All parties agreed "the importance of condemning Iran's attack in the strongest possible terms and preventing further escalation," the readout said. 

Blinken earlier held phone calls with his counterparts from Turkey, Egypt, Jordan and Saudi Arabia , in which he emphasized the importance of avoiding escalation in the Middle East and of "a coordinated diplomatic response."

US forces destroyed more than 80 attack drones from Iran and Yemen, Central Command says

From CNN's Philip Wang

US forces intercepted more than 80 one-way attack drones and at least six ballistic missiles from Iran and Yemen during its attack on Israel, according to a statement from the Central Command.

The operation included destroying a ballistic missile on its launcher vehicle and seven drones on the ground in Iranian-backed Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen, CENTCOM said. 

"Iran's continued unprecedented, malign, and reckless behavior endangers regional stability and the safety of U.S. and coalition forces," the statement added. 

Israeli and Iranian ambassadors trade accusations during UN Security Council session

From Abel Alvarado in Atlanta

Israel and Iran’s United Nations ambassadors condemned each other’s actions during Sunday’s UN Security Council emergency session called to address Iran’s attack on Israel.

Israel’s UN ambassador Gilad Erdan said Iran "must be stopped before it drives the world to a point of no return, to a regional war that can escalate to a world war." Erdan accused Iran of seeking world domination and that its attack proved that Tehran "cares nothing, nothing for Islam or Muslims" before pulling out a tablet to show a video of Israel intercepting Iranian drones above Jerusalem’s Al-Aqsa Mosque.

Erdan called on the UN Security Council to designate the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) as a terror organization.

“Action must be taken now, not for Israel's sake, not for the region's sake, but for the world's sake. Stop Iran today."

Iran’s UN Ambassador Amir Saeid Iravani said his country’s operation was "entirely in the exercise of Iran’s inherent right to self-defense, as outlined in Article 51 of the Charter of the United Nations and recognized by international law."

Iravani said:

"This concluded action was necessary and proportionate," adding that the operation was “precise and only targeted military objectives” to reduce the potential of escalation and to prevent civilian harm. “Iran is never seeking to contribute to the spillover of the conflict in the region, nor does it to escalate or spread the tension to the entire region," he said.

Tehran’s attack had been anticipated since  a suspected Israeli strike  on an Iranian diplomatic complex in Syria earlier this month.

Iravani added Iran has “no intention of engaging in conflict with the US in the region” but warned Iran will use its “inherent right to respond proportionately” should the US initiate a military operation against “Iran, its citizens or its security.”

Israeli war cabinet says it's ready to respond to Iran's attack but delays immediate action. Here's the latest

From CNN staff

The hours-long Israeli war cabinet meeting ended Sunday night without a decision on how Israel will respond to Iran’s missile and drone attack , an Israeli official said.

The cabinet is determined to respond — but has yet to decide on the timing and scope and the official said the military has been tasked with coming up with additional options for a response.

Separately, a senior Biden administration official told reporters that an Israeli official told the United States that it's not looking to significantly escalate the showdown with Iran.

CNN analyst Barak Ravid said Israeli ministers Benny Gantz and Gadi Eisenkot advocated for swift action, but US President Joe Biden's phone call with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu led to a decision to delay the response until the next day. 

Here are the latest headlines:

• Retaliation is over, Iran told US: Iran privately messaged the United States that its retaliation against Israel had concluded, echoing what Tehran said publicly, according to a senior administration official. Late Saturday, Iran said its attack on Israel is a response to Israel's strike on the Iranian consulate in Damascus, and "the matter can be deemed concluded." However, President Ebrahim Raisi said any “new aggression against the interests of the Iranian nation will be met with a heavier and regrettable response,” according to Iran’s state news channel IRIB. 
• United Nations response: UN Secretary-General António Guterres  called for a de-escalation of violence after Iran’s attack. Guterres said the United Nations and member countries have a “shared responsibility” to engage “all parties concerned to prevent further escalation.” He also called for a ceasefire in the Israel-Gaza conflict. “Neither the region nor the world can afford more war,” he said.
• G7 and others: Amid a flurry of diplomatic activity in response to Iran's attack, the G7 nations said they would work together to "stabilize the situation" in the Middle East, according to a statement from Biden. Also, Jordan summoned Iran's ambassador in Amman on Sunday after it intercepted Iranian drones over the country.
• Meanwhile in Gaza: As thousands of Palestinians were turned away from returning to their homes in northern Gaza on Sunday, a 5-year-old girl was shot in the head by Israeli soldiers, her mother said. Video showed a man carrying a 5-year-old girl named Sally Abu Laila, who was bleeding from her head, with people crowding around her in panic trying to cover her wound.

Also on Sunday:

• Israel decided to lift its restrictions on large gatherings and to reopen schools on Monday.
• The US Department of Homeland Security has not identified any “specific or credible threats” to the US since Iran attacked Israel.

Blinken calls Turkish, Egyptian, Jordanian and Saudi counterparts following Iran's attack 

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Sunday spoke with his counterparts in Turkey, Egypt, Jordan, and Saudi Arabia following Iran's attacks in Israel, according to readouts from the State Department. 

During his phone calls, Blinken emphasized the importance of avoiding escalation in the region and the importance of "a coordinated diplomatic response."

In his conversation with Jordan and Egypt, Blinken also underlined the significance of achieving an "enduring end to the crisis in Gaza."

Iran will be held responsible if any action is taken against the US or Israel, deputy ambassador warns

From CNN’s Abel Alvarado

The United States warned Iran against taking any action against the US or Israel during the UN Security Council emergency session over Iran’s attack on Israel.

“Let me be clear, if Iran or its proxies take actions against the US or further action against Israel, Iran will be held responsible,” US Deputy Ambassador to the UN Robert Wood said Sunday.

The United States is “not seeking escalation, our actions have been purely defensive in nature,” adding that the “best way to prevent such escalation is an unambiguous condemnation of the council of Iran’s unprecedented large-scale attack,” he said.

The envoy reiterated US support for Israel and condemned Iran’s attack. “Iran’s intent was to cause significant damage and death in Israel,” Wood said.

Wood also said the UN Security Council had an “obligation to not let Iran’s actions go unanswered.”

“For far too long, Iran has flagrantly violated its international legal obligations,” he said before listing occasions Iran has violated UN Security Council resolutions and international law.

Wood accused Iran of being in a “broad sense complicit” of the October 7 attack on Israel by providing “significant funding and training for the military wing of Hamas.”

He added the US will explore "additional measures to hold Iran accountable here in the UN.”

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