Al repetir lo que alguien dijo, puedes citar sus palabras exactas (estilo directo) o expresar el sentido con una oración propia (estilo indirecto). El estilo directo lleva comillas; el indirecto no, y a menudo cambia los pronombres, el tiempo verbal y palabras como here, now y tomorrow.
Estos cambios siguen una lógica: hablas desde un momento y un lugar distintos de los de la persona original, así que ajustas las palabras a tu propio punto de vista. Si la información sigue siendo cierta o el verbo introductor está en presente, muchos cambios no son necesarios.
Cambios de tiempo verbal en el estilo indirecto
Cuando el verbo introductor está en pasado (said, told, asked), el verbo de la subordinada suele retroceder un paso. Este cambio se llama backshift.
| Forma | Estructura | Ejemplo en inglés |
|---|---|---|
| Presente simple | presente simple → pasado simple | "I live in Lima." → He said he lived in Lima. |
| Presente continuo | presente continuo → pasado continuo | "We're watching a movie." → They said they were watching a movie. |
| Pasado simple | pasado simple → pasado perfecto (o sin cambio) | "I lost my wallet." → She said she had lost her wallet. |
| Presente perfecto | presente perfecto → pasado perfecto | "I've finished." → He said he had finished. |
| will | will → would | "I'll call you." → She said she would call me. |
| can | can → could | "I can swim." → He said he could swim. |
| must | must → had to (o must) | "You must wear a seatbelt." → She said I had to wear a seatbelt. |
| be going to | am/is/are going to → was/were going to | "We're going to move." → They said they were going to move. |
- Los pronombres y posesivos cambian para concordar con la nueva persona que habla: «I love my job» → Ana said she loved her job.
- El pasado perfecto y los modales could, would, should y might no cambian: «I might be late» → He said he might be late.
- That después de say y tell es opcional, sobre todo al hablar: She said (that) she was busy.
- En las preguntas indirectas se usa if o whether (preguntas de sí/no) o la palabra interrogativa original (preguntas con wh-); después se sigue el orden de una afirmación, sin do, does ni did y sin signo de interrogación.
- Las órdenes y peticiones indirectas se forman con tell/ask + persona + (not) to + verbo base: He told me to wait. She asked us not to shout.
Cuándo se usa
1. ¿Say o tell?
Ambos verbos introducen afirmaciones en estilo indirecto, pero tell necesita una persona como objeto (salvo expresiones fijas como tell the truth o tell a story); say no. Para mencionar al interlocutor después de say, usa say to + persona.
- She said (that) she was hungry.
- She told me (that) she was hungry.
- What did the doctor say to you?
2. Backshift: retroceder el tiempo verbal
Después de un verbo introductor en pasado, el verbo suele retroceder un tiempo porque las palabras se dijeron antes.
- "I'm working late." → Sam said he was working late.
- "We've never been to Spain." → They told me they had never been to Spain.
- "I'll help you." → Mia said she would help me.
3. Cuándo puede omitirse el backshift
Si lo dicho sigue siendo cierto o todavía se refiere al futuro, puedes mantener el tiempo original. Después de un verbo introductor en presente (says, has said), el tiempo no cambia.
- The forecast says it will rain tomorrow. (present reporting verb)
- He told me he lives in Chicago. (he still lives there)
- Our teacher said that water boils at 100 degrees Celsius. (always true)
4. Cambios en las expresiones de tiempo y lugar
Palabras como today, tomorrow y here suelen cambiar porque el momento o el lugar desde el que se informa son distintos. Si comunicas el mensaje el mismo día o en el mismo lugar, puedes conservarlas.
- "I'll see you tomorrow." → He said he would see me the next day.
- "I bought this bag yesterday." → She said she had bought the bag the day before.
- "We'll meet here." → They said they would meet there.
5. Preguntas indirectas
Convierte la pregunta en una afirmación: usa if o whether en preguntas de sí/no y conserva la palabra interrogativa en las preguntas con wh-. No uses do, does ni did, ni añadas signo de interrogación.
- "Are you coming?" → She asked if I was coming.
- "Where do you live?" → He asked me where I lived.
- "Did you see the match?" → They asked whether I had seen the match.
6. Órdenes y peticiones indirectas
Usa tell + persona + to + verbo base para órdenes e instrucciones y ask + persona + to + verbo base para peticiones. En las órdenes negativas, coloca not antes de to.
- "Sit down." → The teacher told us to sit down.
- "Could you close the window, please?" → She asked me to close the window.
- "Don't touch it!" → He told the children not to touch it.
Verbos introductorios y cambios de expresiones temporales
- say
- tell
- ask
- explain
- reply
- promise
- warn
- admit
- now → then
- today → that day
- tonight → that night
- tomorrow → the next day
- yesterday → the day before
- next week → the following week
- last week → the week before
- ago → before
- here → there
- this → that
Cambia estas palabras solo si realmente ha cambiado el momento o el lugar. Si un amigo dijo esta mañana «I'll call you tomorrow», aún puedes comunicarlo así: She said she would call me tomorrow.
Ejemplos en inglés
Afirmativas
- She said that she was tired.
- Tom told me he had already eaten.
- They said they would arrive at eight.
- My boss told me to take the day off.
Negativas
- He said he didn't like horror movies.
- She told me she hadn't seen the email.
- They said they wouldn't be able to come.
- The doctor told me not to lift anything heavy.
Preguntas
- She asked me if I was hungry.
- He wanted to know where I had bought my shoes.
- I asked her what time the train left.
- Did he say when he would be back?
¿Estilo directo o indirecto?
El estilo directo reproduce las palabras exactas entre comillas. El indirecto comunica el sentido desde tu propio punto de vista, por lo que pueden cambiar el tiempo verbal, los pronombres y algunas expresiones de tiempo y lugar.
| Direct speech | Reported speech |
|---|---|
| "I'm leaving," she said. | She said (that) she was leaving. |
| "We have finished the project," they told us. | They told us (that) they had finished the project. |
| "Will you be here tomorrow?" he asked me. | He asked me if I would be there the next day. |
| "Where is the station?" she asked. | She asked where the station was. |
| "Please don't be late," Mom said. | Mom asked me not to be late. |
Errores frecuentes
- IncorrectoShe said me that she was busy.CorrectoShe told me that she was busy.
Say no va seguido directamente de una persona; usa tell + persona (o say to + persona).
- IncorrectoHe asked where was the station.CorrectoHe asked where the station was.
Las preguntas indirectas siguen el orden de una afirmación: sujeto + verbo.
- IncorrectoShe asked me what did I want.CorrectoShe asked me what I wanted.
No uses did en una pregunta indirecta: sigue el orden de una afirmación y retrocede el verbo (wanted).
- IncorrectoHe asked me that I was ready.CorrectoHe asked me if I was ready.
Para comunicar una pregunta de sí/no, usa if o whether, no that.
- IncorrectoThe teacher told us don't talk.CorrectoThe teacher told us not to talk.
Las órdenes negativas indirectas se forman con not to + verbo base, no con don't.
- IncorrectoShe told that she would be late.CorrectoShe said that she would be late.
Tell necesita una persona después (She told me...); si no se menciona a nadie, usa say.
A call with Grandma
El texto y las formas resaltadas están en inglés.
When I called my grandmother last Sunday, she said she had some news. She told me that she had joined a dance class and that she was enjoying it more than she had expected. I asked her if it was difficult. She laughed and said that the steps were easy but the music was very fast. Then she asked me whether I wanted to come with her the next week. I told her I would think about it. She said I was too young to be so lazy! Before she hung up, she asked me to call her more often and told me not to worry about her. Honestly, I think she has a busier social life than I do.
Comprueba lo que has aprendido
Las preguntas y opciones están en inglés; las explicaciones están en español.
Preguntas frecuentes
¿Qué es el estilo indirecto?
El estilo indirecto (también llamado discurso indirecto) permite contar lo que dijo otra persona sin repetir sus palabras exactas ni usar comillas: «I'm busy» pasa a He said he was busy.
¿Siempre hay que cambiar el tiempo verbal en el estilo indirecto?
No. El backshift es habitual después de un verbo introductor en pasado, pero se puede conservar el tiempo original si la información sigue siendo cierta o todavía se refiere al futuro: She said she lives in Rome. Después de un verbo introductor en presente, como says, el tiempo no cambia.
¿Qué diferencia hay entre say y tell?
Tell va seguido de la persona con quien se habla: She told me the news. Say no va seguido directamente de una persona; se usa say something o say something to someone: She said hello to me.
¿Cómo se comunica una pregunta?
Usa ask o want to know; después, if/whether para preguntas de sí/no o la palabra interrogativa original para preguntas con wh-. Sigue el orden de una afirmación y no uses do, does ni did: «Where do you work?» → He asked where I worked.
¿Cómo se comunica una orden o una petición?
Usa tell o ask + persona + to + verbo base: She told me to wait. He asked us to help. Para expresar una orden negativa, coloca not antes de to: They told us not to park there.