Reported Statements and Questions

Introduction

DISCOURS RAPPORTÉ - ÉNONCÉS ET QUESTIONS
Sentence Structure and Functions - Reported Speech

Apprenez à transformer les énoncés et les questions directs en discours rapporté

Reported Speech
Reported Questions
Grammar Rules

Définition du discours rapporté

Le discours rapporté

DÉFINITION GRAMMATICAL
Définition

Le discours rapporté (reported speech) est une structure grammaticale utilisée pour transmettre ce que quelqu'un a dit sans citer ses mots exacts. Il existe deux types principaux :

Direct Speech vs Indirect Speech

Direct Speech : "I am going to the store," said John.

Reported Speech : John said that he was going to the store.

Dans le discours rapporté, on change la structure grammaticale et les temps verbaux

Reported Statements (Énoncés)

Énoncés rapportés

STRUCTURE DE BASE
Structure générale

La structure pour les énoncés rapportés est :

Sujet + verbe de rapport + (that) + clause rapportée

Exemples :

  • He said that he was tired.
  • She told me that she had finished her homework.
  • They announced that the meeting was cancelled.
CHANGEMENTS IMPORTANTES
Changements dans le discours rapporté
  • 1 Changement de pronoms : "I" → "he/she", "my" → "his/her"
  • 2 Changement de temps verbaux (backshift)
  • 3 Changement de déictiques : "here" → "there", "now" → "then"

Backshift des temps verbaux

Changement des temps

RÈGLES DE BACKSHIFT
Changements de temps verbaux
Direct Speech Reported Speech
Present Simple (am/is/are) Past Simple (was/were)
Present Continuous Past Continuous
Past Simple Past Perfect
Present Perfect Past Perfect
EXEMPLES PRATIQUES
Exemples de backshift
  • Direct: "I am happy" → Reported: He said that he was happy
  • Direct: "I live in Paris" → Reported: She said that she lived in Paris
  • Direct: "I went to school" → Reported: He said that he had gone to school
  • Direct: "I have finished" → Reported: She said that she had finished

Reported Questions (Questions)

Questions rapportées

STRUCTURE DES QUESTIONS RAPPORTÉES
Structure générale

La structure pour les questions rapportées est :

Sujet + verbe de rapport + question word + clause rapportée

Exemples :

  • He asked what time it was.
  • She wanted to know where I lived.
  • They wondered whether he would come.
CARACTÉRISTIQUES SPÉCIFIQUES
Points importants
  • 1 Pas d'inversion du sujet et du verbe
  • 2 Pas de point d'interrogation à la fin
  • 3 Utilisation de "if" ou "whether" pour les questions oui/non
  • 4 Conservation des mots interrogatifs (what, where, when, why, how)

Questions Oui/Non rapportées

Questions fermées

UTILISATION DE "IF" OU "WHETHER"
Questions oui/non en discours rapporté

Pour les questions qui demandent une réponse oui ou non, on utilise "if" ou "whether" :

  • Direct: "Are you coming?" → Reported: He asked if/whether I was coming
  • Direct: "Did you finish your work?" → Reported: She asked if/whether I had finished my work
  • Direct: "Is it raining?" → Reported: They wanted to know if/whether it was raining
DIFFÉRENCE ENTRE "IF" ET "WHETHER"
Usage de "if" vs "whether"
  • Utilisez "if" pour les questions simples : "He asked if I was ready"
  • Utilisez "whether" pour les alternatives : "He asked whether I wanted tea or coffee"
  • Utilisez "whether" après des prépositions : "He asked about whether I was available"

Questions Wh- rapportées

Questions ouvertes

UTILISATION DES MOTS INTERROGATIFS
Conservation des mots interrogatifs

Les mots interrogatifs (what, where, when, why, how, who) sont conservés dans les questions rapportées :

  • Direct: "Where do you live?" → Reported: He asked where I lived
  • Direct: "What did you buy?" → Reported: She asked what I had bought
  • Direct: "How long have you been here?" → Reported: They wanted to know how long I had been there
STRUCTURE DES QUESTIONS WH-
Ordre des mots dans les questions Wh-

Contrairement aux questions directes, les questions Wh- rapportées suivent l'ordre normal des phrases affirmatives :

  • Direct: "Where do you live?" (Where + do + subject + verb?)
  • Reported: He asked where I lived (question word + subject + verb)

Exercice 1 - Énoncés

Exercice de transformation

TRANSFORMEZ CES ÉNONCÉS DIRECTS EN RAPPORTÉS
Consignes

Transformez les énoncés directs suivants en discours rapporté :

  1. He said, "I am going to the cinema tonight."
  2. She said, "I have finished my homework."
  3. They said, "We will arrive tomorrow."
  4. He said, "I don't like coffee."
Corrigé
1 He said that he was going to the cinema that night.
2 She said that she had finished her homework.
3 They said that they would arrive the next day.
4 He said that he didn't like coffee.

Exercice 2 - Questions Oui/Non

Questions fermées

TRANSFORMEZ CES QUESTIONS OUI/NON EN RAPPORTÉES
Consignes

Transformez les questions oui/non suivantes en discours rapporté :

  1. He asked, "Are you coming to the party?"
  2. She asked, "Have you finished your work?"
  3. They asked, "Will you help us?"
  4. He asked, "Do you speak French?"
Corrigé
1 He asked if/whether I was coming to the party.
2 She asked if/whether I had finished my work.
3 They asked if/whether I would help them.
4 He asked if/whether I spoke French.

Exercice 3 - Questions Wh-

Questions ouvertes

TRANSFORMEZ CES QUESTIONS WH- EN RAPPORTÉES
Consignes

Transformez les questions Wh- suivantes en discours rapporté :

  1. He asked, "Where do you live?"
  2. She asked, "What did you buy?"
  3. They asked, "How long have you been here?"
  4. He asked, "Why did you leave early?"
Corrigé
1 He asked where I lived.
2 She asked what I had bought.
3 They asked how long I had been there.
4 He asked why I had left early.

Verbes de rapport

Verbes courants

VERBES DE RAPPORT COMMUNS
Verbes pour introduire le discours rapporté

Pour les énoncés :

  • Say (dit) : He said that he was tired.
  • Tell (dire à quelqu'un) : She told me that she was busy.
  • Announce (annoncer) : They announced that the meeting was cancelled.

Pour les questions :

  • Ask (demander) : He asked where I lived.
  • Want to know (vouloir savoir) : She wanted to know what happened.
  • Wonder (se demander) : They wondered if he would come.
CHOIX APPROPRIÉ
Quand utiliser chaque verbe
  • Use "tell" when you specify who receives the message: "He told me..."
  • Use "say" when you don't specify who receives the message: "He said..."
  • Use "ask" for questions: "He asked me where I was going."

Changements de pronoms et expressions temporelles

Adaptations nécessaires

CHANGEMENTS DE PRONOMS
Adaptation des pronoms personnels
Direct Speech Reported Speech
I / we he / she / they
my / our his / her / their
me / us him / her / them
CHANGEMENTS DE DÉICTIQUES
Adaptation des expressions temporelles et spatiales
  • now → then, at that time
  • today → that day
  • yesterday → the day before, the previous day
  • tomorrow → the next day, the following day
  • here → there
  • this → that
  • these → those

Exercice 4 - Complet

Exercice mixte

TRANSFORMEZ CES PHRASES EN DISCOURS RAPPORTÉ
Consignes

Transformez les phrases suivantes en discours rapporté :

  1. He said, "I will call you tomorrow."
  2. She asked, "Where are you going?"
  3. They said, "We have been waiting here since morning."
  4. He asked, "Have you seen my keys?"
  5. She said, "My car is broken and I need help."
Corrigé
1 He said that he would call me the next day.
2 She asked where I was going.
3 They said that they had been waiting there since the morning.
4 He asked if/whether I had seen his keys.
5 She said that her car was broken and she needed help.

Cas spéciaux

Exceptions et particularités

QUAND NE PAS FAIRE DE BACKSHIFT
Cas où les temps ne changent pas
  • Quand la déclaration est toujours vraie : "The earth is round" → "He said that the earth is round"
  • Quand on cite des proverbes ou des vérités universelles
  • Quand le verbe de rapport est au présent : "He says that he is tired"
  • Quand on rapporte des citations exactes : "He claims that he is right"
MODALS SPÉCIAUX
Changements des modaux
  • can → could
  • may → might
  • must → had to / would have to
  • will → would
  • should → should (unchanged)
  • would → would (unchanged)

Exercice 5 - Cas spéciaux

Cas particuliers

TRAITEZ CES CAS SPÉCIAUX
Consignes

Transformez les phrases suivantes en discours rapporté (attention aux cas spéciaux) :

  1. He said, "Water boils at 100°C." (vérité permanente)
  2. She said, "I can swim well." (capacité)
  3. He said, "I must leave now." (obligation)
  4. She asks, "Can you help me?" (présent tense)
Corrigé
1 He said that water boils at 100°C (no backshift for universal truths).
2 He said that he could swim well (can → could).
3 He said that he had to leave then (must → had to).
4 She asks if I can help her (no backshift with present tense reporting verb).

Résumé

Points clés

ÉNONCÉS RAPPORTÉS
Structure et règles
  • Structure : Sujet + verbe de rapport + (that) + clause rapportée
  • Backshift des temps verbaux dans la plupart des cas
  • Changement de pronoms et expressions temporelles
Questions rapportées
  • Questions oui/non : utiliser "if" ou "whether"
  • Questions Wh- : conserver le mot interrogatif
  • Aucune inversion de sujet et verbe
  • Aucun point d'interrogation à la fin
Cas spéciaux
  • Pas de backshift pour les vérités permanentes
  • Pas de backshift avec les verbes de rapport au présent
  • Changements spécifiques pour les modaux
Maîtrisez le discours rapporté pour une communication anglaise fluide !

Applications avancées

Niveau avancé

STRUCTURES COMPLEXES
Questions indirectes avec conditionnels

Les questions indirectes peuvent inclure des structures conditionnelles :

  • "He asked what would happen if the plan failed."
  • "She wondered whether it would be possible to change the date."
ORDRE DES MOTS DANS LES CLAUSES EMPILÉES
Clauses imbriquées

Dans les structures complexes, l'ordre des mots reste normal dans les clauses rapportées :

  • Direct: "I wonder if you know where he lives."
  • Reported: "He wondered if I knew where he lived."

Erreurs communes

Pièges à éviter

ERREURS FRÉQUENTES
Erreurs grammaticales
  • Inverser sujet et verbe dans les questions rapportées :
    ❌ "He asked what did I want" → ✅ "He asked what I wanted"
  • Oublier le backshift des temps :
    ❌ "He said I am tired" → ✅ "He said I was tired"
  • Utiliser "that" avec "ask" :
    ❌ "He asked that I was late" → ✅ "He asked if I was late"
ERREURS DE STRUCTURE
Erreurs de structure
  • Mettre un point d'interrogation dans les questions rapportées
  • Ne pas changer les déictiques (here, now, today)
  • Utiliser "say" avec un objet direct sans "to" :
    ❌ "He said me" → ✅ "He told me"

Exercice final

Évaluation finale

RÉDACTION D'UN TEXTE RAPPORTÉ
Consignes

Réécrivez le dialogue suivant en utilisant le discours rapporté :

John: "I'm going to the store now." Mary: "Are you buying milk?" John: "Yes, I need it for breakfast." Mary: "What time will you be back?" John: "I'll return in about an hour."

Version corrigée

John said that he was going to the store then. Mary asked if he was buying milk. John replied that yes, he needed it for breakfast. Mary then asked what time he would be back. John said that he would return in about an hour.

Cette version utilise correctement les structures de discours rapporté pour chaque type de phrase.

Conclusion

Félicitations !

FÉLICITATIONS !
MAÎTRISE DU DISCOURS RAPPORTÉ
Vous comprenez maintenant les énoncés et les questions rapportés en anglais !

Continuez à pratiquer pour renforcer vos compétences

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