Reported speech (câu tường thuật/gián tiếp) dùng để thuật lại lời nói của người khác mà không trích dẫn trực tiếp. Đây là chủ điểm ngữ pháp quan trọng trong tiếng Anh, xuất hiện thường xuyên trong kỳ thi và giao tiếp. Bài này tổng hợp đầy đủ quy tắc backshift, đổi đại từ, trạng từ kèm ví dụ và bài tập.
Direct Speech vs Reported Speech
- Direct speech (trực tiếp): He said, “I am tired.”
- Reported speech (gián tiếp): He said (that) he was tired.
1. Quy tắc Backshift (lùi thì)
Khi động từ tường thuật ở quá khứ (said, told, asked…), thì của động từ trong câu trực tiếp lùi một bậc:
| Direct (Trực tiếp) | Reported (Gián tiếp) |
|---|---|
| Present Simple (V/Vs) | Past Simple (V-ed/V2) |
| Present Continuous (am/is/are V-ing) | Past Continuous (was/were V-ing) |
| Present Perfect (have/has + V3) | Past Perfect (had + V3) |
| Past Simple (V-ed/V2) | Past Perfect (had + V3) |
| Past Continuous (was/were V-ing) | Past Perfect Continuous (had been V-ing) |
| will | would |
| can | could |
| may | might |
| must | had to |
| shall | should |
Ví dụ:
- “I am happy.” → He said (that) he was happy.
- “I am studying.” → She said she was studying.
- “I have finished.” → He said he had finished.
- “I went to Paris.” → She said she had gone to Paris.
- “I will come.” → He said he would come.
- “I can swim.” → She said she could swim.
2. Trường hợp KHÔNG lùi thì
- Sự thật hiển nhiên: The teacher said, “The Earth is round.” → The teacher said the Earth is round.
- Câu điều kiện loại 2, 3: He said, “If I were you, I would go.” → He said if he were me, he would go.
- Động từ tường thuật ở hiện tại: He says, “I am tired.” → He says he is tired.
- Modal: would, could, might, should, ought to, had better, used to: giữ nguyên
3. Đổi đại từ
| Direct | Reported |
|---|---|
| I, we | he, she / they (theo chủ ngữ tường thuật) |
| you | I, he, she, we, they (theo ngữ cảnh) |
| me, us | him, her / them |
| my, our | his, her / their |
| mine, ours | his, hers / theirs |
Ví dụ: Tom said, “I love my dog.” → Tom said he loved his dog.
4. Đổi trạng từ thời gian, nơi chốn
| Direct | Reported |
|---|---|
| now | then / at that time |
| today | that day |
| tonight | that night |
| yesterday | the day before / the previous day |
| tomorrow | the next day / the following day |
| last week | the week before / the previous week |
| next week | the following week |
| ago | before |
| here | there |
| this | that |
| these | those |
5. Tường thuật câu hỏi (Reported Questions)
a) Yes/No questions: Dùng if hoặc whether:
- He asked, “Are you tired?” → He asked if I was tired.
- She asked, “Did you eat?” → She asked whether I had eaten.
b) Wh-questions: Giữ từ để hỏi (what, where, when, who, why, how) + đổi sang câu kể (không đảo trợ động từ):
- He asked, “Where do you live?” → He asked where I lived.
- She asked, “What are you doing?” → She asked what I was doing.
- He asked, “Why did you leave?” → He asked why I had left.
6. Tường thuật câu mệnh lệnh (Reported Commands)
Công thức: S + told/asked + O + (not) to + V
- “Close the door.” → He told me to close the door.
- “Don’t be late.” → She asked me not to be late.
- “Please help me.” → He asked me to help him.
- “Sit down!” → The teacher told us to sit down.
7. Tường thuật câu cảm thán, đề nghị, lời khuyên
- Đề nghị: “Let’s go.” → He suggested going. / He suggested that we go.
- Lời khuyên: “You should study.” → She advised me to study.
- Hứa hẹn: “I will help you.” → He promised to help me.
- Cảnh báo: “Don’t touch it!” → She warned me not to touch it.
- Mời: “Would you like to come?” → He invited me to come.
- Đồng ý/Từ chối: “Yes, I will.” → He agreed to do it. / “No, I won’t.” → He refused to do it.
8. Các động từ tường thuật phổ biến
| Verb | Cấu trúc | Ví dụ |
|---|---|---|
| say | say (that) + clause | He said (that) he was tired. |
| tell | tell + O + (that) + clause | He told me (that) he was tired. |
| ask | ask + O + to V / if-clause | She asked me to wait. |
| advise | advise + O + to V | He advised me to study. |
| warn | warn + O + not to V | She warned me not to go. |
| promise | promise + to V | He promised to help. |
| offer | offer + to V | She offered to drive me home. |
| suggest | suggest + V-ing / that-clause | He suggested going out. |
| admit | admit + V-ing | He admitted stealing the money. |
| deny | deny + V-ing | She denied breaking the vase. |
| refuse | refuse + to V | He refused to apologize. |
| agree | agree + to V | They agreed to meet at 6. |
| complain | complain about + V-ing | She complained about being tired. |
| apologize | apologize for + V-ing | He apologized for being late. |
9. Bài tập có đáp án
Chuyển sang câu gián tiếp:
- “I am studying English,” she said.
- “I will help you tomorrow,” he told me.
- “Where do you live?” he asked me.
- “Don’t open the window,” the teacher said.
- “Can you swim?” she asked him.
- “I have finished my homework,” Tom said.
- “I went to Paris last year,” she said.
- “Let’s go to the cinema,” he suggested.
- “I’m sorry for being late,” she said.
- “Don’t smoke here!” the security guard warned.
Đáp án:
- She said (that) she was studying English.
- He told me (that) he would help me the next day.
- He asked me where I lived.
- The teacher told us not to open the window.
- She asked him if he could swim.
- Tom said (that) he had finished his homework.
- She said (that) she had gone to Paris the previous year.
- He suggested going to the cinema. / He suggested that we (should) go to the cinema.
- She apologized for being late.
- The security guard warned us not to smoke there.
Kết luận
Reported speech đòi hỏi nắm vững 3 quy tắc: backshift thì, đổi đại từ, đổi trạng từ. Hãy luyện tập với nhiều dạng câu (câu kể, câu hỏi, câu mệnh lệnh) để thành thạo và dùng tự nhiên trong giao tiếp lẫn bài thi TOEIC/IELTS.