Language/Modern-greek-1453/Grammar/Indirect-speech

Modern Greek (1453-) Grammar → Advanced Grammar → Indirect speech

Introduction:

Welcome back to our "Complete 0 to A1 Modern Greek (1453-) Course"! In the previous lesson, we delved into the fascinating world of modal verbs in Greek. We learned how to use these versatile verbs to express possibility, necessity, and ability. Today, we will continue our journey through advanced grammar and explore the concept of indirect speech in Greek. Indirect speech is a crucial aspect of language that allows us to report what someone else has said without quoting them directly. So let's dive in and learn how to use indirect speech in Greek!

Understanding Indirect Speech

Before we delve into the intricacies of indirect speech in Greek, let's first understand what it means. Indirect speech, also known as reported speech, is used when we want to convey someone else's words or thoughts without quoting them verbatim. It is an essential tool for communication, as it allows us to report conversations, relay information, and share opinions.

When using indirect speech, we typically change the verb tenses, pronouns, and time expressions to reflect that the original statement is being reported. This ensures that the reported speech is grammatically correct and contextually appropriate. In Greek, indirect speech follows certain rules and patterns that we will explore in detail.

Introducing Indirect Speech in Greek

In Greek, indirect speech is introduced by verbs such as "λέω" (say), "ρωτώ" (ask), "απαντώ" (reply), "πιστεύω" (believe), and many others. These verbs act as connectors between the original statement and the reported speech. They indicate that the information being conveyed is not the speaker's own words but rather someone else's.

Let's look at an example to understand this better:

Original statement: Ο Γιάννης είπε: "Θα πάω στον κινηματογράφο αύριο." (Yiannis said: "I will go to the cinema tomorrow.")

Reported speech: Ο Γιώργος είπε ότι ο Γιάννης θα πήγαινε στον κινηματογράφο την επόμενη μέρα. (George said that Yiannis would go to the cinema the next day.)

In this example, the verb "είπε" (said) introduces the indirect speech, and the original statement is reported with the appropriate changes in verb tense and pronouns.

Changing Verb Tenses in Indirect Speech

When reporting speech or thoughts in Greek, we need to change the verb tenses to match the context of the reported speech. Let's take a look at the rules for changing verb tenses in indirect speech.

Present tense => Past tense

When the original statement is in the present tense, we typically change it to the past tense in indirect speech. This reflects that the reported speech happened in the past.

Example:

Original statement: Λέει: "Πηγαίνω στην παραλία." (He/She says: "I am going to the beach.")

Reported speech: Είπε ότι πήγαινε στην παραλία. (He/She said that he/she was going to the beach.)

In this example, the present tense verb "λέει" (says) is changed to the past tense verb "είπε" (said) in the reported speech.

Past tense => Past perfect tense

When the original statement is in the past tense, we typically change it to the past perfect tense in indirect speech. This indicates that the reported speech happened before the original statement.

Example:

Original statement: Είπε: "Πήγα στον κινηματογράφο." (He/She said: "I went to the cinema.")

Reported speech: Είπε ότι είχε πάει στον κινηματογράφο. (He/She said that he/she had gone to the cinema.)

Here, the past tense verb "είπε" (said) is changed to the past perfect tense verb "είχε πάει" (had gone) in the reported speech.

Future tense => Conditional tense

When the original statement is in the future tense, we typically change it to the conditional tense in indirect speech. This indicates that the reported speech is dependent on a condition.

Example:

Original statement: Λέει: "Θα πάω στη συναυλία αν έχω χρόνο." (He/She says: "I will go to the concert if I have time.")

Reported speech: Είπε ότι θα πήγαινε στη συναυλία αν είχε χρόνο. (He/She said that he/she would go to the concert if he/she had time.)

Here, the future tense verb "λέει" (says) is changed to the conditional tense verb "θα πήγαινε" (would go) in the reported speech.

Changing Pronouns in Indirect Speech

In indirect speech, we also need to change the pronouns to fit the context of the reported speech. Let's explore the rules for changing pronouns in Greek.

First person pronouns

When the original statement includes first person pronouns (I, we), we typically change them to third person pronouns (he, she, they) in indirect speech.

Example:

Original statement: Είπα: "Πήγα στο καφέ με τους φίλους μου." (I said: "I went to the cafe with my friends.")

Reported speech: Είπε ότι πήγε στο καφέ με τους φίλους του. (I said that he/she went to the cafe with his/her friends.)

Here, the first person pronoun "είπα" (I said) is changed to the third person pronoun "είπε" (he/she said) in the reported speech.

Second person pronouns

When the original statement includes second person pronouns (you), we typically change them to third person pronouns (he, she, they) in indirect speech.

Example:

Original statement: Σου είπα: "Πήγαινε στο γιατρό." (I told you: "Go to the doctor.")

Reported speech: Σου είπα ότι να πηγαίνεις στο γιατρό. (I told you to go to the doctor.)

In this example, the second person pronoun "σου είπα" (I told you) remains the same in the reported speech.

Third person pronouns

When the original statement includes third person pronouns (he, she, they), we generally keep them the same in indirect speech.

Example:

Original statement: Είπε: "Θα πάνε στην παραλία." (He/She said: "They will go to the beach.")

Reported speech: Είπε ότι θα πάνε στην παραλία. (He/She said that they would go to the beach.)

Here, the third person pronoun "είπε" (he/she said) remains the same in the reported speech.

Indirect Speech with Time Expressions

When using indirect speech in Greek, we also need to make changes to time expressions to reflect the context of the reported speech. Let's explore the rules for changing time expressions in indirect speech.

Today => That day

When the original statement includes the time expression "σήμερα" (today), we typically change it to "εκείνη τη μέρα" (that day) in indirect speech.

Example:

Original statement: Είπε: "Πήγα στο σχολείο σήμερα." (He/She said: "I went to school today.")

Reported speech: Είπε ότι πήγαινε στο σχολείο εκείνη τη μέρα. (He/She said that he/she went to school that day.)

Here, the time expression "σήμερα" (today) is changed to "εκείνη τη μέρα" (that day) in the reported speech.

Tomorrow => The next day

When the original statement includes the time expression "αύριο" (tomorrow), we typically change it to "την επόμενη μέρα" (the next day) in indirect speech.

Example:

Original statement: Είπε: "Θα πάω στον κινηματογράφο αύριο." (He/She said: "I will go to the cinema tomorrow.")

Reported speech: Είπε ότι θα πήγαινε στον κινηματογράφο την επόμενη μέρα. (He/She said that he/she would go to the cinema the next day.)

Here, the time expression "αύριο" (tomorrow) is changed to "την επόμενη μέρα" (the next day) in the reported speech.

Yesterday => The previous day

When the original statement includes the time expression "χθες" (yesterday), we typically change it to "την προηγούμενη μέρα" (the previous day) in indirect speech.

Example:

Original statement: Είπε: "Πήγα στο μουσείο χθες." (He/She said: "I went to the museum yesterday.")

Reported speech: Είπε ότι πήγαινε στο μουσείο την προηγούμενη μέρα. (He/She said that he/she went to the museum the previous day.)

In this example, the time expression "χθες" (yesterday) is changed to "την προηγούμενη μέρα" (the previous day) in the reported speech.

Conclusion

Congratulations! You have successfully learned how to use indirect speech in Greek. Indirect speech is an essential aspect of communication that allows us to report what someone else has said. By changing verb tenses, pronouns, and time expressions, we can accurately convey the intended meaning of the reported speech. Practice using indirect speech in your conversations and writing to strengthen your Greek language skills even further.

In the next lesson, we will explore the concept of participles in Greek. Participles play a significant role in sentence construction and add depth to our language. Get ready to dive into this fascinating topic!

Table of Contents - Modern Greek (1453-) Course - 0 to A1

• Course Presentation

  ---

Introduction to Greek Alphabet

• Greek Letters and Pronunciation
• Diphthongs and Special Combinations

  ---

Basic Greetings and Phrases

• Greetings and Introductions
• Common Everyday Phrases

  ---

Nouns and Articles

• Definite and Indefinite Articles
• Noun Gender and Plurals

  ---

Numbers and Time

• Numbers 1-100
• Telling Time

  ---

Adjectives and Adverbs

• Adjective Agreement
• Comparative and Superlative Adjectives
• Adverbs and Adverbial Phrases

  ---

Food and Dining

• Common Foods and Drinks
• Ordering in a Restaurant

  ---

Verbs and Tenses

• Present Tense
• Past Tense
• Future Tense

  ---

Travel and Transportation

• Modes of Transportation
• Asking for Directions

  ---

Prepositions and Conjunctions

• Common Prepositions
• Coordinating and Subordinating Conjunctions

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Family and Relationships

• Family Members
• Describing Relationships

  ---

Greek Traditions and Customs

• Holidays and Celebrations
• Greek Cuisine

  ---

Greek History and Geography

• Historical Overview
• Geographical Regions

Sources

• Modern-greek-1453 Grammar - Direct and indirect speech

Other Lessons

• How to Use Be
• Imperative Mood in Greek
• Greek phonology of the consonants : Φφ Θθ
• Personal Pronouns
• Discours direct indirect
• Various Greek linguistic terms
• Les numéraux ordinaux cardinaux
• Participles
• Subject Verb Agreement
• Adjectives