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indirect speech

British

noun

Also called: reported speech. the reporting of something said or written by conveying what was meant rather than repeating the exact words, as in the sentence He asked me whether I would go as opposed to He asked me, "Will you go?"

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

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indirect speech

Instead of omniscient narrators, they deployed free indirect speech to reveal characters’ innermost thoughts.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 30, 2026

Over time, MacFarquhar developed a style that relied heavily on free indirect speech, a device common to novels but rare in non-fiction, where a character’s voice momentarily creeps into the narration unannounced.

From The Guardian ● Oct. 17, 2015

The little man had conveyed his wish of this by indirect speech.

From Ewing\'s Lady by Wilson, Harry Leon

Mr. Ackerman put it as plainly as his bias in favour of indirect speech would permit.

From The Boss of Wind River by Chisholm, A. M. (Arthur Murray)

But in indirect speech "shall" is used for all three persons, as, "He says he shall come."

From The International Auxiliary Language Esperanto Grammar and Commentary by Cox, George

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023