间接引语是语法名词，又叫间接引述，英文为 indirect statement也可表达为reported speech。
例句
直接引语是与间接引语相对的语法概念。
内容如：小明说：“我是个学生”
直接引语可表述为：“小明说：‘我是个学生’”
间接引语可表述为：“小明说他是个学生。”
引语
定义
引述或转述别人的话称为“引语”。
直接引用别人的原话，两边用
引号“ ”标出，叫做直接引语；用自己的语言转述别人的话，不需要引号的叫做间接引语，实际上间接引语大都是
宾语从句（其中由祈使句转换的间接引语除外，其转换后是
不定式）。那么直接引语为陈述句、
一般疑问句、
特殊疑问句和祈使句，转换为间接引语时，句子的结构，人称、时态、时间状语和地点状语等都要有变化，如何变化呢?
直接引语
（DirectSpeech）：当引用别人的话语时，若引用的是原话，被引用的部分叫直接引语。
间接引语
（IndirectSpeech）：当引用别人的话语时，也可以用自己的话把意思转述出来，这种转述的别人说话的部分叫作间接引语。
典型例句：
She said,”I like English very much.“（直接引语）
（她说：“我非常喜欢英语”。）
She said she liked English very much.（间接引语）
（她说她非常喜欢英语。）
人称的转变
1)直接引语中的
第一人称，一般转换为
第三人称，如：
He said，“I am very sorry.”
→He said that he was very sorry.
2)直接引语中的
第二人称，如果原话是针对转述人说的,转换为第一人称，如：
“You should be more careful next time,” my father told me.
→My father told me that I should be more careful the next time.
3)直接引语中的第二人称，如果原话是针对第三人称说的，转换成第三人称。如：
She said to her son, “I'll check your homework tonight.”
→She said to her son that she would check his homework that night.
4)人称的转换包括
人称代词、
反身代词、
物主代词等，如：
He asked me, “Will you go to the station with me to meet a friend of mine this afternoon?”
→He asked me whether I would go to the station with him to meet a friend of his that afternoon.
总之，人称的转换不是固定的，具体情况，具体对待，要符合逻辑。
5)为了方便记忆 有个口诀：一随主，二随宾，第三人称不更新。
另有：一随主，二随宾，三不变。指的都是
从句（间接引语）人称的变化。
时态的转换
直接引语改为间接引语时，
主句中的
谓语动词如果是过去时，从句（即间接引语部分）的谓语动词在时态方面要作相应的变化，变成过去时范畴的各种时态（实际也是
宾语从句的时态要求），变化如下：
例如：
“I am very glad to visit your school”, she said.
→She said she was very glad to visit our school.
“我能参观你的学校非常高兴。“她说。
→她说她很高兴参观我们的学校。
Tom said, “We are listening to the pop music.”
→Tom said that they were listening to the pop music.
汤姆说，“我们正在听流行音乐。”
→汤姆说他们正在听流行音乐。
Mother asked, “Have you finished your homework before you watch TV?”
→Mother asked me whether I had finished my homework before I watched TV.
妈妈问，“你在你看电视之前完成你的家庭作业吗？“
→母亲问我是否在我看电视之前完成我的作业。
He asked the conductor, “Where shall I get off to change to a No. 3 bus?”
→He asked the conductor where he would get off to change to a No. 3 bus.
他问
售票员，“我应该在哪儿下车换乘3路公共汽车？“
→他问售票员，他应该在哪儿下车换乘3路公共汽车。
“Why did she refuse to go there?” the teacher asked.
→The teacher asked why she had refused to go there.
“她为什么拒绝去那里？“老师问。
→老师问她为什么拒绝去那里。
Tom said, “We were having a football match this time yesterday.”
→Tom said that they were having a football match that time the day before.
汤姆说，“我们昨天的这个时候正在进行一场足球比赛。”
→汤姆说他们前一天正在进行一场足球比赛的。
He said，“I haven't heard from my parents these days.”
→He said that he hadn't heard from his parents those days.
他说，“这些天我没有收到我父母的来信。”
→She said (
that) he always feels tired.
她说，“他总是感到累。”
她说他总是觉得累。
直接引语变成间接引语时，从句时态无须改变的情况：
He always says, “I am tired out.”
→He always says that he is tired out.
2)当主句的谓语动词是将来时的时候，如：
He will say, “I'll try my best to help you.”
→He will say that he will try his best to help me.
He said, “I went to college in 1994.”
→He told us that he went to college in 1994.
4)当直接引语中有以when, while引导的从句，表示过去的时间时，如：
He said，“When I was a child, I usually played football after school.”
→He said that when he was a child, he usually played football after school.
Our teacher said to us, “Light travels faster than sound.”
→Our teacher told us that light travels faster than sound.
6)当引语是谚语、格言时，如：
He said，“Practice makes perfect.”
→He said that practice makes perfect.
7)当直接引语中有
情态动词should, would, could,
had better, would rather, might, must, ought to, used t-o, need时，如：
例如：
The doctor said, “You'd better drink plenty of water.”
→The doctor said I'd better drink plenty of water.
He said, “She must be a teacher.”
→ He said that she must be a teacher.
He said, “She ought to have arrived her office by now.”
→He said that she ought to have arrived her office by then.
The teacher said, “You needn't hand in your compositions today.”
→The teacher said we needn't/
didn't need to/didn't have to hand in our compositions.
She asked, “Must I take the medicine?”
→ She asked if she had to take the medicine.
〔注〕：此处用had to代替must更好
8)此外转述中的变化要因实际情况而定，不能机械照搬，如果当地转述，here不必改为there, 动词come不必改为go，如果当天转述yesterday,
tomorrow, this afternoon等均不必改变。如：
Teacher: You may have the ball game this afternoon.
Student : What did the teacher say, Monitor?
Monitor: He said we might have the ball game this afternoon.
地点状语及某些对比性的指示代词和动词变化：
1)指示代词：these 变成those
2)地点状语：here变成there
She said, “I won't come here any more.”
→ She said that she wouldn’t go there any more..
3)动词：come变成go，
bring变成take
句型的转换
①直接引语如果是陈述句，间接引语应改为由
that引导的宾语从句。如：
→She said that their bus would arrive in five minutes.
②直接引语如果是
反意疑问句，
选择疑问句或一般疑问句，间接引语应改为由
whether→He asked John if he could swim.
→My mother asked me whether I ha-d finished the homework.
→He asked me if I went to school by bus or by bike.
③直接引语如果是特殊问句，间接引语应该改为由
疑问代词或
疑问副词引导的宾语从句（宾语从句必须用陈述句
语序）。
→ She asked me when they had their dinner.
→She asked him to bring her a cup of tea.
⑤直接引语如果是以“Let‘s”开头的祈使句，变为间接引语时，通常用“suggest +动名词（或从句）。”如：
→He suggested going to the film.或He suggested that they should go to s-ee the film.
引述别人的话有两种方式：一是使用引号引出人家的原话，这叫做直接引语；一是用自己的话把人家的话转述出来，这叫做间接引语。例如：
John said that he was going to London with his father.
约翰说，他要和他父亲去伦敦。（
宾语从句是间接引语）
总结
变人称：
“一随主”是指在
直接引语变间接引语时，如果从句中的主语是第一人称或被第一人称所修饰。从句中的人称要按照主句中主语的人称变化如：
“二随宾”是指直接引语变间接引语时，若从句中的主语及宾语是第二人称。或被第二人你所修饰。从句中的人称要跟引号外的主句的宾语一致。如果引号外的主句没有宾语。也可以用第一人称，如：
“第三人称不更新”是指直接引语变间接引语时。如果从句中的主语及宾语是第三人称或被第三人称所修饰从句中的人称一般不需要变化如：
变时态：
直接引语在改为间接引语时、时态需要做相应的调整。
现在时它需改为过去时态；过去时态改为完成时；
过去完成时则保留原来的时态。如：
→She said he would go to see his friend。
但要注意在以下几种情况下。在直接引语变为间接引语时，时态一般不变化。
The earth moves around the sun and the moon moves around the earth, the teacher told me.
→ The teacher told me the earth moves around the sun and the moon moves around the earth。
→Jack asked John where he was g-oing when he met him in the street。
③直接引语中有具体的过去某年、某月、某日作状语，变为间接引语时，时态不变。如：
→Xiao Wang said he was born on April 21, 1980。
④直接引语如果是
一般现在时。表示一种反复出现或
习惯性的动作，变间接引语，时态不变。如：
→He said he gets up at six every morning。
⑤如果直接引语中的
情态动词没有过去时的形式（例：ought to， had better, used to )和已经是过去时的形式时，(例：could, should, would, might)不再变。如：
→Peter said I had better go there that day。
变状语：
直接引语变间接引语，状语变化有其内在规则，时间状语由“现在”改为“原来”（例：now变为then, yest-erday。变为 the day before)地点状语(分具体情况)，尤其表示
方向性的，或用指示代词修饰的状语，由“此”改为“彼” (例：this 改为that),如：
→He said those books were his.