Portuguese · Upper intermediate (B2) · Chapter 6 of 12
Public life
Vida pública
Report what public figures said in Portuguese: all the tense changes in reported speech, reporting verbs like garantir and negar, and time words.
In this chapter you'll learn to
- Report statements with all the tense changes, including the future subjunctive
- Use reporting verbs: anunciar, garantir, reconhecer, acrescentar, negar que
- Report requests with pedir que + imperfect subjunctive
- Talk about local government in neutral terms
Listen
In the newsroom of a local paper in Joinville, the editor Beatriz asks the young reporter Igor what the mayor said at yesterday's press conference. Listen to the whole dialogue first, then line by line.
Beatriz
Bom dia, Igor. Preciso do texto da coletiva até o meio-dia. O que o prefeito disse ontem?
Morning, Igor. I need the piece on the press conference by midday. What did the mayor say yesterday?
Igor
Bom dia. Tinha muita gente lá. Ele anunciou que a cidade ia ganhar três novas linhas de ônibus e que a ciclovia da zona norte seria concluída até dezembro.
Morning. There were a lot of people there. He announced that the city was going to get three new bus routes and that the cycle lane in the north of the city would be finished by December.
Beatriz
Até dezembro? Ele já tinha prometido isso na inauguração da praça, em março. Naquele dia, disse que a ciclovia ficaria pronta em junho.
By December? He'd already promised that at the opening of the square in March. That day he said the cycle lane would be ready in June.
Igor
Exatamente. Um colega perguntou sobre isso, e ele reconheceu que a obra tinha atrasado por falta de dinheiro. Mas garantiu que dessa vez o prazo seria cumprido.
Exactly. A colleague asked about that, and he admitted that the work had been delayed for lack of money. But he assured us that this time the deadline would be met.
Beatriz
E sobre o imposto? Todo mundo quer saber se vai aumentar.
And what about the tax? Everybody wants to know if it's going up.
Igor
Ele negou que o imposto fosse aumentar este ano. E acrescentou que as contas da prefeitura estavam equilibradas.
He denied that the tax would go up this year. And he added that the city's accounts were balanced.
Beatriz
Anota isso. E teve alguma novidade?
Make a note of that. And was there any news?
Igor
Teve. Ele disse que, quando a nova biblioteca municipal ficasse pronta, ela ia funcionar até as dez da noite, inclusive nos fins de semana.
Yes. He said that when the new public library was ready, it would open until ten at night, weekends included.
Beatriz
Interessante. E a câmara municipal? Os vereadores já aprovaram o projeto da biblioteca?
Interesting. And the city council? Have the councillors approved the library project yet?
Igor
Ainda não. Ele disse que a votação seria na semana seguinte e pediu que os vereadores aprovassem o projeto o quanto antes. No final, pediu que a população tivesse paciência com as obras.
Not yet. He said the vote would be the following week and asked the councillors to approve the project as soon as possible. At the end, he asked people to be patient with the roadworks.
Beatriz
Ótimo. Coloca as falas mais importantes entre aspas e confere as datas com a prefeitura antes de mandar.
Great. Put the most important quotes in quotation marks and check the dates with the city hall before you send it.
Igor
Pode deixar. Às onze e meia eu te mando.
Will do. I'll send it to you at half past eleven.
Understand
Reported speech: the tense changes
When you report what someone said with a verb in the past (…), the verbs in the reported part usually move one step into the past. You know the first two changes from B1. The last two have no English model: a future subjunctive (after ) becomes an imperfect subjunctive, and a command becomes + imperfect subjunctive.
If what was said is still true, you can keep the present: .
| What the mayor said | What Igor reports |
|---|---|
| / … | … / … |
| … | … |
Reporting verbs
is fine, but news reports use more precise verbs. Most are followed by + indicative. (to deny) and (to ask someone to do something) take the subjunctive, because they don't present something as a fact. To report a question, use or a question word: .
| Verb | English | Followed by |
|---|---|---|
| to announce | indicative | |
| to assure, to guarantee | indicative | |
| to admit, to acknowledge | indicative | |
| to add | indicative | |
| to deny | subjunctive | |
| to ask (someone to do something) | subjunctive |
Time and place words
When you report something later or somewhere else, words for time and place often change too, just as in English: becomes , becomes .
| Direct speech | Reported speech | English |
|---|---|---|
| that day | ||
| the next day | ||
| the day before | ||
| the following week | ||
| there | ||
| , | , | that |
More in the grammar: Reported speech
New words
- a coletiva de imprensapress conference · feminine; often just
- a linha de ônibusbus route · feminine
- prometerto promise · : he'd already promised that
- reconhecerto admit, to acknowledge; to recognise ·
- garantirto assure, to guarantee
- a falta delack of · : for lack of money
- o impostotax · masculine
- aumentarto increase, to go up
- negarto deny · + subjunctive
- acrescentarto add (to what was said)
- a bibliotecalibrary · feminine
- a câmara municipalcity council · feminine
- o vereador / a vereadoracity councillor
- conferirto check · : check the dates; : in quotation marks
Practise
1.The mayor said: How do you report it?
2.Report the request with the imperfect subjunctive of .
He asked people to be patient.
3.The mayor said: Complete the report.
He admitted that the work had been delayed.
4.Put the words in order.
Tap the words below in the right order.He denied that the tax would go up.
5.Match the Portuguese with the English.
Pick a word on the left, then its meaning on the right.
6.The mayor said: Complete the report: “Ele garantiu que o prazo … cumprido.”
0 of 6 exercises done.
Say it out loud
Ele garantiu que o prazo seria cumprido.
He assured us the deadline would be met.
Listen, then say it out loud, as close to the recording as you can.
Check
Five questions on this chapter. Then mark it as finished to add its words to your review deck.
0 of 5 answered.