Lesson 17: Formal vs. Informal & Reported Speech — 正式和非正式、转述

The same sentence can open a boardroom or a friendship, depending on how you build it. Chinese marks register — the distance between speakers — in three main ways: pronouns （你 nǐ for friends, 您 nín for respect), vocabulary (everyday 吃 versus formal 用餐 yòngcān, to dine), and sentence music (short, warm spoken forms versus balanced, written ones). This lesson maps the ladder from casual to ceremonial, then adds the second skill of the day: reported speech. Chinese reports what people said with 说 (shuō), 告诉 (gàosu, to tell) and 问 (wèn, to ask) — and, mercifully, without changing any tenses: 他说他明天来 (Tā shuō tā míngtiān lái — He said he would come tomorrow) keeps 明天 exactly where the original speaker put it.

Key vocabulary

Grammar patterns: register ladder and reporting

The golden rule of Chinese reported speech: only the person changes, never the time. "我明天来" said on Monday becomes 他说明天来 on Tuesday — Chinese does not backshift 明天 into "the next day" inside the reported clause. Questions are reported by embedding the V-不-V or 是不是 choice form, exactly as in the table.

Example sentences

• 请问，您贵姓？ (Qǐngwèn, nín guìxìng? — May I ask your honoured surname?)
• 免贵，我姓王。 (Miǎnguì, wǒ xìng Wáng. — No honour needed; my surname is Wang. The set reply to 贵姓.)
• 久仰久仰！您的中文说得真好。 (Jiǔyǎng, jiǔyǎng! Nín de Zhōngwén shuō de zhēn hǎo. — I've long heard of you! Your Chinese is really excellent.)
• 他告诉我，会议改到下午了。 (Tā gàosu wǒ, huìyì gǎi dào xiàwǔ le. — He told me the meeting had been moved to the afternoon.)
• 妈妈问我吃没吃饭。 (Māma wèn wǒ chī méi chī fàn. — Mum asked me whether I had eaten.)
• 老师说，明天的考试不难。 (Lǎoshī shuō, míngtiān de kǎoshì bù nán. — The teacher said tomorrow's exam would not be hard.)
• 她问我是不是留学生。 (Tā wèn wǒ shì bu shì liúxuéshēng. — She asked whether I was an international student.)
• 王经理说他最近很忙。 (Wáng jīnglǐ shuō tā zuìjìn hěn máng. — Manager Wang said he had been very busy lately.)

Building the characters: respect inside the characters

您 is the warmest character in this course: it is 你 with a heart underneath. Chinese orthography literally builds respect into the pronoun. And note 告诉 (gàosu): the 诉 is neutral-toned here, so say "gào-su", not "gào-sù".

Tone practice: polite forms under pressure

Polite phrases must survive real speed, so drill them whole: 请问 (qǐngwèn 3-4), 您好 (nín hǎo 2-3, surfacing as "nín hǎo"), 贵姓 (guìxìng 4-4), 久仰 (jiǔyǎng 3-3, surfacing "jiúyǎng"), 慢走 (màn zǒu 4-3). Traps:

Dialogue: at the company reception

• 小刘：您好！请问，您贵姓？ (Xiǎo Liú: Nín hǎo! Qǐngwèn, nín guìxìng? — Xiao Liu: Hello! May I ask your surname?)
• 客人：我姓陈。经理在吗？ (Kèrén: Wǒ xìng Chén. Jīnglǐ zài ma? — Guest: My surname is Chen. Is the manager in?)
• 小刘：经理在开会。他说请您先坐一会儿。 (Xiǎo Liú: Jīnglǐ zài kāihuì. Tā shuō qǐng nín xiān zuò yíhuìr. — Xiao Liu: The manager is in a meeting. He said to ask you to sit for a while first.)
• 客人：好的。他说会议多长时间？ (Kèrén: Hǎo de. Tā shuō huìyì duō cháng shíjiān? — Guest: Fine. Did he say how long the meeting would be?)
• 小刘：他说半个小时就好。 (Xiǎo Liú: Tā shuō bàn ge xiǎoshí jiù hǎo. — Xiao Liu: He said half an hour.)
• 客人：谢谢，我等他。 (Kèrén: Xièxie, wǒ děng tā. — Guest: Thank you, I'll wait for him.)

Questions: 1) What is the guest's surname? 2) What is the manager doing? 3) How long will the meeting last?

Answer key: 1) 陈 (Chén). 2) In a meeting （开会）. 3) Half an hour （半个小时）.

Pronunciation notes for this lesson

Formal speech slows down and completes its tones: keep every syllable of 非常感谢 (fēicháng gǎnxiè) full and clear. In reported speech, stress the reporting verb lightly and run the reported clause at natural speed — the clause is a quotation in disguise. The embedded question 是不是 (shì bu shì) compresses in fast speech to "shì-bu-shì" with the middle syllable barely touched. Finally, 一会儿 (yíhuìr, a moment) is the r-coloured northern form; southern speakers say 一会儿 as yíhuì or use 一下 (yíxià) — both are correct and both appear in this course.

Common mistakes

• Wrong: calling your teacher or an elderly neighbour 你 all afternoon. Right: use 您 until the relationship — or the person — tells you 你 is fine. Switching 您 → 你 signals closeness; 你 → 您 signals distance.
• Wrong: reporting with English backshift: ~~他说他昨天来过~~ for "he said he would come tomorrow". Right: 他说他明天来。 — keep the original time word.
• Wrong: ~~她问我，我去不去？~~ as a reported question with a question mark and 吗 logic. Right: 她问我去不去。 — embedded questions use V-不-V, no 吗.
• Wrong: answering 贵姓 with ~~我贵姓王~~. Right: 我姓王, or the full set reply 免贵，我姓王。

Exam Experience

Reading task. Read the message chain, then answer.

小张给经理发消息：经理，我明天可能晚一点儿到公司，因为我要去机场接朋友。经理回消息说：没关系。你告诉小李，明天上午的会议改到下午三点。小张把经理的话告诉了小李。 (Xiǎo Zhāng gěi jīnglǐ fā xiāoxi: Jīnglǐ, wǒ míngtiān kěnéng wǎn yìdiǎnr dào gōngsī, yīnwèi wǒ yào qù jīchǎng jiē péngyou. Jīnglǐ huí xiāoxi shuō: Méi guānxi. Nǐ gàosu Xiǎo Lǐ, míngtiān shàngwǔ de huìyì gǎi dào xiàwǔ sān diǎn. Xiǎo Zhāng bǎ jīnglǐ de huà gàosu le Xiǎo Lǐ. — Xiao Zhang messaged the manager: Manager, I may arrive at the company a bit late tomorrow, because I'm going to the airport to meet a friend. The manager replied: No problem. Tell Xiao Li the meeting tomorrow morning is moved to three in the afternoon. Xiao Zhang passed the manager's words on to Xiao Li.)

1) Why may Xiao Zhang be late tomorrow? 2) What did the manager ask Xiao Zhang to do? 3) To what time was the meeting moved?

Key: 1) Going to the airport to meet a friend （去机场接朋友）. 2) To tell Xiao Li about the change （告诉小李）. 3) Three in the afternoon （下午三点）.

Multiple choice.

1) The most polite way to greet a visiting professor is… A. 喂，你好 B. 您好 C. 拜拜 D. 你来啦. Answer: B. 您好 is the respectful greeting; 拜拜 is goodbye and casual. 2) Report the sentence "我明天不来" (said by Lin) correctly: A. 林说他明天不来。 B. 林说他昨天不来。 C. 林说他明天来。 D. 林问他不来。 Answer: A. The person changes （我→他）; the time word 明天 stays. 3) 她问我是不是学生 means… A. She told me she is a student B. She asked whether I am a student C. She is asking a student D. She said I am a student. Answer: B. 问 + 是不是 embeds a yes–no question.

Guided writing. Write a short formal message (5–6 sentences) to a teacher: greet her respectfully, say why you are writing, report what a classmate said, and close politely. Model answer:

李老师：您好！我是您的学生安娜。我想告诉您，王明说明天的课他可能来不了，因为他要去医院看他的奶奶。他说他很抱歉。祝您身体健康！——安娜 (Lǐ lǎoshī: Nín hǎo! Wǒ shì nín de xuésheng Ānnà. Wǒ xiǎng gàosu nín, Wáng Míng shuō míngtiān de kè tā kěnéng lái bù liǎo, yīnwèi tā yào qù yīyuàn kàn tā de nǎinai. Tā shuō tā hěn bàoqiàn. Zhù nín shēntǐ jiànkāng! — Ānnà — Teacher Li: Hello! I am your student Anna. I'd like to tell you that Wang Ming said he may not be able to come to tomorrow's class, because he is going to the hospital to visit his grandmother. He said he is very sorry. Wishing you good health! — Anna)

Marking notes: one mark for 您 used consistently for the teacher; one mark for a formal greeting and closing; one mark for reported speech with the person changed and the time word kept; one mark for an embedded reason with 因为； one mark for the polite wish 祝您… at the end. Slipping into 你 for the teacher loses the register mark.