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Definition of backshift noun from the Oxford Advanced American Dictionary

 

backshift

 noun
noun
NAmE//ˈbækʃɪft//
 
[uncountable] (linguistics)
 
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the changing of a tense when reporting what someone said, for example when reporting the words “What are you doing?” as “He asked me what Iwas doing.”
See backshift in the Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary