I propose a simple, two-stage storytelling process used for investigating multiple tense
contrasts in reported speech and illustrate a basic example of its use from a pilot study in
isiNdebele. IsiNdebele is a Nguni Bantu language of South Africa with two degrees of past tense
marking and three future forms that are less clearly differentiated for temporal distance. The
method involves translating a conversation with references to several past and future events and
then role-playing a courtroom testimony in which the conversation is reported. I also describe a
simple complementary picture-card–based method. Semantic Fieldwork Methods, Vol. 6 No. 2 (2024): Crane, Thera Marie: The witness and the alibi: A method for eliciting temporal contrasts in reported speech