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Reported Speech Tenses
Reported speech tenses will change from that of the direct speech in most cases.
This is known as backshifting in reported speech , with the basic rule that a tense is shifted back to its past tense form.
This is because we are usually talking about something in the past.
You can also watch a video of this lesson:
![tense change in reported speech pdf tense change in reported speech pdf](https://img.youtube.com/vi/v8xnX2ufKH8/hqdefault.jpg)
Backshifting in Reported Speech
Here are some examples of backshifting, with tenses going back from present to past:
![Backshifting in Reported Speech Backshifting in Reported Speech](https://www.grammarwiz.com/images/reported-speech-examples.jpg)
Reported Speech Tenses Change Chart
Below is a reported speech tense change chart with the rules for backshifting for each tense and for modal verbs.
You will see reported speech does not go back a tense if it is already in the past perfect (there is no further back it can go), and some modal verbs also do not change.
If you are tested on this, though, these are the changes you need to make.
![Reported Speech Tense Chart Reported Speech Chart for Tenses](https://www.grammarwiz.com/images/reported-speech-tenses.jpg)
Exceptions to the rules
This is a useful starting point. However, it is a simplification as we may not always decide or need to shift the tense back.
For instance, if the circumstances we are reporting on have not changed since they were directly said, then the tense would not need to be changed. For example:
Direct Speech
- I am happy
- (present simple)
Reported Speech
- She said she is happy
So if we want to convey that the situation is still true then we may keep the tense the same.
Alternatively, the tense could even forward shift. An example would be in relation to a film or book. In this case, the person may use the past tense to say that the film was good, but the present or past tense could be used when you convey that to someone else:
Direct Speech:
- The film was really good!
- (past simple)
Reported Speech:
- He said that the film was very good!
- (past simple) Or
- He said that the film is very good!
As you can see, either reported speech tenses would be ok if you wanted to pass the information on to somebody else. The person said the film was good, and it is still good (it hasn't gone away).
So there are some general rules for reported speech tense changes but it can depend on the context. There may be no need to change it or you may be able to choose either tense.
Click the ' reported speech: practice forming indirect speech ' link below to practice changing tenses.
More on Reported Speech:
![tense change in reported speech pdf Direct and indirect speech are different because in direct speech the exact words said are spoken, but in indirect or reported speech, we are reporting what was said, usually using the past tense.](https://www.grammarwiz.com/images/indirect-speech.jpg)
Direct and Indirect Speech: The differences explained
Direct and indirect speech are different because in direct speech the exact words said are spoken, but in indirect or reported speech, we are reporting what was said, usually using the past tense.
![tense change in reported speech pdf Reported speech imperatives, also known as reported commands, follow a slightly different structure to normal indirect speech. We use imperatives to give orders, advice, or make requests.](https://www.grammarwiz.com/images/reported-speech-imperatives.jpg)
Reported Speech Imperatives: Reporting commands in indirect speech
Reported speech imperatives, also known as reported commands, follow a slightly different structure to normal indirect speech. We use imperatives to give orders, advice, or make requests.
![tense change in reported speech pdf This reported speech quiz gives you the chance to practice converting direct speech to reported speech, also known as indirect speech. This involves backshifting with the tenses.](https://www.grammarwiz.com/english-grammar-fb.png)
Reported Speech Quiz - Practice forming indirect speech
This reported speech quiz gives you the chance to practice converting direct speech to reported speech, also known as indirect speech. This involves backshifting with the tenses.
![tense change in reported speech pdf In these examples of direct and indirect speech you are given a sentence in direct speech which is then connected to indirect speech.](https://www.grammarwiz.com/english-grammar-fb.png)
Examples of Direct and Indirect Speech
In these examples of direct and indirect speech you are given a sentence in direct speech which is then connected to indirect speech.
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Reported speech
Tense changes in reported speech
Indirect speech (reported speech) focuses more on the content of what someone said rather than their exact words. In indirect speech, the structure of the reported clause depends on whether the speaker is reporting a statement, a question or a command.
Normally, the tense in reported speech is one tense back in time from the tense in direct speech: She said, "I am tired." = She said that she was tired.
Phrase in Direct Speech | Equivalent in Reported Speech |
---|---|
"I always coffee", she said | She said that she always coffee. |
"I a book", he explained. | He explained that he a book |
"Bill on Saturday", he said. | He said that Bill on Saturday. |
"I to Spain", he told me. | He told me that he to Spain. |
"I the light," he explained. | He explained that he the light. |
They complained, "We for hours". | They complained that they for hours. |
"We in Paris", they told me. | They told me that they in Paris. |
"I in Geneva on Monday", he said. | He said that he in Geneva on Monday. |
She said, " the car next Friday". | She said that she the car next Friday. |
You do not need to change the tense if the reporting verb is in the present, or if the original statement was about something that is still true (but this is only for things which are general facts, and even then usually we like to change the tense) , e.g.
- He says he has missed the train but he'll catch the next one.
- We explained that it is very difficult to find our house.
- Direct speech: The sky is blue.
- Reported speech: She said (that) the sky is/was blue.
These modal verbs do not change in reported speech: might, could, would, should, ought to :
- We explained, "It could be difficult to find our house." = We explained that it could be difficult to find our house.
- She said, "I might bring a friend to the party." = She said that she might bring a friend to the party.
Course Curriculum
- Direct and indirect speech 15 mins
- Tense changes in reported speech 20 mins
- Changing time and place in reported speech 20 mins
- Reported questions 20 mins
- Reporting verbs 20 mins
- Reporting orders and requests 15 mins
- Reporting hopes, intentions and promises 20 mins
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Reported speech - 1
Reported speech - 2
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Reported speech
Worksheets - pdf exercises.
- Reported statements - worksheet
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- Worksheet - reported speech
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- Mixed reported speech 2
- Reported speech 1
- Reported speech 2
- Reported speech 3
- Reported speech 4
- Reported speech 5
- Reported wh- questions
- Reported speech - worksheet
- Reported commands
- Reported questions
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- Reported speech exercise
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Reported Speech CHANGES GUIDE
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Reported Speech Tense Chart
Direct Speech | Indirect Speech |
---|---|
Greg said, "I am an English teacher." | |
Edward said, "I am watching the news." | Edward said that he was watching the news. |
Silva said, "I went to school yesterday." | Silva said that she had gone to school the day before. |
Captain said, "I have built a ship." | Captain said that he had built a ship. |
Eli said, "I will buy the book tomorrow" | Eli said that she would buy the book tomorrow. |
She said, "I have been waiting for two hours." | She said that she had been waiting for two hours. |
My mom said to her, "If you come tomorrow, I will introduce you to my husband." | My mother told her that if she came the next day, she would introduce her to her husband. |
Lori said to William, "If you loved me, you would say it." | Lori told William that if he loved her, he would tell her. |
GrammarBank Video Exercises |
---|
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Reported Speech
Grammar & Usage
Changing direct speech to reported (indirect) speech can be difficult because of the verb tense changes required. This handy chart and tips will help students remember common verb tense and modal changes in reported speech.
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Reported speech (b1).
- RS013 - Reported Speech
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- RS010 - Reported Speech
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- RS008 - Reported Questions
- RS007 - Reported Speech
- RS006 - Reported Speech
- RS005 - Reported Speech
- RS004 - Reported Speech
- RS003 - Reported Speech
- RS002 - Reported Speech - Mixed Exercises
- RS001 - Reported Speech - Mixed Exercises
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Reported Speech
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Reported Statements
Here's how it works:
We use a 'reporting verb' like 'say' or 'tell'. ( Click here for more about using 'say' and 'tell' .) If this verb is in the present tense, it's easy. We just put 'she says' and then the sentence:
- Direct speech: I like ice cream.
- Reported speech: She says (that) she likes ice cream.
We don't need to change the tense, though probably we do need to change the 'person' from 'I' to 'she', for example. We also may need to change words like 'my' and 'your'. (As I'm sure you know, often, we can choose if we want to use 'that' or not in English. I've put it in brackets () to show that it's optional. It's exactly the same if you use 'that' or if you don't use 'that'.)
But , if the reporting verb is in the past tense, then usually we change the tenses in the reported speech:
- Reported speech: She said (that) she liked ice cream.
present simple | I like ice cream | She said (that) she liked ice cream. |
present continuous | I am living in London | She said (that) she was living in London. |
past simple | I bought a car | She said (that) she had bought a car OR She said (that) she bought a car. |
past continuous | I was walking along the street | She said (that) she had been walking along the street. |
present perfect | I haven't seen Julie | She said (that) she hadn't seen Julie. |
past perfect* | I had taken English lessons before | She said (that) she had taken English lessons before. |
will | I'll see you later | She said (that) she would see me later. |
would* | I would help, but... | She said (that) she would help but... |
can | I can speak perfect English | She said (that) she could speak perfect English. |
could* | I could swim when I was four | She said (that) she could swim when she was four. |
shall | I shall come later | She said (that) she would come later. |
should* | I should call my mother | She said (that) she should call her mother |
might* | I might be late | She said (that) she might be late |
must | I must study at the weekend | She said (that) she must study at the weekend OR She said she had to study at the weekend |
* doesn't change.
- Direct speech: The sky is blue.
- Reported speech: She said (that) the sky is/was blue.
Click here for a mixed tense exercise about practise reported statements. Click here for a list of all the reported speech exercises.
Reported Questions
So now you have no problem with making reported speech from positive and negative sentences. But how about questions?
- Direct speech: Where do you live?
- Reported speech: She asked me where I lived.
- Direct speech: Where is Julie?
- Reported speech: She asked me where Julie was.
Where is the Post Office, please? | She asked me where the Post Office was. |
What are you doing? | She asked me what I was doing. |
Who was that fantastic man? | She asked me who that fantastic man had been. |
- Direct speech: Do you like chocolate?
- Reported speech: She asked me if I liked chocolate.
Do you love me? | He asked me if I loved him. |
Have you ever been to Mexico? | She asked me if I had ever been to Mexico. |
Are you living here? | She asked me if I was living here. |
Click here to practise reported 'wh' questions. Click here to practise reported 'yes / no' questions. Reported Requests
There's more! What if someone asks you to do something (in a polite way)? For example:
- Direct speech: Close the window, please
- Or: Could you close the window please?
- Or: Would you mind closing the window please?
- Reported speech: She asked me to close the window.
Please help me. | She asked me to help her. |
Please don't smoke. | She asked me not to smoke. |
Could you bring my book tonight? | She asked me to bring her book that night. |
Could you pass the milk, please? | She asked me to pass the milk. |
Would you mind coming early tomorrow? | She asked me to come early the next day. |
- Direct speech: Please don't be late.
- Reported speech: She asked us not to be late.
Reported Orders
- Direct speech: Sit down!
- Reported speech: She told me to sit down.
Go to bed! | He told the child to go to bed. |
Don't worry! | He told her not to worry. |
Be on time! | He told me to be on time. |
Don't smoke! | He told us not to smoke. |
- Click here for an exercise to practise reported requests and orders.
now | then / at that time |
today | yesterday / that day / Tuesday / the 27th of June |
yesterday | the day before yesterday / the day before / Wednesday / the 5th of December |
last night | the night before, Thursday night |
last week | the week before / the previous week |
tomorrow | today / the next day / the following day / Friday |
- Click here for an exercise about using 'say' and 'tell'.
- Click here for a list of all the reported speech exercises.
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Reported Speech in English
“Reported speech” might sound fancy, but it isn’t that complicated.
It’s just how you talk about what someone said.
Luckily, it’s pretty simple to learn the basics in English, beginning with the two types of reported speech: direct (reporting the exact words someone said) and indirect (reporting what someone said without using their exact words ).
Read this post to learn how to report speech, with tips and tricks for each, plenty of examples and a resources section that tells you about real world resources you can use to practice reporting speech.
How to Report Direct Speech
How to report indirect speech, reporting questions in indirect speech, verb tenses in indirect reported speech, simple present, present continuous, present perfect, present perfect continuous, simple past, past continuous, past perfect, past perfect continuous, simple future, future continuous, future perfect, future perfect continuous, authentic resources for practicing reported speech, novels and short stories, native english videos, celebrity profiles.
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Direct speech refers to the exact words that a person says. You can “report” direct speech in a few different ways.
To see how this works, let’s pretend that I (Elisabeth) told some people that I liked green onions.
Here are some different ways that those people could explain what I said:
Direct speech: “I like green onions,” Elisabeth said.
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Direct speech: “I like green onions,” she told me. — In this sentence, we replace my name (Elisabeth) with the pronoun she.
In all of these examples, the part that was said is between quotation marks and is followed by a noun (“she” or “Elisabeth”) and a verb. Each of these verbs (“to say,” “to tell [someone],” “to explain”) are ways to describe someone talking. You can use any verb that refers to speech in this way.
You can also put the noun and verb before what was said.
Direct speech: Elisabeth said, “I like spaghetti.”
The example above would be much more likely to be said out loud than the first set of examples.
Here’s a conversation that might happen between two people:
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1: Did you ask her if she liked coffee?
2: Yeah, I asked her.
1: What did she say?
2. She said, “Yeah, I like coffee.” ( Direct speech )
Usually, reporting of direct speech is something you see in writing. It doesn’t happen as often when people are talking to each other.
Direct reported speech often happens in the past. However, there are all kinds of stories, including journalism pieces, profiles and fiction, where you might see speech reported in the present as well.
This is sometimes done when the author of the piece wants you to feel that you’re experiencing events in the present moment.
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For example, a profile of Kristen Stewart in Vanity Fair has a funny moment that describes how the actress isn’t a very good swimmer:
Direct speech: “I don’t want to enter the water, ever,” she says. “If everyone’s going in the ocean, I’m like, no.”
Here, the speech is reported as though it’s in the present tense (“she says”) instead of in the past (“she said”).
In writing of all kinds, direct reported speech is often split into two or more parts, as it is above.
Here’s an example from Lewis Carroll’s “ Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland ,” where the speech is even more split up:
Direct speech: “I won’t indeed!” said Alice, in a great hurry to change the subject of conversation. “Are you—are you fond—of—of dogs?” The Mouse did not answer, so Alice went on eagerly: “There is such a nice little dog near our house I should like to show you!”
Reporting indirect speech is what happens when you explain what someone said without using their exact words.
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Let’s start with an example of direct reported speech like those used above.
Direct speech: Elisabeth said, “I like coffee.”
As indirect reported speech, it looks like this:
Indirect speech: Elisabeth said she liked coffee.
You can see that the subject (“I”) has been changed to “she,” to show who is being spoken about. If I’m reporting the direct speech of someone else, and this person says “I,” I’d repeat their sentence exactly as they said it. If I’m reporting this person’s speech indirectly to someone else, however, I’d speak about them in the third person—using “she,” “he” or “they.”
You may also notice that the tense changes here: If “I like coffee” is what she said, this can become “She liked coffee” in indirect speech.
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However, you might just as often hear someone say something like, “She said she likes coffee.” Since people’s likes and preferences tend to change over time and not right away, it makes sense to keep them in the present tense.
Indirect speech often uses the word “that” before what was said:
Indirect speech: She said that she liked coffee.
There’s no real difference between “She said she liked coffee” and “She said that she liked coffee.” However, using “that” can help make the different parts of the sentence clearer.
Let’s look at a few other examples:
Indirect speech: I said I was going outside today.
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Indirect speech: They told me that they wanted to order pizza.
Indirect speech: He mentioned it was raining.
Indirect speech: She said that her father was coming over for dinner.
You can see an example of reporting indirect speech in the funny video “ Cell Phone Crashing .” In this video, a traveler in an airport sits down next to another traveler talking on his cell phone. The first traveler pretends to be talking to someone on his phone, but he appears to be responding to the second traveler’s conversation, which leads to this exchange:
Woman: “Are you answering what I’m saying?”
Man “No, no… I’m on the phone with somebody, sorry. I don’t mean to be rude.” (Direct speech)
Woman: “What was that?”
Man: “I just said I was on the phone with somebody.” (Indirect speech)
When reporting questions in indirect speech, you can use words like “whether” or “if” with verbs that show questioning, such as “to ask” or “to wonder.”
Direct speech: She asked, “Is that a new restaurant?”
Indirect speech: She asked if that was a new restaurant.
In any case where you’re reporting a question, you can say that someone was “wondering” or “wanted to know” something. Notice that these verbs don’t directly show that someone asked a question. They don’t describe an action that happened at a single point in time. But you can usually assume that someone was wondering or wanted to know what they asked.
Indirect speech: She was wondering if that was a new restaurant.
Indirect speech: She wanted to know whether that was a new restaurant.
It can be tricky to know how to use tenses when reporting indirect speech. Let’s break it down, tense by tense.
Sometimes, indirect speech “ backshifts ,” or moves one tense further back into the past. We already saw this in the example from above:
Direct speech: She said, “I like coffee.”
Indirect speech: She said she liked coffee.
Also as mentioned above, backshifting doesn’t always happen. This might seem confusing, but it isn’t that difficult to understand once you start using reported speech regularly.
What tense you use in indirect reported speech often just depends on when what you’re reporting happened or was true.
Let’s look at some examples of how direct speech in certain tenses commonly changes (or doesn’t) when it’s reported as indirect speech.
To learn about all the English tenses (or for a quick review), check out this post .
Direct speech: I said, “I play video games.”
Indirect speech: I said that I played video games (simple past) or I said that I play video games (simple present).
Backshifting into the past or staying in the present here can change the meaning slightly. If you use the first example, it’s unclear whether or not you still play video games; all we know is that you said you played them in the past.
If you use the second example, though, you probably still play video games (unless you were lying for some reason).
However, the difference in meaning is so small, you can use either one and you won’t have a problem.
Direct speech: I said, “I’m playing video games.”
Indirect speech: I said that I was playing video games (past continuous) or I said that I’m playing video games (present continuous).
In this case, you’d likely use the first example if you were telling a story about something that happened in the past.
You could use the second example to repeat or stress what you just said. For example:
Hey, want to go for a walk?
Direct speech: No, I’m playing video games.
But it’s such a nice day!
Indirect speech: I said that I’m playing video games!
Direct speech: Marie said, “I have read that book.”
Indirect speech: Marie said that she had read that book (past perfect) or Marie said that she has read that book (present perfect).
The past perfect is used a lot in writing and other kinds of narration. This is because it helps point out an exact moment in time when something was true.
The past perfect isn’t quite as useful in conversation, where people are usually more interested in what’s true now. So, in a lot of cases, people would use the second example above when speaking.
Direct speech: She said, “I have been watching that show.”
Indirect speech: She said that she had been watching that show (past perfect continuous) or She said that she has been watching that show (present perfect continuous).
These examples are similar to the others above. You could use the first example whether or not this person was still watching the show, but if you used the second example, it’d probably seem like you either knew or guessed that she was still watching it.
Direct speech: You told me, “I charged my phone.”
Indirect speech: You told me that you had charged your phone (past perfect) or You told me that you charged your phone (simple past).
Here, most people would probably just use the second example, because it’s simpler, and gets across the same meaning.
Direct speech: You told me, “I was charging my phone.”
Indirect speech: You told me that you had been charging your phone (past perfect continuous) or You told me that you were charging your phone (past continuous).
Here, the difference is between whether you had been charging your phone before or were charging your phone at the time. However, a lot of people would still use the second example in either situation.
Direct speech: They explained, “We had bathed the cat on Wednesday.”
Indirect speech: They explained that they had bathed the cat on Wednesday. (past perfect)
Once we start reporting the past perfect tenses, we don’t backshift because there are no tenses to backshift to.
So in this case, it’s simple. The tense stays exactly as is. However, many people might simplify even more and use the simple past, saying, “They explained that they bathed the cat on Wednesday.”
Direct speech: They said, “The cat had been going outside and getting dirty for a long time!”
Indirect speech: They said that the cat had been going outside and getting dirty for a long time. (past perfect continuous)
Again, we don’t shift the tense back here; we leave it like it is. And again, a lot of people would report this speech as, “They said the cat was going outside and getting dirty for a long time.” It’s just a simpler way to say almost the same thing.
Direct speech: I told you, “I will be here no matter what.”
Indirect speech: I told you that I would be here no matter what. (present conditional)
At this point, we don’t just have to think about tenses, but grammatical mood, too. However, the idea is still pretty simple. We use the conditional (with “would”) to show that at the time the words were spoken, the future was uncertain.
In this case, you could also say, “I told you that I will be here no matter what,” but only if you “being here” is still something that you expect to happen in the future.
What matters here is what’s intended. Since this example shows a person reporting their own speech, it’s more likely that they’d want to stress the truth of their own intention, and so they might be more likely to use “will” than “would.”
But if you were reporting someone else’s words, you might be more likely to say something like, “She told me that she would be here no matter what.”
Direct speech: I said, “I’ll be waiting for your call.”
Indirect speech: I said that I would be waiting for your call. (conditional continuous)
These are similar to the above examples, but apply to a continuous or ongoing action.
Direct speech: She said, “I will have learned a lot about myself.”
Indirect speech: She said that she would have learned a lot about herself (conditional perfect) or She said that she will have learned a lot about herself (future perfect).
In this case, using the conditional (as in the first example) suggests that maybe a certain event didn’t happen, or something didn’t turn out as expected.
However, that might not always be the case, especially if this was a sentence that was written in an article or a work of fiction. The second example, however, suggests that the future that’s being talked about still hasn’t happened yet.
Direct speech: She said, “By next Tuesday, I will have been staying inside every day for the past month.”
Indirect speech: She said that by next Tuesday, she would have been staying inside every day for the past month (perfect continuous conditional) or She said that by next Tuesday, she will have been staying inside every day for the past month (past perfect continuous).
Again, in this case, the first example might suggest that the event didn’t happen. Maybe the person didn’t stay inside until next Tuesday! However, this could also just be a way of explaining that at the time she said this in the past, it was uncertain whether she really would stay inside for as long as she thought.
The second example, on the other hand, would only be used if next Tuesday hadn’t happened yet.
Let’s take a look at where you can find resources for practicing reporting speech in the real world.
One of the most common uses for reported speech is in fiction. You’ll find plenty of reported speech in novels and short stories . Look for books that have long sections of text with dialogue marked by quotation marks (“…”). Once you understand the different kinds of reported speech, you can look for it in your reading and use it in your own writing.
Writing your own stories is a great way to get even better at understanding reported speech.
One of the best ways to practice any aspect of English is to watch native English videos. By watching English speakers use the language, you can understand how reported speech is used in real world situations.
FluentU takes authentic videos—like music videos, movie trailers, news and inspiring talks—and turns them into personalized language learning lessons.
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Celebrity profiles, which you can find in print magazines and online, can help you find and practice reported speech, too. Celebrity profiles are stories that focus on a famous person. They often include some kind of interview. The writer will usually spend some time describing the person and then mention things that they say; this is when they use reported speech.
Because many of these profiles are written in the present tense, they can help you get used to the basics of reported speech without having to worry too much about different verb tenses.
While the above may seem really complicated, it isn’t that difficult to start using reported speech.
Mastering it may be a little difficult, but the truth is that many, many people who speak English as a first language struggle with it, too!
Reported speech is flexible, and even if you make mistakes, there’s a good chance that no one will notice.
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Reported Speech. Greg: "I am cooking dinner Maya.". Maya: "Greg said he was cooking dinner.". So most often, the reported speech is going to be in the past tense, because the original statement, will now be in the past! *We will learn about reporting verbs in part 2 of this lesson, but for now we will just use said/told.
Reported Speech (Reporting verb in past tense) "I eat breakfast at 8 AM.". She said (that) she ate breakfast at 8 AM. "We are going to the beach.". They told me (that) they were going to the beach. "He speaks Spanish fluently.". She said (that) he spoke Spanish fluently. "She cooks delicious meals.".
Below is a reported speech tense change chart with the rules for backshifting for each tense and for modal verbs. You will see reported speech does not go back a tense if it is already in the past perfect (there is no further back it can go), and some modal verbs also do not change. If you are tested on this, though, these are the changes you ...
reporting a statement that someone makes very often, e.g. Tom says that he'll never get married. When the introductory verb is in a present, present perfect or future tense we can report the direct 2 speech without any change of tense: PAUL (phoning from the station): I'm trying to get a taxi.
A change of pronouns 2. A change in tense 3. Changes to time phrases Direct Quote: Reported Speech: Explanation Richard said, "I love learning grammar." Richard said that he loved learning grammar. 1. Notice how the pronoun changes, to show who the original speaker was. When the pronoun changes the verb must agree in number. Richard said ...
If the reporting verb is in the past tense, we change the following: a) verb tenses and verb forms, b) pronouns, c) the adverbs of time and place. A) The changes of verb tenses in the indirect (reported) speech 1. Present - past The present simple tense becomes the past simple tense and the present continuous becomes the past continuous.
1. A change of pronouns 2. A change in tense 3. Changes to time phrases Direct Quote Reported Speech Explanation Richard said, "I love learning grammar." Richard said, "I have had difficulty with reported speech." Richard said that he loved learning grammar. Richard said that he has had difficulty with reported speech. Notice how the ...
In indirect speech, the structure of the reported clause depends on whether the speaker is reporting a statement, a question or a command. Normally, the tense in reported speech is one tense back in time from the tense in direct speech: She said, "I am tired." = She said that she was tired. Phrase in Direct Speech. Equivalent in Reported Speech.
Grammar videos: Reported speech We use reported speech when we want to tell someone what someone said. We usually use a reporting verb (e.g. say, tell, ask, etc.) and then change the tense of what was actually said in direct speech. Exactly. Verbs in the present simple change to the past simple; the present (Direct speech: '
2. Identify the verb tense used in the direct speech as the verb tenses will backshift when being changed to reported speech. a. Note: Although it is not standard, some native speakers may not change present tense into past tense for facts. For example "Mt. Everest is the tallest mountain in the world" can change to "She said Mt. Everest ...
Reported Speech Tense Changes Direct Speech Tense Reported Speech Tense Example Simple Present Simple Past "I love you." She said that she loved me. Present Progressive Past Progressive "I am going to the party." He said that he was going to the party. Present Perfect Past Perfect "I have already eaten."
D) Tenses Reported speech may or may not need a change in verbal tenses when converted from direct speech: NO CHANGE: As previously mentioned, at times, the reporting verb (e.g. he says, he tells me, etc.) is in the present. In this case, pronouns will change in indirect speech, but the tenses in the reported clause stay the same.
Reported speech : worksheets pdf, printable exercises, handouts. Direct and indirect speech for esl. Index of contents. Reported speech - 1 Reported speech - 2 Reported speech - 3 Home. Worksheets - handouts. ... Tense changes - grammar reported speech - exercises- Search on this site
Reported speech (also called indirect speech) relates what the person said, but does not use the exact words. You often need to change verbs and pronouns to keep the original meaning. (The students may notice that verb tenses change in reported speech. The general rule is that reported speech "backs up" one verb tense.
Chadelel. 10657. 125. 93. 0. 1/1. Let's do English ESL grammar guide. Reported Speech CHANGES GUIDE - This is a guide for your students in order to know how they have to change the pronouns, exp….
Reported Speech Tense Chart. When we convert from direct speech to indirect speech, the tense of the sentence changes. See the chart below to understand direct to indirect speech tense shift. Greg said, "I am an English teacher." Greg said that he was an English teacher. Edward said, "I am watching the news."
4. Once all of the groups of students have been formed, have them read their card aloud to the rest of class. Have them begin with the verb tense, then the direct speech, and then the reported speech. 5. Once finished, have the students turn in their cards, mix them up and then play again.
Grammar & Usage. High Int - Adv. All ages. Grades 6-12. Changing direct speech to reported (indirect) speech can be difficult because of the verb tense changes required. This handy chart and tips will help students remember common verb tense and modal changes in reported speech. Open PDF.
RS008 - Reported Questions. RS007 - Reported Speech. RS006 - Reported Speech. RS005 - Reported Speech. RS004 - Reported Speech. RS003 - Reported Speech. RS002 - Reported Speech - Mixed Exercises. RS001 - Reported Speech - Mixed Exercises. Adjective and Adverbs - Downloadable PDF Worksheets for English Language Learners - Intermediate Level (B1)
Watch my reported speech video: Here's how it works: We use a 'reporting verb' like 'say' or 'tell'. ( Click here for more about using 'say' and 'tell' .) If this verb is in the present tense, it's easy. We just put 'she says' and then the sentence: Direct speech: I like ice cream. Reported speech: She says (that) she likes ice cream.
Reported Speech- Change of Tenses - Free download as PDF File (.pdf), Text File (.txt) or read online for free. The document discusses rules for changing tenses when reporting someone's direct speech indirectly. It provides examples of how the tenses change from direct to indirect speech for simple present, present continuous, present perfect, present perfect continuous, simple past, and past ...
CHANGES FROM DIRECT SPEECH TO REPORTED SPEECH ... Likewise, when the reporting verb is in a present or future tense, no changes of tense take place. Inglés IV (B-2008) Prof. Argenis A. Zapata 2 YESTERDAY -----→ THE DAY BEFORE or THE PREVIOUS DAY TOMORROW -----→ THE NEXT DAY or ...
What tense you use in indirect reported speech often just depends on when what you're reporting happened or was true. Let's look at some examples of how direct speech in certain tenses commonly changes (or doesn't) when it's reported as indirect speech. To learn about all the English tenses (or for a quick review), check out this post.