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Reported Speech

The document discusses the differences between direct and indirect speech. Direct speech uses quotation marks and retains the original words, tense, and pronouns. Indirect speech does not use quotation marks and changes the tense, pronouns, place and time references as needed. The document provides rules for changing different types of sentences - assertive, interrogative, imperative, and exclamatory sentences - from direct to indirect speech.

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Niranjan S
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675 views

Reported Speech

The document discusses the differences between direct and indirect speech. Direct speech uses quotation marks and retains the original words, tense, and pronouns. Indirect speech does not use quotation marks and changes the tense, pronouns, place and time references as needed. The document provides rules for changing different types of sentences - assertive, interrogative, imperative, and exclamatory sentences - from direct to indirect speech.

Uploaded by

Niranjan S
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
Available Formats
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Reported speech

Direct speech:
The direct speech repeats the actual words used by the
speaker.
E.g: Mohan said, “I like my school”.
She said, “My father will buy”.
Note:
 In direct speech, the actual words are enclosed within
quotation marks.
 It will be introduced by reporting speech.
 The word in the quotation begins with the capital letter.
Indirect speech:
It conveys the words of the speaker in a slightly different
way.
E.g: Mohan said that he like his school.
She told that her father would buy.
Note:
 In indirect speech the quotation marks are omitted
 A conjunction that is added.
 The tenses of the verbs are correspondingly changed.
Changes in tenses:
Direct speech Indirect speech
Simple present Simple past
Present continuous Past continuous
Present perfect Past perfect
Present perfect continuous Past perfect continuous
Simple past Past perfect
Past continuous Past perfect continuous

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Words indicating nearness of time or places are changed into
indicating distance when converted into indirect speech.

Direct speech Indirect speech


Now Then
Here There
This That
These Those
Ago Before
Yesterday The day before/The previous day
Today That day
Last night Previous night/The night before
Tomorrow The next day
Shall Should
May Might
Can Could
Will Would

Direct speech Indirect speech


V1 V1
is/am/are+V4 was/were+V4
is/am/are was/were
have/has+V3 had+V3
have/has+been+V4 had+been+V4
V2/was/were had+V3
was/were+V4 had+been+V4

Assertive sentences
Rules:
 Remove commas and inverted commas.

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 Reporting verb and reported speech are joined by using the
conjunction ‘that’.
 ‘Said to’ changes as ‘told’.
 If the reporting verb is in present tense or future tense, there
won’t be any change in the forms of the reporting speech.
 If the reporting speech expresses a universal truth, proverb or
habitual fact tense form remains the same.

Interrogative sentences
Rules:
 Remove commas and inverted commas.
 ‘Said’ or ‘Said to’ in the reporting verb is changed into ‘asked’,
‘enquired’, ‘questioned’ and ‘demanded’.
 If the question is in ‘yes/no’ type, join the reporting verb with
the reported speech by ‘if’ or ‘whether’.
 Never use ‘that’ or any other conjunction.
 Change the question form of the sentence into statement by,
a) Placing the auxiliary verb after the subject.
b) Replacing the question mark (?) by a full stop (.)

Imperative sentences
Rules:
 ‘Said’ or ‘Said to’ is changed into ‘ordered, requested or
advised etc...According to the tone and meaning of the
sentence.
 Imperative sentences begin with verbs. The imperative mood is
changed into infinitive by placing ‘to’ before the main verb.
 ‘Don’t’ in the direct speech is changed into ‘not to’.
 There are some special rules for sentences beginning with ‘let
us’.

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a) ‘Said’ is changed into suggested or proposed.
b) Conjunction ‘that’ is used.
c) ‘Let us’ is changed into ‘we should’ or ‘they should’
according to the situation.

Exclamatory sentences
Rules:
 Reporting verb ‘said’ is changed into ‘exclaimed’ in
exclamatory sentences and ‘wished’ or ‘prayed’ in optative
sentences.
 After exclaimed we use ‘with joy’, ‘with sorrow’, ‘with
delight’, ‘with surprise’, ‘with disgust’ etc…According to the
tone or sense of the sentence.
 Conjunction ‘that’ is used to join the reporting verb to the
reporting speech.
 The exclamatory sentence is changed into an assertive sentence
[statement].

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