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Reported Speech

Reported speech is used to talk about what someone else said in the past. When using reported speech, verb tenses are usually changed to the past tense. Common tense changes include present simple to past simple, present continuous to past continuous. However, tense changes are not always necessary, such as when the reported statement is still relevant or if changing the tense would alter the meaning. Pronouns, time, and place references are also typically adjusted in reported speech.

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77 views

Reported Speech

Reported speech is used to talk about what someone else said in the past. When using reported speech, verb tenses are usually changed to the past tense. Common tense changes include present simple to past simple, present continuous to past continuous. However, tense changes are not always necessary, such as when the reported statement is still relevant or if changing the tense would alter the meaning. Pronouns, time, and place references are also typically adjusted in reported speech.

Uploaded by

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

Definition

Reported speech is often also called indirect speech. When we use reported speech, we are
usually talking about the past (because obviously the person who spoke originally spoke in the
past). The verbs therefore usually have to be in the past too. For example:

"I'm going to the cinema".


He said he was going to the cinema.

Basic tense chart

The tenses generally move backwards in this way (the tense on the left changes to the tense
on the right):

present simple past simple


I'm a teacher. He said he was a teacher
past continuous
present continuous
He said he was having lunch with his
I'm having lunch with my parents.
parents.
past perfect simple
present perfect simple
He said he had been to France three
I've been to France three times.
times.
present perfect continuous past perfect continuous
I've been working very hard. He said he had been working very hard.
past simple past perfect
I bought a new car. He said he had bought a new car.
past continuous past perfect continuous
It was raining earlier. He said it had been raining earlier.
past perfect past perfect
The play had started when I arrived. NO CHANGE POSSIBLE
past perfect continuous
past perfect continuous
I'd already been living in London for five
NO CHANGE POSSIBLE
years.
Other verb forms

Other verb forms also sometimes change:

will would
I'll come and see you soon. He said he would come and see me soon.
can could
I can swim under water for two He said he could swim under water for two
minutes. minutes.
must had to
All tickets must be bought in He said that all tickets had to be bought in
advance. advance.
shall should
What shall we do about it? He asked what we should do about it.
may might
May I smoke? He asked if he might smoke.

Things are slightly more complicated with imperatives.

positive imperative tell + infinitive


Shut up! He told me to shut up.
negative imperative tell + not + infinitive
Don't do that again! He told me not to do it again.
imperatives as requests ask + infinitive
Please give me some money. He asked me to give him some money.

When verbs don't follow the rules

The verb tenses do not always follow the rules shown above. For example, if the reporting
verb is in the present tense, there is no change in the reported sentence. Also, a sentence in
direct speech in a present or future tense can remain the same if what is said is still true or
relevant. For example:

You've invited someone for dinner at your house, and the phone rings. It's them! They say:
I'm sorry, but I think I'm going to be a bit late. There's a lot of traffic.

After you finish speaking on the phone, you say to someone else:
That was Juan. He said he thinks he's going to be late because there's a lot of traffic.
Direct statements in a past tense do not always change either, because a change might alter
the meaning or just make it sound confusing. For example:

A friend is telling you about the horrible weather:


It started raining heavily when I left work.

This is where things get confusing:

He said it had started raining heavily when he had left work (it sounds horrible and the
sentence is almost nothing but verbs).

He said it had started raining heavily when he left work (is wrong because it means it was
already raining when he left work)

He said it started raining heavily when he left work (is the best version because it is accurate,
short, and there is no confusion because of the time context)

Generally speaking, the past simple and continuous don't always need to be changed

Time and place references

Time and place references often have to change:

now then
today that day
here there
this that
this week that week
the following day
tomorrow the next day
the day after
the following week
next week the next week
the week after
the previous day
yesterday
the day before
the previous week
last week
the week before
previously
ago
before
2 weeks previously
2 weeks ago
2 weeks before
tonight that night
the previous Saturday
last Saturday
the Saturday before
the following Saturday
the next Saturday
next Saturday
the Saturday after
that Saturday

Examples:

I went to the theatre last night.


He said he had gone to the theatre the night before.

I'm having a party next weekend.


He said he was having a party the next weekend.

I'm staying here until next week.


He said he was staying there until the following week.

I came over from London 3 years ago.


He said he had come over from London 3 years before.

Personal pronouns

You also need to be careful with personal pronouns. They need to be changed according to the
situation. You need to know the context. For example, there is possible confusion when you try
to change reported speech to direct speech:

She said she'd been waiting for hours.


(Is she one person or two different people?)

I told them they would have to ask permission.


(Are we talking about two groups of people or only one?)

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