Transcript Reported speech

Reported speech
We use reported speech when we are telling
someone what another person said or
thought, but do not use their exact words.
Reporting statements
• When we report a statement, we use
reported verbs such as say, tell, …..
Say + (that)
She said (that) they were happy
together.
Tell + person + (that)
He told me (that) he loved Marry
Change in Tenses
Direct speech
Reported speech
Present Simple
→ Past Simple
Present continuous → Past Continuous
Present Perfect
→ Past Perfect
Past Simple
→ Past Perfect
Will
→ Would
May → might
Must → had to
Can → Could
Could, might, ought to, should, would
stay the same
Changes in adverbs of time and
place and demonstratives
now → then, at that time
today → that day
yesterday → the day before/ the previous day
tomorrow → the following day
this week → that week
next week/month → the following week/month
last week → the week before/the previous week
ago → before
here → there
this → that
these → those
Changes in Pronouns
• In reported speech, you often have to
change the pronoun depending on who
says what.
• Example:
She says, “My dad likes roast chicken.” →
She says that her dad likes roast chicken.
Reporting questions
If you put a question into Reported speech there
are some steps which are the same like in
statements: (changing of the pronouns, backshift
of tenses, changing of expressions of time).
Also note that you have to:
• transform the question into an indirect question
(the word order is: subject+ verb, no inversion)
• use the question word (where, when, what, how)
or if / whether
Reporting questions
Example:
1. “What time does the film begin?”→ He
wanted to know what time the film began.
2. “Have you seen that film?” → He asked
if/whether she had seen that film.
Reporting requests/commands
• For affirmative, use to + infinitive (without
to)
• For negative requests, use not to +
infinitive (without to).
Example:
1. She said, “Sit down." - She asked me to
sit down.
2. She said, "don't be lazy" - She asked me
not to be lazy
Practice (1)
1. “How many survivors are there?” asked the journalist.
The journalist wanted to know ……………………………………………
how many survivors there were…..
2. “Can I borrow your typewriter, Janet?” asked Peter.
Peter asked if …………………………………………………………………
he could borrow Janet’s typewriter.…..
3. “I don’t know how to do this exercise,” said Jim.
Jim said ………………………………………………………………………
he didn’t know how to do that exercise.…..
4. “Bring your swimming things in case it’s sunny”.
us to bring our swimming things in case it
He told …………………………………………………………………………
was sunny…..
5. “Keep away from this area,” said the security guard when we
approached the fence.
The security guard told ………………………………………………………
us to keep away from that area…..
6. I asked the hotel porter to wake me at 8 o’clock the following
morning.
wake me up at 8 o’clock tomorrow
“Please ………………………………………………………………………”
morning…..
7. “It isn’t so foggy today as it was yesterday,” said the teacher.
The teacher said( that) it wasn’t so foggy that
……………………………………………………………………………….
day as it had been the day before..
Practice (2)
8. She asked John how he liked her new dress.
do you like my new dress, John?…..
“How ………………………………………………………………………”
9. “Where is the car park?” Mr. Smith asked.
Mr. Smith asked me ………………………………………………………
where the car park was…..
10. “Will I ever find a job?” Jim asked to himself.
Jim wondered …………………………………………………………………
whether/if he would ever find a job…..
11. “Don’t take more than two of these at once”, said the doctor.
The doctor told me ……………………………………………………………
not to take more than two of those at once…..
12. “When is the first day of your holiday, Peter?” Martha asked.
Martha asked Peter …………………………………………………………
when the first day of his holiday was…..
13. “Can I have a new bicycle?” said Ann to her mother.
her mother if she could have a new
Ann asked ……………………………………………………………………
bicycle…..
14. “Whose bicycle did you borrow yesterday?”, his mother asked him.
whose bicycle he had borrowed the day
His mother asked him ……………………………………………………
before.…..