6 Questions
When converting direct speech to indirect speech, what happens to the verb tense 'Present Simple'?
It becomes 'Past Simple'
What happens to the pronoun 'I' when converting direct speech to indirect speech?
It becomes 'he/she'
What happens to the time expression 'now' when converting direct speech to indirect speech?
It becomes 'then'
When converting direct speech to indirect speech, what happens to the verb tense 'Past Continuous'?
It becomes 'Past Perfect Continuous'
What happens to the place expression 'here' when converting direct speech to indirect speech?
It becomes 'there'
When converting direct speech to indirect speech, what happens to the verb tense 'Present Perfect'?
It becomes 'Past Perfect'
Study Notes
Direct and Indirect Speech: Conversion
Definition
Direct speech is a quote that is spoken exactly as it was said, placed in quotation marks. Indirect speech, also known as reported speech, is a paraphrased version of what was said.
Conversion Rules
To convert direct speech to indirect speech, follow these rules:
Verb Tenses
- Present Simple in direct speech becomes Past Simple in indirect speech
- Present Continuous in direct speech becomes Past Continuous in indirect speech
- Present Perfect in direct speech becomes Past Perfect in indirect speech
- Past Simple in direct speech remains Past Simple in indirect speech
- Past Continuous in direct speech becomes Past Perfect Continuous in indirect speech
- Past Perfect in direct speech remains Past Perfect in indirect speech
Pronouns
- I becomes he/she/they in indirect speech
- you becomes him/her/them in indirect speech
- here becomes there in indirect speech
- now becomes then in indirect speech
- today becomes that day in indirect speech
- yesterday becomes the day before in indirect speech
Time and Place
- Expressions of time and place may need to be adjusted to match the context of the indirect speech sentence.
Examples
- Direct speech: "I am going to the store," she said. Indirect speech: She said that she was going to the store.
- Direct speech: "I will meet you at 5 o'clock," he said. Indirect speech: He said that he would meet me at 5 o'clock.
Direct and Indirect Speech
- Direct speech is a quote that is spoken exactly as it was said, placed in quotation marks.
- Indirect speech, also known as reported speech, is a paraphrased version of what was said.
Conversion Rules
Verb Tenses
- Present Simple in direct speech becomes Past Simple in indirect speech.
- Present Continuous in direct speech becomes Past Continuous in indirect speech.
- Present Perfect in direct speech becomes Past Perfect in indirect speech.
- Past Simple in direct speech remains Past Simple in indirect speech.
- Past Continuous in direct speech becomes Past Perfect Continuous in indirect speech.
- Past Perfect in direct speech remains Past Perfect in indirect speech.
Pronouns
- I becomes he/she/they in indirect speech.
- you becomes him/her/them in indirect speech.
- here becomes there in indirect speech.
- now becomes then in indirect speech.
- today becomes that day in indirect speech.
- yesterday becomes the day before in indirect speech.
Time and Place
- Expressions of time and place may need to be adjusted to match the context of the indirect speech sentence.
Examples
- "I am going to the store" in direct speech becomes "She said that she was going to the store" in indirect speech.
- "I will meet you at 5 o'clock" in direct speech becomes "He said that he would meet me at 5 o'clock" in indirect speech.
Test your knowledge of direct and indirect speech rules, including verb tense conversion in English grammar.
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