Reported Speech - Introduction

Reported Speech - Introduction

• Reported speech, also known as indirect speech, is a way of conveying what someone else said without using their exact words. It's used to recount conversations or statements in a more formal or detached manner.

Changing the Tense

• When reporting speech, tenses need to be adjusted to reflect the time frame of the reporting verb. If the reported statement contains past tense verbs, they need further adjustment to past perfect if the reporting verb is also in past tense.

  • Example: "He said he ate breakfast." (Incorrect - past tense matched with past tense).
  • Example: "He said he had eaten breakfast." (Correct - past perfect tense used after past tense reported verb).

• Simple Present changes to Simple Past:

  • "She says she likes cheese." becomes "She said she liked cheese."

• Simple Past changes to Past Perfect:

  • "He said he went to the park." becomes "He said he had gone to the park."

• Present Continuous changes to Past Continuous:

  • "They said they were walking home." becomes "They said they were walking home."

• Past Continuous changes to Past Perfect Continuous:

  • "She said she was playing the piano." becomes "She said she had been playing the piano."

Changing Pronouns and Possessives

• Pronouns and possessive adjectives need to be adjusted to refer to the correct person in the reported speech.
• Direct pronouns and possessive adjectives change to reflect the reporter or the other person talked about
  • Example: "I love my dog." reported by another as "She said she loves her dog")
  • Example: "He said, 'We like going to the beach." becomes "He said they liked going to the beach."

Changing Adverbs of Time and Place

• Adverbs of time and place need to be changed to accommodate the time frame of the reported speech.
• Example: "She said, 'I went to the shop yesterday.'" becomes "She said she had gone to the shop the day before/the previous day."
• Example: "She said, 'I am going to the club now' ", becomes "She said she was going to the club then".

Reporting Questions

• When reporting questions, the question mark at the end of the direct speech is removed. The question's form is also adjusted.
  • Statements/questions change the punctuation and word ordering.
  • Example: Direct: "Where do you live?" Reported: "She asked where I lived."

Reporting Commands and Requests

• For commands and requests, the "reporting verb" changes to reflect the request, rather than just the action.
  • Example: Direct: "Close the door." Reported: "He told me to close the door."
  • Example: Direct: "Please help me." Reported: "She asked me to help her."

Reporting Speech with "Say" and "Tell"

• "Say" is used for reporting statements.
• "Tell" is used for reporting commands, requests, and information directed specifically to the listener.
  • "She said she would be late."
  • "He told her about the party."

Other Important Considerations

• Maintaining the original meaning of the direct speech is critical in reported speech.
• Using the appropriate reporting verbs ("said," "told," "asked," etc.) is important to conveying the intended meaning.
• Context is essential in understanding the correct reported version, as the exact changes should align with contextual details.

This quiz introduces reported speech, also known as indirect speech, which is used to convey what someone else said without quoting them directly. Learn how to correctly change tenses when reporting statements to ensure accurate communication in both spoken and written forms.