🗣️ Reported Speech (Indirect Speech)
🌟 1. What is Reported Speech?
When we want to tell what someone said, there are two ways to do it:
(A) Direct Speech
We use the exact words of the speaker and put them inside quotation marks (“ ”).
👉 Example:
John said, “I am hungry.”
Here, we see John’s exact words.
(B) Reported Speech (Indirect Speech)
We don’t use quotation marks.
We just report or tell what John said in our own words.
👉 Example:
John said that he was hungry.
So, instead of “I am hungry”, we said he was hungry.
We reported what John said.
🎯 2. What Changes When We Report Speech?
When you change from Direct Speech ➝ Reported Speech,
you must change 4 things:
- Tense (verb form)
- Pronouns
- Time and place words
- Punctuation & reporting verbs
Let’s understand each change one by one 👇
🔹 Change 1: Tense Changes (Moving one step back in time)
When the reporting verb (like said, told, asked) is in the past tense,
the verb in the reported part moves one tense back.
Think like this — if the speaker spoke in the past, the action is now older.
🕐 Tense Change Chart
| Direct Speech Tense | Reported Speech Tense | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Present Simple → Past Simple | “I eat apples.” → He said he ate apples. | |
| Present Continuous → Past Continuous | “I am eating.” → He said he was eating. | |
| Present Perfect → Past Perfect | “I have finished.” → He said he had finished. | |
| Past Simple → Past Perfect | “I went home.” → He said he had gone home. | |
| Will → Would | “I will come.” → He said he would come. | |
| Can → Could | “I can swim.” → He said he could swim. | |
| May → Might | “It may rain.” → He said it might rain. | |
| Must / Have to → Had to | “I must go.” → He said he had to go. |
📝 Important Note:
If the sentence is a fact or truth, the tense does not change.
✅ Example:
“The sun rises in the east.” → She said that the sun rises in the east.
(Because it’s always true.)
🔹 Change 2: Pronoun Changes
When we report, we have to change pronouns (I, you, my, your, etc.)
so they fit the new speaker and listener.
We follow this rule 👇
| Person | Changes According To | Example |
|---|---|---|
| 1st Person (I, we, my, our) | Changes according to Subject of reporting verb | “I am busy,” said John. → John said he was busy. |
| 2nd Person (you, your) | Changes according to Object of reporting verb | John said to me, “You are late.” → John told me that I was late. |
| 3rd Person (he, she, they) | No change | “He is kind,” said Mary. → Mary said that he was kind. |
💬 Examples for Practice
1️⃣ First Person (I, we) → Subject
- Direct: Sarah said, “I love my cat.”
- Reported: Sarah said she loved her cat.
2️⃣ Second Person (you) → Object
- Direct: He said to me, “You are smart.”
- Reported: He told me that I was smart.
3️⃣ Third Person (he, she, they) → No Change
- Direct: Riya said, “He plays football.”
- Reported: Riya said that he played football.
🔹 Change 3: Time and Place Words
When reporting speech, the time or place often changes because you are talking later or from another place.
| Direct Speech Word | Reported Speech Word |
|---|---|
| now → then | |
| today → that day | |
| tonight → that night | |
| yesterday → the day before / the previous day | |
| tomorrow → the next day / the following day | |
| last week → the week before / the previous week | |
| next year → the following year | |
| here → there | |
| this → that | |
| these → those |
✅ Examples:
- Direct: “I will go tomorrow.”
Reported: He said he would go the next day. - Direct: “I was here yesterday.”
Reported: She said she had been there the day before.
🔹 Change 4: Reporting Verbs and Punctuation
We use said, told, or asked to report what someone said.
| Type of Sentence | Reporting Verb | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Statement | said, told | He said that he was tired. / He told me that he was tired. |
| Question | asked, inquired | She asked if I was happy. |
| Command / Request | told, ordered, requested | He told me to sit down. |
| Suggestion / Promise | suggested, promised | She promised to help me. |
📝 Notes:
- You can’t say ❌ He told that…
Always ✅ He told me that… - Remove quotation marks (“ ”).
- You can use “that” between clauses (optional):
“He said he was hungry.” = “He said that he was hungry.”
💡 Special Cases: Questions
(a) Yes/No Questions
Use if or whether.
- Direct: She asked, “Are you coming?”
Reported: She asked if I was coming.
(b) Wh- Questions (What, Where, Why, etc.)
Keep the question word. Remove question mark and change word order.
- Direct: He asked, “Where are you going?”
Reported: He asked where I was going.
🧩 Putting It All Together (Full Example)
Direct Speech:
Sarah said, “I am going to the cinema now. I will call you later, Tom. Did you finish your work yesterday?”
Reported Speech:
Sarah said that she was going to the cinema then.
She told Tom that she would call him later.
She asked him if he had finished his work the day before.
🪄 How to Convert — Easy 6-Step Formula
1️⃣ Remove quotation marks (“ ”).
2️⃣ Change the reporting verb (say → said, ask → asked, tell → told).
3️⃣ Move the verb tense one step back.
4️⃣ Change pronouns to fit speaker & listener.
5️⃣ Change time and place words if needed.
6️⃣ Adjust word order (especially for questions).
✅ Quick Practice Examples
| Direct Speech | Reported Speech |
|---|---|
| “I am tired,” he said. | He said that he was tired. |
| She said, “We are studying English.” | She said that they were studying English. |
| He asked, “Do you like coffee?” | He asked if I liked coffee. |
| “Where are you going?” she asked. | She asked where I was going. |
Reported Speech (Indirect Speech)
Perfect 👍 Let’s make a visual chart of Reported Speech (Indirect Speech) —
clear, colorful (for classroom or notebook), and easy to remember!
🎨 Reported Speech — Visual Chart (Complete Summary)
🟦 1️⃣ Direct Speech vs Reported Speech
| Direct Speech | Reported Speech |
|---|---|
| Uses exact words of speaker | Tells what the speaker said |
| Has quotation marks (” “) | ❌ No quotation marks |
| Example: He said, “I am happy.” | Example: He said (that) he was happy. |
🟩 2️⃣ Tense Change (One Step Back in Time)
| Direct Speech Tense | Reported Speech Tense | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Present Simple → Past Simple | “I eat apples.” → He said he ate apples. | |
| Present Continuous → Past Continuous | “I am eating.” → He said he was eating. | |
| Present Perfect → Past Perfect | “I have finished.” → He said he had finished. | |
| Past Simple → Past Perfect | “I went home.” → He said he had gone home. | |
| Will → Would | “I will come.” → He said he would come. | |
| Can → Could | “I can swim.” → He said he could swim. | |
| May → Might | “It may rain.” → He said it might rain. | |
| Must / Have to → Had to | “I must go.” → He said he had to go. |
🟡 No Change for Universal Truths
➡ “The sun rises in the East.” → She said the sun rises in the East.
🟨 3️⃣ Pronoun Change Rules
| Person | Changes According To | Example |
|---|---|---|
| 1️⃣ First Person (I, we, me, my, our) | ➡ Subject of Reporting Verb | “I am happy,” said John. → John said he was happy. |
| 2️⃣ Second Person (you, your) | ➡ Object of Reporting Verb | He said to me, “You are kind.” → He told me that I was kind. |
| 3️⃣ Third Person (he, she, they) | ➡ No Change | “He is tall,” said Riya. → Riya said that he was tall. |
🧠 Tip to Remember:
“1st to SUBJECT, 2nd to OBJECT, 3rd NO CHANGE”
🟧 4️⃣ Time and Place Word Changes
| Direct Speech Word | Reported Speech Word |
|---|---|
| now → then | |
| today → that day | |
| tonight → that night | |
| yesterday → the day before / the previous day | |
| tomorrow → the next day / the following day | |
| last week → the week before / the previous week | |
| next year → the following year | |
| here → there | |
| this → that | |
| these → those |
🧩 Example:
- “I will come tomorrow.” → He said he would come the next day.
- “I was here yesterday.” → She said she had been there the day before.
🟪 5️⃣ Reporting Verbs
| Type of Sentence | Common Reporting Verbs | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Statement | said, told, replied, explained | He said that he was tired. |
| Question | asked, inquired, wondered | She asked if I was happy. |
| Command / Request | told, ordered, requested | He told me to sit down. |
| Suggestion / Promise | suggested, promised | She promised to help me. |
⚠ Note:
❌ He told that… → ✅ He told me that…
🟫 6️⃣ Questions – Special Rules
| Type | Rule | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Yes/No Question | Use if / whether | “Are you coming?” → She asked if I was coming. |
| Wh- Question | Keep question word (what, where, why…) | “Where are you going?” → She asked where I was going. |
✅ No question mark (?) in reported speech.
🟦 7️⃣ Step-by-Step Formula to Convert
| Step | What to Do | Example |
|---|---|---|
| 1️⃣ | Remove quotation marks | “I am fine.” → He said he was fine. |
| 2️⃣ | Change reporting verb (say → said / ask → asked) | |
| 3️⃣ | Move verb tense one step back | |
| 4️⃣ | Change pronouns | |
| 5️⃣ | Change time/place words | |
| 6️⃣ | For questions, add if / whether |
💡 Full Example
Direct Speech:
Sarah said, “I am going to the cinema now. I will call you later, Tom. Did you finish your work yesterday?”
Reported Speech:
Sarah said that she was going to the cinema then.
She told Tom that she would call him later.
She asked him if he had finished his work the day before.