Reported
Speech
Created by: Abdelmajid HAMOUTI
I. Introduction
REPORTED SPEECH is used to
tell what someone said. Yet, we
do not repeat all the words
exactly.
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II. Types
[DIRECT SPEECH]:
Tom said: “We are going to the cinema
this afternoon.”
[REPORTED SPEECH]:
Tom said that they were going to the
cinema that afternoon.
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III. Reporting Verbs
When we tell someone what another
person said, we often use the
verbs say, tell, or ask.
These are called 'reporting verbs'.
However, we can also use other reporting
verbs.
(request, order, advise, want to know,
mention…)
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IV. Changes
- Logical change of pronouns
- Verb Tenses
- Time and place adverbial expressions
EXAMPLE
DIRECT: Mary said: “They are seeing me
tomorrow”
REPORTED: Mary said that they were seeing
her the following day
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IV. Changes
- Logical change of pronouns
- Verb Tenses
- Time and place adverbial expressions
EXAMPLE
DIRECT: Mary said: “They are seeing me
tomorrow”
REPORTED: Mary said that they were seeing
her the following day
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IV. Changes (pronouns)
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IV. Changes (tenses)
PRESENT SIMPLE
I play tennis with my friends.
=> She said that she played tennis with her friends.
PRESENT CONTINUOUS
I am playing tennis with my friends.
=> She said that she was playing tennis with her
friends.
FUTURE SIMPLE
I will play tennis with my friends.
=> She said that she would play tennis with her friends.
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IV. Changes (modal verbs)
CAN => COULD
MAY => MIGHT
MUST / HAVE TO => MUST / HAD TO
WILL => WOULD
SHOULD => SHOULD
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IV
DIRECT SPEECH REPORTED SPEECH
.
Now Then
C
Today That day
h
Tonight That night
a
Yesterday The previous day / the day before
n Last week The previous week / the week before
g A …. ago The previous …. / the …. before
e The following day / the day after / the next
Tomorrow
s day
Next …. The following …. / the …. after
(T
Here There
i
This / These That / Those
m
e 10
V. Orders
We usually report orders using:
Told + object + to + base verb
Example:
Direct: The teacher said, ‘’Sit down’’
Reported: The teacher told us to sit down.
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V. Orders
If it’s negative, we use
Told + object + not to + base verb
Example:
Direct: He said, ‘’Don’t touch that’!’
Reported: He told me not to touch that.
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VI. Requests
We often use:
asked + object + to + base verb
Example:
Direct: He said, “Can you help me with my
homework?”
Reported: He asked me to help him with his
homework.
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VI. Requests
We often use:
asked + object + to + base verb
For polite requests, “please” disappears
in reported speech. We just keep the
meaning.
Direct: "Could you open the window,
please?"
Reported: He asked me to open the
window. 14
VI. Yes / No Questions
These start with "if" or "whether".
asked + object + if/whether + subject +
verb
Example:
Direct: He said, "Do you like pizza?"
Reported: He asked me if I liked pizza.
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VII. WH Questions
asked + object + wh-word + subject +
verb
No question word order — use statement
order.
Example:
Direct: She said, "Where do you live?"
Reported: She asked me where I lived.
Direct: "What are you doing?"
Reported: He asked me what I was doing.
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Thanks for
your
attention
