Reported Speech What is it? How do you use it? Yesterday, I saw my friend Pamela! She told me that she got a promotion!
Mar 26, 2015
Reported Speech
What is it? How do you use it?
Yesterday, I saw my friend Pamela!
She told me that she got a
promotion!
Reported Speechis the grammar we use when we want to tell
another person about a conversation that took place in the past.
We often use reported speech to . . .1. Give someone a telephone message:Example:Example: Ellen said she couldn’t come today because…
2. Tell someone news that we heard from someone else:Example:Example: Tom told me that he and Karen got engaged!
3. To report something that happened:Example:Example: Sam said that the other driver wasn’tpaying attention and hit his car.
How to use reported speech:
When we use reported speech, we are usually talking about the past.
Therefore, verbs usually change to the past tense in reported speech.
am / is become wasare becomes were
have / has
become had
can / can’t becomecould couldn’t
will / won’t
become
would wouldn’t
TENSE DIRECT SPEECH REPORTED SPEECH
PRESENT SIMPLE We eat healthy food She said that they ate healthy food
PRESENT CONTINUOUS
We are eating healthy food
She said that they were eating healthy food
PRESENT PERFECT SIMPLE
We have eaten healthy food
She said that they had eaten healthy food
PRESENT PERFECT CONTINUOUS
We have been eating healthy food
She said that they had been eating healthy food
PAST SIMPLE We ate healthy foodShe said that they had eaten healthy food
PAST CONTINUOUS
We were eating healthy food
She said that they had been eating healthy food
PAST PERFECT SIMPLE
We had eaten healthy food
She said that they had eaten healthy food
PAST PERFECT CONTINUOUS
We had been eating healthy food
She said that they had been eating healthy food
FUTURE SIMPLEWe will eat healthy food
She said that they would eat healthy food
MODAL VERBS
DIRECT SPEECH REPORTED SPEECH
CAN COULD
MAY MIGHT
MUST / HAVE TO MUST / HAD TO
WILL WOULD
TIME AND PLACE
DIRECT SPEECH REPORTED SPEECH
Now Then
Today That day
Tonight That night
Yesterday The previous day / the day before
Last week The previous week / the week before
A __________ ago The previous ______ / the _____ before
Tomorrow The following day / the day after / the next day
Next ___________ The following ________ / the _______ after
Here There
Now Then
This
These
That
Those
PRONOUNSI he/she He said:"I am late" - He said he was late.
youhe/she/
they"Will you help me?" - She asked if he would help her.
he/she/ithe/she/
it She said: "He hit me" - She said he had hit her.
we they I said: "We are lost" - He said they were lost.
they theyThey said:"We are hungry" - They said they were hungry.
us themJohn said: "She gave us presents" - John said she had given them presents.
our theirHe said: "Our jobs are at risk" - He said their jobs were at risk.
his/hers/its his/hers/its She said: "It's hers" - She said that it was hers.
Reported speech typically uses the following structure:
Someone said (that) … Sentence, past
ORSomeone told me (that) … Sentence,past
However, in English, you can NEVER say
Someone said me . . .
Examples of Examples of reporting what reporting what
someone said . . .someone said . . .I talked to Sandra yesterday. She was telling me about her job. Her job is quite stressful. Sandra said:
“I’m not happy at my
job anymore. I think I’ll quit.”
Sandra said, “I’m not happy at my job anymore. I think
I’ll quit.Now you want to tell someone else what Sandra said. In this situation, it’s natural to
use reported speech:reported speech: You can say:
Sandra told me that she happy at her job anymore and she she quit.
When a person told you something in the past tense, you can use either the past
tense or the past perfect after the “said” phrase.
ExampleExample::
Tim said:“I worked really hard
today.”
past tensepast tense
past perfect past perfect tensetense
Examples for practice:Examples for practice:
1. Shawn said:“I don’t feel like going to the movies tonight.”
Reported speech:
Shawn said that he didn’t feel like going to the movies tonight.
2. Tina said:“My sister is coming to visit me soon.”
Reported speech:
Tina told me that her sister was coming to visit her soon.
. . . And more examples:
3. The counselor said:“I’ll always be available for your students.”
Reported speech:The counselor said that she would always be available for my students.
4. The students said:“We want to do oral presentations in class so we can practice speaking more.
Reported speech:The students told me that they wantedto do oral presentations so they could practice speaking more.
Do you understand reported speech better
NOWNOW than you did BEFOREBEFORE?
Keep practicing!!! And please . . . ask if you need assistance!
Congratulations!