direct
indirect
reported clause
statement
-clause
question
clause clause
clause
command
-infinitive clause
Indirect speech: reporting statements
Indirect reports of statements consist of a reporting clause and a that -clause. We often omit that , especially in informal situations:
The pilot commented that the weather had been extremely bad as the plane came in to land. (The pilot’s words were: ‘The weather was extremely bad as the plane came in to land.’ )
I told my wife I didn’t want a party on my 50th birthday. ( that -clause without that ) (or I told my wife that I didn’t want a party on my 50th birthday .)
Reporting yes-no questions and alternative questions.
Indirect reports of yes-no questions and questions with or consist of a reporting clause and a reported clause introduced by if or whether . If is more common than whether . The reported clause is in statement form (subject + verb), not question form:
She asked if [S] [V] I was Scottish. (original yes-no question: ‘Are you Scottish?’ )
The waiter asked whether [S] we [V] wanted a table near the window. (original yes-no question: ‘Do you want a table near the window? )
He asked me if [S] [V] I had come by train or by bus. (original alternative question: ‘Did you come by train or by bus?’ )
Questions: yes-no questions ( Are you feeling cold? )
Indirect reports of wh -questions consist of a reporting clause, and a reported clause beginning with a wh -word ( who, what, when, where, why, how ). We don’t use a question mark:
He asked me what I wanted.
Not: He asked me what I wanted?
The reported clause is in statement form (subject + verb), not question form:
She wanted to know who [S] we [V] had invited to the party.
Not: … who had we invited …
In indirect questions with who, whom and what , the wh- word may be the subject or the object of the reported clause:
I asked them who came to meet them at the airport. ( who is the subject of came ; original question: ‘Who came to meet you at the airport?’ )
He wondered what the repairs would cost. ( what is the object of cost ; original question: ‘What will the repairs cost?’ )
She asked us what [S] we [V] were doing . (original question: ‘What are you doing?’ )
Not: She asked us what were we doing?
We also use statement word order (subject + verb) with when , where, why and how :
I asked her when [S] it [V] had happened (original question: ‘When did it happen?’ ).
Not: I asked her when had it happened?
I asked her where [S] the bus station [V] was . (original question: ‘Where is the bus station?’ )
Not: I asked her where was the bus station?
The teacher asked them how [S] they [V] wanted to do the activity . (original question: ‘How do you want to do the activity?’ )
Not: The teacher asked them how did they want to do the activity?
Questions: wh- questions
Indirect reports of commands consist of a reporting clause, and a reported clause beginning with a to -infinitive:
The General ordered the troops to advance . (original command: ‘Advance!’ )
The chairperson told him to sit down and to stop interrupting . (original command: ‘Sit down and stop interrupting!’ )
We also use a to -infinitive clause in indirect reports with other verbs that mean wanting or getting people to do something, for example, advise, encourage, warn :
They advised me to wait till the following day. (original statement: ‘You should wait till the following day.’ )
The guard warned us not to enter the area. (original statement: ‘You must not enter the area.’ )
Verbs followed by a to -infinitive
We can use the reporting verb in the present simple in indirect speech if the original words are still true or relevant at the time of reporting, or if the report is of something someone often says or repeats:
Sheila says they’re closing the motorway tomorrow for repairs.
Henry tells me he’s thinking of getting married next year.
Rupert says dogs shouldn’t be allowed on the beach. (Rupert probably often repeats this statement.)
We often use the present simple in newspaper headlines. It makes the reported speech more dramatic:
JUDGE TELLS REPORTER TO LEAVE COURTROOM
PRIME MINISTER SAYS FAMILIES ARE TOP PRIORITY IN TAX REFORM
Present simple ( I work )
Reported speech
Reported speech: direct speech
In indirect speech, we can use the past continuous form of the reporting verb (usually say or tell ). This happens mostly in conversation, when the speaker wants to focus on the content of the report, usually because it is interesting news or important information, or because it is a new topic in the conversation:
Rory was telling me the big cinema in James Street is going to close down. Is that true?
Alex was saying that book sales have gone up a lot this year thanks to the Internet.
‘Backshift’ refers to the changes we make to the original verbs in indirect speech because time has passed between the moment of speaking and the time of the report.
direct speech | indirect speech |
not very happy at work.’ | not very happy at work. |
going home.’ | going home. |
be late.’ | be late. |
been working,’ she said. | . |
to make her so angry?’ he asked. | to make her so angry. |
In these examples, the present ( am ) has become the past ( was ), the future ( will ) has become the future-in-the-past ( would ) and the past ( happened ) has become the past perfect ( had happened ). The tenses have ‘shifted’ or ‘moved back’ in time.
direct | indirect | |
present simple | → | past simple |
present continuous | → | past continuous |
present perfect simple | → | past perfect simple |
present perfect continuous | → | past perfect continuous |
past simple | → | past perfect simple |
past continuous | → | past perfect continuous |
future (will) | → | future-in-the-past (would) |
past perfect | ↔ | past perfect (no change) |
The past perfect does not shift back; it stays the same:
Direct speech | Indirect speech |
| already left. |
Some, but not all, modal verbs ‘shift back’ in time and change in indirect speech.
direct speech | indirect speech | change | |
| be there,’ he promised. | be there. | becomes |
| need more money.’ I open it?’ she asked. | need more money. open it. | usually becomes in reported questions, becomes |
| see you at 2.30,’ he added. | see me at 2.30. | becomes |
| be back later,’ she said. wait in the hallway,’ he said. | be back later. wait in the hallway. | (possibility) becomes (permission) becomes |
| pay by 30th April.’ be awful to live in such a noisy place,’ she said. | pay by 30th April. be awful to live in such a noisy place. | (obligation) usually becomes (speculation) does not change |
| sell it for about 2,000 euros,’ he said. | sell it for about 2,000 euros. | no change |
| go there immediately,’ she said. | go there immediately. | no change |
| buy it if I had the money,’ he said. | buy it if he had the money. | no change |
| snow tonight,’ he warned. | snow that night. | no change |
| come till six o’clock,’ he said. | come till six o’clock. | no change |
We can use a perfect form with have + - ed form after modal verbs, especially where the report looks back to a hypothetical event in the past:
He said the noise might have been the postman delivering letters. (original statement: ‘The noise might be the postman delivering letters.’ )
He said he would have helped us if we’d needed a volunteer. (original statement: ‘I’ll help you if you need a volunteer’ or ‘I’d help you if you needed a volunteer.’ )
Used to and ought to do not change in indirect speech:
She said she used to live in Oxford. (original statement: ‘I used to live in Oxford.’ )
The guard warned us that we ought to leave immediately. (original statement: ‘You ought to leave immediately.’ )
We don’t need to change the tense in indirect speech if what a person said is still true or relevant or has not happened yet. This often happens when someone talks about the future, or when someone uses the present simple, present continuous or present perfect in their original words:
He told me his brother works for an Italian company. (It is still true that his brother works for an Italian company.)
She said she ’s getting married next year. (For the speakers, the time at the moment of speaking is ‘this year’.)
He said he ’s finished painting the door. (He probably said it just a short time ago.)
She promised she ’ll help us. (The promise applies to the future.)
Changes to personal pronouns in indirect reports depend on whether the person reporting the speech and the person(s) who said the original words are the same or different.
direct | indirect | |
don’t want to shock people,’ Tom said. | said he didn’t want to shock people. | different speakers ( changes to ) |
’ll look after Toby,’ I said. | said I would look after Toby. | same speaker (no change) |
need to be here at nine o’clock,’ George told Beatrice. | told Beatrice she needed to be there at nine o’clock. | different speakers ( changes to ) |
hope you will join us tonight,’ I said to James. | told James I hoped he would join us that night. | same speaker (no change to ; changes to ) |
We often change demonstratives ( this, that ) and adverbs of time and place ( now, here, today , etc.) because indirect speech happens at a later time than the original speech, and perhaps in a different place.
direct speech | indirect speech |
.’ | the next/following day. |
this moment in time.’ | . |
.” | . |
,’ the boy protested. | . |
direct | indirect | |
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The word order in indirect reports of wh- questions is the same as statement word order (subject + verb), not question word order:
She always asks me where [S] [V] I am going .
Not: She always asks me where am I going .
We don’t use a question mark when reporting wh- questions:
I asked him what he was doing.
Not: I asked him what he was doing?
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Advanced Grammar Course
“Reported speech” is when we talk about what somebody else said – for example:
There are a lot of tricky little details to remember, but don’t worry, I’ll explain them and we’ll see lots of examples. The lesson will have three parts – we’ll start by looking at statements in reported speech, and then we’ll learn about some exceptions to the rules, and finally we’ll cover reported questions, requests, and commands.
So much of English grammar – like this topic, reported speech – can be confusing, hard to understand, and even harder to use correctly. I can help you learn grammar easily and use it confidently inside my Advanced English Grammar Course.
In this course, I will make even the most difficult parts of English grammar clear to you – and there are lots of opportunities for you to practice!
When we use reported speech, we often change the verb tense backwards in time. This can be called “backshift.”
Here are some examples in different verb tenses:
Simple present “I to go home.” | Simple past She said she to go home. |
Present continuous “I a good book.” | Past continuous She said she a good book. |
Simple past “I pasta for dinner last night.” | Past perfect She said she pasta for dinner the night before. |
Present perfect “I just cleaning my room.” “My mother never to Japan.” | Past perfect She said she just cleaning her room. She said her mother never to Japan. |
Can/can’t “I meet with you next Monday.” “Sorry, I talk now; I’m at work.” | Could/couldn’t She said she meet with me next Monday. She said she talk at the moment because she was at work. |
Will/won’t “I pick him up from the airport.” “I tell anyone your secret.” | Would/wouldn’t She said she pick him up from the airport. She said she tell anyone my secret. |
Should “You apologize.” | Should She said I apologize. |
Now that you know some of the reported speech rules about backshift, let’s learn some exceptions.
There are two situations in which we do NOT need to change the verb tense.
For example, if someone says “I have three children” (direct speech) then we would say “He said he has three children” because the situation continues to be true.
If I tell you “I live in the United States” (direct speech) then you could tell someone else “She said she lives in the United States” (that’s reported speech) because it is still true.
When the situation is still true, then we don’t need to backshift the verb.
But when the situation is NOT still true, then we DO need to backshift the verb.
Imagine your friend says, “I have a headache.”
We also don’t need to backshift to the verb when somebody said something about the future, and the event is still in the future.
Here’s an example:
Let’s look at a different situation:
Quick review:
Those were the rules for reported statements, just regular sentences.
What about reported speech for questions, requests, and orders?
For reported requests, we use “asked (someone) to do something”:
For reported orders, we use “told (someone) to do something:”
The main verb stays in the infinitive with “to”:
For yes/no questions, we use “asked if” and “wanted to know if” in reported speech.
The main verb changes and back shifts according to the rules and exceptions we learned earlier.
Notice that we don’t use do/does/did in the reported question:
For other questions that are not yes/no questions, we use asked/wanted to know (without “if”):
Again, notice that we don’t use do/does/did in reported questions:
Also, in questions with the verb “to be,” the word order changes in the reported question:
Learn more about reported speech:
If you want to take your English grammar to the next level, then my Advanced English Grammar Course is for you! It will help you master the details of the English language, with clear explanations of essential grammar topics, and lots of practice. I hope to see you inside!
I’ve got one last little exercise for you, and that is to write sentences using reported speech. Think about a conversation you’ve had in the past, and write about it – let’s see you put this into practice right away.
Hi, I’m Shayna. I create courses helping English as a Second Language learners become more fluent in just a few minutes a day – so they can speak English naturally and confidently in work and daily life.
Questions with question words, yes/no questions (with helping verb), try our latest video exercises.
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Reported speech exercises | reporting questions, transform these questions into reported speech (start the sentence with " she asked him ".), related materials.
Question tags: 1
Question tags: 2
Worksheets - handouts
Worksheets - pdf exercises.
Grammar lessons / rules
Write the following sentences in indirect speech. Pay attention to backshift and the changes to pronouns, time, and place.
Rewrite the question sentences in indirect speech.
Rewrite the demands/requests in indirect speech.
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Question tags, b1 grammar topics.
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COMMENTS
Rules for Forming Tag Questions. Question Tags - Created by 7ESL. To create tag questions, follow these steps: The subject in the statement must match the subject in the tag. Match the auxiliary verb or verb to be in the statement with the verb in the tag. If the statement is positive, the tag should be negative, and if the statement is ...
Direct: "I do my exercises every morning.". Reported: He explained that he did his exercises every morning. Direct: "She is going to start a new job.". Reported: He heard she was going to start a new job. Direct: "I can solve this problem.". Reported: She said she could solve that problem.
Reported speech: He wanted to know whether I had a computer. You introduce the reported question with a different word and change the word order to that of a statement. End the sentence with a full stop. How to Report Wh and Yes/No Questions Reported Speech Questions: Yes/No Questions. To report yes/no questions, use if or whether.
Questions in reported speech. When turning questions into reported speech, we follow the same rules as for declarative sentences: we change the pronouns as well as the time and place markers and backshift the tense as needed.. In addition, we also have to bear in mind the following: instead of that, we use a question word after the reporting verb; if there is no question word, we use whether ...
There are two kinds of reported speech you can use: direct speech and indirect speech. I'll break each down for you. A direct speech sentence mentions the exact words the other person said. For example: Kryz said, "These are all my necklaces.". Indirect speech changes the original speaker's words. For example: Kryz said those were all ...
He asked if she lived in London. It is also important that you use an indirect question in reported speech, i.e. after the interrogative or ‚whether' / ‚if' you continue the sentence as if it were a statement (subject-verb etc.). The auxiliary verb ‚do' is not used in indirect questions. He asked: Where does she live? - He asked ...
The word order in reported questions is: subject + verb. She asked me it was raining. She asked me if it was raining. Yes - no questions (closed questions) begin with if when they become reported questions. She asked me if I have been to Bristol? She asked me what I do for a living.
Reported speech: indirect speech - English Grammar Today - a reference to written and spoken English grammar and usage - Cambridge Dictionary
When we use reported speech, we often change the verb tense backwards in time. This can be called "backshift.". Here are some examples in different verb tenses: "I want to go home.". She said she wanted to go home. "I 'm reading a good book.". She said she was reading a good book. "I ate pasta for dinner last night.".
Introduction. Question tags, also tail questions, transform regular declarative clauses into questions. We use them to invite a response or confirmation from the person we are speaking to. Question tags are formed by adding an auxiliary verb and repeating the subject of the main clause as a pronoun.It's important to know which auxiliary verb to use and whether the tag should be positive or ...
Reported Speech Imperatives Exercise -. Reported Mixed Exercise. Reported Questions Grammar: a. We use introductory verbs like ask, wonder, want to know, inquire... b. We change the interrogative word-order to statement word-order. c. All the other changes in indirect speech still apply.
Join this channel to get access to perks:https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCCN2nVLRL3h9uRGzkx5a2XQ/joinStep by step videos linkhttps://www.youtube.com/playlis...
Do you have a shower every morning? → She asked him. Where did you go last weekend? → She asked him. Why did you go there? → She asked him. Did you enjoy going there? → She asked him. Where are you going next weekend? → She asked him. Will you be with your friends? → She asked him. Can you take me with you? → She asked him.
Come = go. Reported Questions. We can use reported speech to report questions just as we can with statments. to report questions, we use verbs such as (ask, wonder, enquire/ inquire, want to know, etc.). Affirmative word order is used and the question mark is left out. Reported Question form.
Add the question tags. You want to go on holiday, ? If there is no helping verb, we use do in the question tag. For positive sentences, we use the negative question tag. Charles will help us, ? If there is a helping verb, we use this same verb in the question tag. For positive sentences, we use the negative question tag. (will not = won't).
Worksheets - pdf exercises. Question tags : worksheets, handouts, printable exercises pdf. Question tags for ESL. Question tags positive and negative forms exercises.
Example: The teacher said, "Please remember the exam on Monday.". → The teacher asked the students to remember the exam on Monday. The passenger said, "Stop the car.". → The passenger asked the taxi driver . to + same wording as in direct speech. The mother told her son, "Don't be so loud.".
Free Practice Tests for learners of English. Question Tags . B1 Grammar topics