Mastering Reported Speech: A Simple Guide to Tenses, Questions, and Imperatives
When speaking or writing, reported speech allows you to convey what someone else has said. It’s essential to know how to convert direct speech into reported speech correctly. In this guide, we will break down the rules for reported speech, covering statements, questions, and requests, as well as important tense changes and examples to help you understand how to apply these rules effectively.
What Is Reported Speech?
Reported speech, also known as indirect speech, is used to tell someone what another person has said. Instead of quoting someone’s words directly (as in direct speech), reported speech paraphrases the words and often changes the verb tense, pronouns, and time expressions.
- Use reported speech to say what another person said.
I love you He said (that) he loved her. - Other tenses change like this:
Reported Speech vs Direct Speech
That is optional after say and tell.
Pronouns also change in reported speech, for example, I changes to he / she, etc.
Example:
I’m coming → She told me (that) she was coming.
Usage of say and tell in Reported Speech:
You can use said or told in reported speech, but they are used differently:
You can’t use said with an object or pronoun:
Incorrect: He said her he loved her.
You must use told with an object:
Correct: He told her that he loved her.
Incorrect: He told that he loved her.
Past Perfect:
When to use the past perfect:
Use the past perfect when you are already talking about the past and want to talk about an earlier past action.
Examples:
When I woke up, the garden was all white. It had snowed in the night.
I arrived at the coffee bar twenty minutes late, and my friends had already gone.
Suddenly, he remembered that he had seen the film before.
Past Perfect Formation:
Make the past perfect with had / hadn’t + the past participle.
The past perfect is the same for all persons.
Be Careful:
I’d can be either I had or I would depending on the context.
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Reported Speech for Questions
When reporting questions, the structure changes:
Rules for Reported Questions:
Tense Change:
The tenses change in exactly the same way as in statements (e.g., present to past, etc.).No “do/did” in Reported Speech:
In reported questions, we don’t use “do” or “did.”Incorrect: He asked me what did I want.
Correct: He asked me what I wanted.
Add ‘if’ for yes/no questions:
When the question begins with do, can, etc., we add if.Example:
Direct: Do you like the music?
Reported: He asked her if she liked the music.
Direct: Can you sing?
Reported: She asked him if he could sing.
Word Order:
The word order in reported questions is subject + verb.Example:
Direct: Are you a student?
Reported: He asked her if she was a student.
Direct: Have you seen the film?
Reported: She asked him if he had seen the film.
Reported Speech: Statements and Questions
Tenses Usually Change Like This:
Present → Past
Will → Would
Past Simple / Present Perfect → Past Perfect
Some modal verbs change:
Can → Could
May → Might
Must → Had to
Other modal verbs stay the same:
Could, Might, Should, etc.
Direct Statements vs. Reported Statements:
Direct Questions vs. Reported Questions:
Reported speech: commands
To report an imperative or request, use told or asked + person + the infinitive with to.
To report a negative imperative, use a negative infinitive (e.g., not to do).
Must changes to had to, but mustn’t stays the same:
“You mustn’t touch it.” → “She said I mustn’t touch it.”
Pronouns usually change:
“I like…” → “She said she liked…”
Using ‘that’ after said and told is optional.
If you report what someone said on a different day or in a different place, some time and place words can change:
Tomorrow → The next day
Here → There
This → That
Example: “I’ll meet you here tomorrow.” → “He said he’d meet me there the next day.”
Important Rules:
After ‘said’, don’t use a person or object pronoun:
Correct: “He said he was tired.”
Incorrect: “He said me he was tired.”
After ‘told’, you must use a person or pronoun:
Correct: “He told me he was tired.”
Incorrect: “He told he was tired.”
Reporting Questions:
When you report a question, the tenses change as in reported statements.
If a question begins with a verb (not a question word), add ‘if’ (or whether).
Change the word order to subject + verb, and don’t use do/did.
Example: Incorrect: “She said him to go away.”
Example: Correct: “She told him to go away.”
Reported Speech: Sentences
- We use reported speech to tell someone what another person said.
- We usually change the verb form in reported speech.
SAY AND TELL
To introduce reported speech, we usually use say or tell.
We never use an object (me, her, etc.) with say: He said (that)…
We always use an object (me, her, etc.) with tell: He told me (that)…
We don’t have to use that after say and tell in reported speech.
Subject pronouns (I, he, etc.) and possessive adjectives (my, his, etc.) usually change in reported speech:
Example: “We can’t come to your party.” → She told me that they couldn’t come to my party.
TIPS
The modal verbs could, should, would, might, and ought to do not change in reported speech.
The past simple doesn’t have to change to the past perfect. It can stay the same:
Example: “I met him in 2011.” → She said she (had) met him in 2011.
We don’t have to change the verb form if the reported sentence is about something general or something that is still in the future:
Example: “I love Classical music.” → I told him I love classical music.
- We often change time expressions in reported speech: tomorrow the next day;
next week the following week; the week before, etc.
Reported speech: questions
We use reported questions when we want to tell someone what another person asked us.
We don’t use the auxiliaries do, does, or did in reported questions:
Correct: He asked if I had any acting work.
Incorrect: He asked if I did have any acting work.
We use if or whether when we report yes/no questions:
Example: “Are you working at the moment?” → He asked me if / whether I was working at the moment.
We sometimes use an object (me, him, etc.) with ask:
Example: He asked (me) whether I was available to start next week.
The changes in the verb forms in reported questions are the same as in reported sentences:
Example: “What other parts have you had recently?” → He asked me what other parts I’d had recently.
Reported Questions
He/She asked (me) + question word + if/whether + subject + verb.
Example: He wanted to know where I’d studied acting.
Example: He asked me if / whether I was working at the moment.
TIP: The word order in reported questions is the same as in a positive sentence.
Correct: I asked her where her brother was.
Incorrect: I asked her where was her brother.
Reported Speech: Requests and Imperatives
To report requests, we use:
Asked + object + (not) + infinitive with toExample: He asked me to come to a meeting on Monday.
To report imperatives, we use:
Told + object + (not) + infinitive with toExample: He told me to be at their offices at ten.
Example: He told me not to accept any more work.
Final Thoughts
Mastering reported speech is essential for effective communication, especially when you need to summarize what someone else has said. Whether you’re reporting statements, questions, or requests, understanding the rules for tense changes, pronouns, and word order will help you convey messages accurately. With practice, you’ll be able to use reported speech naturally and correctly in both spoken and written English.
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