Mastering Reported Speech in English

Understanding how to convert direct speech into reported (or indirect) speech is a fundamental aspect of English grammar. This involves changes in tenses, pronouns, time and place adverbs, and demonstratives. Let's break down the key transformations.

Direct vs. Reported Speech Basics

Direct Speech: Quoting the exact words spoken. Often enclosed in quotation marks. Example: He said, "She studies English."

Reported Speech: Reporting what someone said without quoting their exact words. Often introduced by a reporting verb like "said that," "told me that," etc. Tenses and other elements usually shift backward. Example: He said that she studied English.

Tense Changes in Reported Speech

• Present Simple to Past Simple

  • Direct: "She studies English."
  • Reported: She said that she studied English.

• Present Continuous to Past Continuous

  • Direct: "She is studying English."
  • Reported: She said that she was studying English.

• Present Perfect Simple to Past Perfect Simple

  • Direct: "She has studied English."
  • Reported: She said that she had studied English.

• Present Perfect Continuous to Past Perfect Continuous

  • Direct: "She has been studying English."
  • Reported: She said that she had been studying English.

• Past Simple to Past Perfect Simple

  • Direct: "She studied English."
  • Reported: She said that she had studied English.

• Past Continuous to Past Perfect Continuous

  • Direct: "She was studying English."
  • Reported: She said that she had been studying English.

• Future Simple to Conditional (Would)

  • Direct: "She will study English."
  • Reported: She said that she would study English.

• Future Continuous to Conditional Continuous

  • Direct: "She will be studying English."
  • Reported: She said that she would be studying English.

No Tense Change in Reported Speech

Certain tenses typically do not change when reported:

• Past Perfect Simple

  • Direct: "She had studied English."
  • Reported: She said that she had studied English.

• Past Perfect Continuous

  • Direct: "She had been studying English."
  • Reported: She said that she had been studying English.

Modal Verb Changes in Reported Speech

• Can to Could

  • Direct: "She can study English."
  • Reported: She said that she could study English.

• May to Might

  • Direct: "She may study English."
  • Reported: She said that she might study English.

• Must / Have to to Must / Had to

  • Direct: "She must/has to study English."
  • Reported: She said that she must/had to study English.

Modal Verbs That Do Not Change

The following modal verbs typically remain unchanged in reported speech:

• Should
• Could
• Would
• Might
• Ought to
• Used to

Changes in Time and Place Adverbs

When reporting speech, adverbs of time and place often need to be adjusted to reflect the new context:

• now → then
• today / tonight → that day / that night
• yesterday → the day before, the previous day
• tomorrow → the next day, the following day, the day after
• next week / month → the following week / month
• last week / month → the previous week / month, the week / month before
• a week / month ago → the week / month before
• here → there

Changes in Demonstratives

Demonstrative pronouns and adjectives also change to reflect distance from the speaker:

• this → that
• these → those