reported speech
TRANSCRIPT
REPORTED SPEECH
GRAMMAR AND VOCABULARY CHANGES
ReasonWe are reporting what somebody else said.
ChangesChange personal pronouns, or use other nouns to make the reference clear.
Examples'I love you.'becomes: He said he loved me.
'You're being ridiculous.’ becomes: He told RouIa she was being ridiculous.
GRAMMAR AND VOCABULARY CHANGES
ReasonWe are reporting the original saying or thought in a different place.
ChangesChange words referring to place or other things that are no longer there
Examples'I love it here. ' becomes: She told me she loved it by the sea.
'Hey! Look at this!' becomes: She drew my attention to the headline in the paper.
GRAMMAR AND VOCABULARY CHANGES
ReasonWe are reporting the statement at a different time.
ChangesChange tenses and words referring to time
Examples'I only got here yesterday.' becomes: She said she had only got here on Wednesday.
'I'm coming tomorrow.' becomes: He said he's coming today.
FLEXIBLE CHANGES
SituationPerson joins a group of people chatting at a party
Report'Hello. I was just saying to George here that they've given the go-ahead for that new airport.'
OriginalThey've given the go-ahead for that new airport.'
FLEXIBLE CHANGES
SituationShouting to somebody in another room
Report'What did you say? I can't hear you.' 'I said your dinner's ready!‘
OriginalYour dinner's ready!'
FLEXIBLE CHANGES
SituationImpatiently waiting for somebody
ReportHe said he would be here at eight o'clock.‘
Original'I promise I'll be there at eight o'clock.'
FLEXIBLE CHANGES
SituationSitting in a cafe, telling a friend about a long discussion you had a couple of days ago with a colleague.
Report'Anyway, then she said she was thinking of leaving work and going abroad for a year.‘
Original'I'm thinking of leaving this place. I may spend a year abroad.'
TENSES OF THE REPORT VERB
•Past Tense
•Future Form
•Past Continuous
•Present
REPORTING PAST TENSES
When reporting a statement or question that referred to the past, we commonly use Past Perfect:
ReportedHe told me he'd been working all day.
Original: 'I've been working all day.‘
Past Simple vs Past PerfectCan we keep the original tenses?
REPORTING PRESENT TENSES
May we use Past tenses to report Present tenses?
We use Present tenses if the statement is still thought to be relevant:
ExampleJo said she is feeling sick. (= she still is)
A conflict between logical truth and grammatical habit?
REPORTING MODAL VERBS
For many modal verbs there is no difference between direct and reported speech:
Reported'You shouldn't have eaten so much.'
OriginalMy wife said I shouldn't have eaten so much.
Reported'You shouldn't have eaten so much.'
OriginalMy wife said I shouldn't have eaten so much.
Modal Changes Examples
Can could (or would be able to)
'Can I borrow your ball?' becomes: He asked if he could borrow our ball.
Must had to or was/were to (to express obligation)
'You must go back again later.' becomes: They told me I had to go back again later.
Will Would 'I'll come later.' becomes: She told me she would come later.
May Might 'I may come.' becomes: He said he might come.
Needn’t didn't need to ordidn't have to/wouldn't have to
'You needn't go tonight.' becomes: He said I didn't need to go last night.
Those that can change (if necessary) are:
What are the likely original statements which these report?
a) They said they would be at the station by ten. b) She said she had to wash her hair this evening. c) He tried to convince me that Goa was in Africa. d) She claimed she spent her childhood in Australia. e) She said she'd given up studying English and was going to
get married instead.