DIRECT AND INDIRECT SPEECH

DIRECT AND INDIRECT SPEECH
TENSE CHANGE
• When reporting speech the tense usually changes. This is because when we use reported speech, we are usually talking about a time in the past (because obviously the person who spoke originally spoke in the past). The verbs therefore usually have to be in the past too.
• Note : the reporting verbs that are usually used to report imperative sentence are :Tell , other command , ask , warn , remind



Present simple
Past tense
direct : Vita said “ I eat fried rice”
indirect :Vita said that she ate fried rice.

Past simple
Past perfect
direct : Mother said “ I went to market yesterday”
indirect : Mother said (that) she had gone to market the day before.

Future simple
Past future
direct : Dave said “ I will buy an i-pod next week’
indirect : Dave said (that) he would buy an i-pod the week after


Present continuous
Past continuous
direct : Gama said “ I’m playing football”
indirect : Gama said he was playing football

Past continuous
Past perfect continuous
direct : She said “ I was teaching earlier”
indirect : She said she had been teaching earlier

when we want to report what someone said , wedon’t usually repeat their exact words , we use our words , we can use reporting words such as tell say as follow by “that clause”

example :
my mother said that she got up at 4 o’clock

In time expression and pronouns

DIRECT SPEECH	INDIRECT SPEECH
Now Today/tonight Yesterday Tomorrow Last week Next week Ago	Then that day / that night The day before / the previous day The next / following day The previous week The following week / the week after Before

In time expression and pronouns

DIRECT SPEECH	INDIRECT SPEECH
This/these Here pronouns	That/those There They changes according to the context

Type	Form	example
Yes-no question	Ask + if / whether + S + verb wonder etc	do you speak English “ He wondered if I spoke English
Wh-question	Ask + question word + S + verb wonder etc	“what are you watching” She asked what I’m watching

Sometimes we need the report someone’s question , the report question are introduce with the verb ask inquire wonder , want to know , etc

Modal verb forms also sometimes change:

DIRECT SPEECH	INDIRECT SPEECH
will She said, "I'll teach English online tomorrow.“ can She said, "I can teach English online." must She said, "I must have a computer to teach English online.“	would She said she would teach English online tomorrow. could She said she could teach English online.  had to She said she had to have a computer to teach English online.

Modal verb forms also sometimes change:

DIRECT SPEECH	INDIRECT SPEECH
shall She said, "What shall we learn today?" may She said, "May I open a new browser?"	should She asked what we should learn today. might She asked if she might open a new browser.

Note - There is no change to; could, would, should, might and ought too.

DIRECT SPEECH	INDIRECT SPEECH
"I might go to the cinema", he said.	He said he might go to the cinema.