Reported speech (Indirect Speech) is how we represent the speech of other people or what we ourselves say.
Reported Speech focuses more on the content of what someone said rather than their exact words
The structure of the independent clause depends on whether the speaker is reporting a statement, a question, or a command.
| Statement | She told me she was sick |
| Question | He asked me whether I was sick or not |
| Command | They ordered us to take a pill every day |
Tabla de contenido
- Reported Speech Rules and Examples
- Present Tenses and Reported Speech
- Past Tenses and Reported Speech
- Past Tenses and Reported Speech
- Reported Speech Examples
- Reported Speech and the Simple Present
- Reported Speech and Present Continuous
- Reported Speech and the Simple Past
- Reported Speech and The Past Continuous
- Reported Speech and The Present Perfect
- Reported Speech and the Past Perfect
- Reported Speech and ‘Can’ and ‘can’t’
- Reported Speech and ‘Will’ and ‘won’t’
- Reported Speech and Could and couldn’t
- Reported Speech and the Future Continuous
- Reported Questions Exercises Online
Reported Speech Rules and Examples
To turn sentences into Indirect Speech, you have to follow a set of rules and this is what makes reported speech difficult for some.
To make reported speech sentences, you need to manage English tenses well.
Present Tenses and Reported Speech
- Present Simple Tense changes into Past Simple Tense
- Present Progressive Tense changes into Past Progressive Tense
- Present Perfect Tense changes into Past Perfect Tense
- Present Perfect Progressive Tense changes into Past Perfect Tense
Past Tenses and Reported Speech
- Past Simple Tense changes into Past Perfect Tense
- Past Progressive Tense changes into Perfect Continuous Tense
- Past Perfect Tense doesn’t change
- Past Perfect Progressive Tense doesn’t change
Past Tenses and Reported Speech
- Future Simple Tense changes into would
- Future Progressive Tense changes into “would be”
- Future Perfect Tense changes into “would have·
- Future Perfect Progressive Tense changes into “would have been”
Reported Speech Examples
These are some examples of sentences using indirect speech
Reported Speech and the Simple Present
The present simple tense usually changes to the past simple
| Direct Speech | Indirect Speech |
| I travel a lot in my job | He said that he travelled a lot in his job |
| I play video games a lot | She said that he played video games a lot |
| We run every morning | They said that they ran every morning |
| I do yoga every weekend | She said that he did yoga every weekend |
Reported Speech and Present Continuous
The present continuous tense usually changes to the past continuous.
| Direct Speech | Indirect Speech |
| My mom is cooking | She said that her mom was cooking |
| My brother is watching TV | He said that his brother was watching TV |
| My family is eating dinner | She said that her family was eating dinner |
| I am doing Yoga | She said that she was doing yoga |
Reported Speech and the Simple Past
The past simple tense usually changes to the past perfect
| Direct Speech | Reported Speech |
| My mom cooked dinner | She said that her mom had cooked dinner |
| My brother watched a movie | He said that his brother had watched a movie |
| My family just ate dinner | She said that her family just had eaten dinner |
| I really enjoyed the party | He said he had really enjoyed the party |
| Bill arrived on Saturday | He said that Bill had arrived on Saturday |
Reported Speech and The Past Continuous
The past continuous tense usually changes to the past perfect continuous.
| Direct Speech | Reported Speech |
| My mom was cooking dinner | She said that her mom had been cooking dinner |
| My brother was watching a movie | He said that his brother had been watching a movie |
| My family was talking in the room | She said that her family had been talking in the room |
| Derek was doing Yoga | She said that Derek was doing Yoga |
Reported Speech and The Present Perfect
The present perfect tense usually changes to the past perfect tense
| Direct Speech | Indirect Speech |
| My mom has been kind | She said that her mom had always been kind |
| My brother has worked hard | He said that his brother had worked hard |
| My girlfriend has contributed a lot | He said that his girlfriend has contributed a lot |
| My family has always helped | She said that her family had always helped |
Reported Speech and the Past Perfect
The past perfect tense does not change
| Direct Speech | Indirect Speech |
| My mom had been kind | She said that her mom had always been kind |
| My brother had worked hard | He said that his brother had worked hard |
| He has played very well | He said that he had played very well |
| My family had always helped | She said that her family had always helped |
Reported Speech and ‘Can’ and ‘can’t’
‘Can’ and ‘can’t’ in direct speech change to ‘could’ and ‘couldn’t’
| Direct Speech | Indirect Speech |
| My mom can’t remember her name | She said that her mom couldn’t remember his name |
| My brother can play soccer well | He said that his brother could play soccer well |
| My family can help you a lot | She said that her family could help me a lot |
| My mom can lend me money | She said that she could lend me money |
Reported Speech and ‘Will’ and ‘won’t’
‘Will’ and ‘won’t’ in direct speech change to ‘would’ and ‘wouldn’t’
| Direct Speech | Reported Speech |
| My mom won’t go to my wedding | She said that her mom wouldn’t go to her wedding |
| My brother won’t be in my team | He said that his brother wouldn’t be in her team |
| My family will help me with some money | She said that her family would help her with some money |
| She will travel to Europe | She said that she would travel to Europe |
Reported Speech and Could and couldn’t
Could and couldn’t doesn’t change
| Direct Speech | Reported Speech |
| My mom could go to the wedding | She said that her mom could go to the wedding |
| My brother could be in your team | He said that his brother could be in your team |
| My family could help me out | She said that her family could help me out |
Reported Speech and the Future Continuous
Will’ and ‘won’t’ in direct speech change to ‘would’ and ‘wouldn’t’
| Direct Speech | Reported Speech |
| I’ll be using the car next Friday | She said that she would be using the car next Friday |
| I will be going home | He said that he would be going home |
| I will be working in Norway | He said that he would be working in Norway |
| I will be doing exercises | He said that he would be doing exercises |
Reported Questions Exercises Online
These are some online exercises to learn more about reported questions
- Present Simple Reported Yes/No Question Exercise
- Present Simple Reported Wh Question Exercise
- Mixed Tense Reported Question Exercise
