REPORTED SPEECH

Direct Speech

Direct speech repeats, or quotes, the exact words spoken. When we use direct speech in writing, we place the words spoken between quotation marks (" ") and there is no change in these words. We may be reporting something that's being said NOW (for example a telephone conversation), or telling someone later about a previous conversation.

Examples :

She said, "What time will you be home?" and I said, "I don't know! "

"There's a fly in my soup!" screamed Simone.

John said, "There's an elephant outside the window."

Inderect Speech (Report Speech)

Reported or indirect speech is usually used to talk about the past, so we normally change the tense of the words spoken. We use reporting verbs like 'say', 'tell', 'ask', and we may use the word 'that' to introduce the reported words. Inverted commas are not used.

Examples :

He said that you're angry with me.

The teacher told me to go to the office.

She asked if you were feeling better.

Report Speech (Indirect Speech)

·         Statements

When transforming statements, check whether you have to change:

pronouns

present tense verbs (3rd person singular)

place and time expressions

tenses (backshift)
·         Questions

When transforming questions, check whether you have to change:

pronouns

present tense verbs (3rd person singular)

place and time expressions

tenses (backshift)

Also note that you have to:

transform the question into an indirect question

use the interrogative or if / whether

·         Requests

When transforming questions, check whether you have to change:

pronouns

place and time expressions

Tenses

·         No backshift

Do not change the tense if the introductory clause is in Simple Present (e. g. He says). Note, however, that you might have to change the form of the present tense verb (3rd person singular).

Example :

He says, “I speak English.” – He says that he speaks English.

·         Backshift

You must change the tense if the introductory clause is in Simple Past (e. g. He said). This is called backshift.

Example :

He said, “I am happy.” – He said that he was happy.

Place and Time expressions

For place and time expressions you have to check whether place and time are the same in direct and reported speech or not.

Direct Speech  : today, now, yesterday, ....days ago, last week, next year, tomorrow, here, this & these

Cindy: “I worked in the coffee shop yesterday.”

Reported Speech (Inderect Speech) : that day, then, the day before, .....days before, the week before, the following year, the next day, there, that & those

Cindy said (that) she had worked in the coffee shop the day before.

Introductory Verbs

to add / to admit / to announce / to declare / to deny / to explain / to insist / to mention / to promise / to propose / to remind / to say / to suggest / to tell someone / to ask someone / oneself / to doubt / to wonder / to ask / to inquire / to answer / to reply / to explain / to advise someone / to tell / to forbid / to order        

Tense in "Direct Speech" and Reported Speech

·         Simple Present ( Direct Speech)

Cindy asked: "Do you like watching TV?"

Giles said: "I don't mind watching TV, but there are things I like better

·         Simple Past ( Report Speech)

Cindy asked Giles if he liked watching tV

Giles answered he didn't mind watching TV, but there were things he liked better.

·         Present be-ing ( Direct Speech)

Frank declared: " I am thinking about moving"

·         Past be-ing (Report Speech)

Frank declared he was thinking about moving

·         Past be-ing ( Direct Speech)

He told them: "I wasn't expecting your visit"

·         Past Perfect be-ing (Report Speech)

He told them he hadn't been expecting their visit

·         Present Perfect (Direct Speech)

She said: " I have just seen an old friend of mine"    

·         Past Perfect (Report Speech)

She said she had just seen an old friend of hers.

·         Present Perfect be-ing (Direct Speech)

He asked: "Paul, how long have you been studying English?"

·         Past Perfect be-ing (Report Speech)

He asked Paul how long he had been studying English

·         Past Perfect (Direct Speech)

They said: "If we had arrived two minutes later, there would have been no cake left"      

·         Past Perfect (Report Speech)

They said that if they had arrived two minutes later, there would have been no cake left.

·         Past Perfect be-ing (Direct Speech)

He declared: " You had been telling me you wanted to see her"     

·         Past Perfect be-ing (Report Speech)

He declared they had been telling him they wanted to see her.

·         Future (Will) (Direct Speech)

I asked: " Where will you spend your holiday ?"       

·         Conditional (Would) (Report Speech)

I asked where they would spend their holiday.

·         Will + be-ing (Direct Speech)

Anna declared:" I will be announcing my engagement next month"           

·         Would + be-ing (Report Speech)

Anna declared she would be announcing her engagement the following month

·         Would (Direct Speech)

Tony said: "I would like something to eat. I wouldn't mind a drink either." 

·         Would (Report Speech)

Tony said he would like something to drink and wouldn't mind a drink either.

When You Use Report Speech

·         Demands or Requests

When turning demands and requests into indirect speech, we only need to change the pronouns and the time and place information. We don’t have to pay attention to the tenses – we simply use to + the basic form of the verb.

Example:

She said, “Watch the TV presenter’s show tonight.”

She told me to watch the TV presenter’s show that evening.

If it is a negative demand, then in indirect speech we use not to + the basic form of the verb.

Example:

She said, “Don’t watch the TV presenter’s show tonight.”

She told me not to watch the TV presenter’s show that evening.

Expressions with who/what/how + infinitive

·         Question Sentences

When turning questions into indirect speech, we have to pay attention to the following points:

As in a declarative sentence, we have to change the pronouns and the time and place information, and set back the tense (backshift).

Instead of that (as in a declarative sentence), we use a question word. If there is no question word, we use whether/if instead.

Example:

She asked him, “How often do you work?”

She asked him how often he worked.

He asked me, “Do you know any famous people?”

He asked me if/whether I knew any famous people.

We put the subject before the verb in question sentences. (The subject goes after the auxiliary verb in normal questions.)

Example:

I asked him, “Have you met any famous people before?”

I asked him if/whether he had met any famous people before.

We don’t use the auxiliary verb do for questions in indirect speech. Therefore, we sometimes have to conjugate the main verb (for third person singular or in the simple past).

Example:

I asked him, “What do you want to tell me?”

I asked him what he wanted to tell me.

We put the verb directly after who or what in subject questions.

Example:

I asked him, “Who is sitting here?”

I asked him who was sitting there.

·         Declarative Sentences

When turning declarative sentences into indirect speech, we need to pay attention to the following points:

changing the pronouns

Example:

He said, “I saw a famous TV presenter.”

He said (that) he had seen a famous TV presenter.

changing the information about time and place (see the table at the end of this page)

Example:

He said, “I saw a famous TV presenter here yesterday.”

He said (that) he had seen a famous TV presenter there the day before.

changing the tense (backshift)

Example:

He said, “She was eating an ice-cream at the table where you are sitting.”

He said (that) she had been eating an ice-cream at the table where I was sitting.

Sources :

http://www.edufind.com/english-grammar/direct-and-indirect-speech/

http://esl.fis.edu/grammar/rules/repspee.htm

https://english.lingolia.com/en/grammar/sentences/indirect-speech

https://www.ego4u.com/en/cram-up/grammar/reported-speech

http://absolutenglish-972.pagesperso-orange.fr/notes/grammar/reportedspeech.htm