Reported speech

reported speech
Reported speech (sometimes also referred to as “indirect speech”) refers to a sentence reporting what someone has said.
Several changes occurr when we do this.
➙ verb tenses;
➙ pronouns;
➙ time expressions;
➙ place expressions.

reported speech
Changing verb tenses:
Note that the Past Perfect Simple and the Past Perfect Continuous do not change.

reported speech
Changing pronouns, personal and possessive:

reported speech
Time expressions:

reported speech
Place expressions:

reported speech
Look at the girl on the right. We would turn the statement into the reported speech by changing:
I love my
new dress.
➙ the verb from the present simple to the past simple
➙ the personal pronoun I to she
➙ the possessive pronoun my to her
The sentence would then be:
The girl said she loved her new dress.

reported speech
There are several reporting verbs we can use:
➙ The most commonly used one is to say.
She said she was studying.
➙ When the person who we are talking to is referred, we can use to tell.
You told me you liked your new dress.
➙ We may report something that was said without keeping to the original words, the reporting verb itself may contain that idea or intention. The verbs here can be: to admit, to advise, to agree, to remind, to suggest, to encourage, to insist, to persuade, to warn, to refuse, to urge, among others. - I admit it, I did it!
She admitted she did it.

reported speech
Time to practise!
Look at the images that will appear and change what the characters say into the reported speech. Take in consideration all the changes that must occurr: in the verbs, the pronouns and the expressions of time and place.

reported speech
My mother
gives me new
dolls regularly.

reported speech
The girl said her mother gave her
new dolls regularly.
My mother
gives me new
dolls regularly.

reported speech
My book
is being very
interesting!

reported speech
The woman said her book was being very interesting.
My book
is being very
interesting!

reported speech
I was
so tired I passed
out on the middle
of the street.

reported speech
The man said he had been so tired he passed out on the middle of the street.
I was
so tired I passed
out on the middle
of the street.

reported speech
It has been
years since I’ve
had this much
fun!

reported speech
The woman said it had been years since she
had had that much fun.
It has been
years since I’ve
had this much
fun!

reported speech
I will catch
a fish
today!

reported speech
The girl said she would catch a fish that day.
I will catch
a fish
today!

reported speech
STOP!