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INDIRECT SPEECH. Reported speech . We often tell people what other people have told us. This is called reported or indirect speech. We usually change tenses and references to people, places and times. Speech marks.
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Reported speech We often tell people what other people have told us. This is called reported or indirect speech. We usually change tenses and references to people, places and times.
Speech marks Note that sentences in direct speech have speech marks “”(inverted commas) “”around the spoken words. Indirect or reported speech does not use speech marks.
Speakers in direct speech Speakers can be mentioned at the beginning or end of the sentence in direct speech. Jack said, ‘We’re going to miss the train.’ ‘We’re going to miss the train,’ said Jack.
Speakers in reported speech Speakers are mentioned at the beginning of the sentence in reported speech. Jack said (that) they were going to miss the train.
Commands and requests Commands are reported with tell and theinfinitive. ‘Wait! Wait!’ I told him to stop. Requests are reported with ask and the infinitive. ‘Please wait!’ I asked her to wait.
Change the pronoun Change the tense Example 1 : Joe said, ‘I love chocolate.’ (Direct Speech) Joe said thathe loved chocolate. (Indirect Speech) Put in ‘that’ Put in ‘that’ Example 2 : Carman said, ‘I am sick.’ (Direct Speech) Carman said thatshe was sick. (Indirect Speech) Change the pronoun Change the tense
Change the pronoun Change the tense Example 3 : Put in ‘that’ Joe said, ‘I ate some chocolate yesterday.’ (Direct Speech) Joe said thathe had eaten some chocolate the daybefore. (Indirect Speech) Change the adverb of time Example 4 : Carman said, ‘I was sick last week.’ (Direct Speech) Carman said thatshe had been sick the week before. (Indirect Speech)
Change the tense Example 5: Put in ‘that’ Joe said, ‘Carman is doing homework.’ (Direct Speech) Joe said that Carman was doing homework. (Indirect Speech) Change the adverb of time Example 6 : Carman said, ‘They will see a film tomorrow.’ (Direct Speech) Carman said that they would see a film thefollowing day. (Indirect Speech)
Put in ‘that’ Example 7: Change the pronoun Joe said, ‘You have not returned the book to me.’ (Direct Speech) Change the pronoun Joe said thatyou/I had not returned the book to him. (Indirect Speech) Change the tense Example 8 : Carman said, ‘You can use my computer.’ (Direct Speech) Carman said thatyou/Icould useher computer. (Indirect Speech) Change the possessive adjective
Yes/no questions Questions with the answer yes or no are reported using if ‘Does the London train stop here?’ she asked. She asked me if the London train stopped here. Note that the question form of the direct speech is not used in reported speech, as there is no longer a direct question. There is no question mark.
Whether Whether means if... or not. We use whether when we report questions linked with or. ‘Are you staying the night, or are you goinghome?’ heasked. He asked me whether I was staying the night or going home.
Wh-questions Questions beginning when, what, why, where, how, etc. are reported with backshift. The question forms of direct speech are not used, so the subject in bold comes before the verb. There is no question mark. ‘Where is the bus-station?’she asked. She asked where the bus-station was. ‘Where have you come from?’ he asked. He asked me where I had come from.
Some of the most common Reporting verbs: Reporting verbs include part of the meaning of the words reported. advise ‘I wouldn’t buy that car, Janos, if I were you.’ I advised Janos not to buy the car. agree ‘Yes, Jill, I think you’re right,’ said Mike.Mike agreed with Jill.
apologize ‘I’m really sorry for being so late,’ said Maria. Maria apologized for being late. ask ‘Do you think you could help me, Sue?’ I asked Sue to help me. congratulate ‘Well done, Tina, you’ve passed the exam!’ I congratulated Tina on passing her exam.
decide ‘I’m going to become a doctor!’ said Helen. Helen decided to become a doctor. ‘I’ll have the fish pie, please,’ said Bill. Bill decided to have the fish pie.
invite ‘Would you like to come to the cinema onSaturday, Pam?’ I invited Pam to the cinema on Saturday. offer “Shall I carry your case, Dawn?’ said Peter. Peter offered to carry Dawn’s case.
promise ‘I’ll definitely be home by eight, ‘said Ann. Ann promised to be home by eight. ‘I’ll wait for you, Helen,’ said Peter. Peter promised Helen that he would wait for her. refuse ‘No, I won’t open the door!’ said Carol.Carol refused to open the door.
remind ‘Don’t forget to send your mother a birthday card, Joe.’ I reminded Joe to send his mother a birthday card. suggest ‘How about spending the day at the beach?’ said Carlos. Carlos suggested spending the day at the beach.
Who built that enormous bridge? (I wonder...) • Did Benjamin Franklin write 'Poor Richard's Almanac'? (I can't remember ....) • Have they flown an ultralight too? (I don't know ...) • There must be a law which prohibits drunk driving. • Don’t post too much information on social networking.
