REPORTED (INDIRECT) SPEECH
We can report people‘s words
by using direct speech or reported speech
Direct speech is the exact words someone
used. We use quotation marks in direct speech.
e.g. „It‟s
nice
to be home,‟ Tom
said.
Reported speech is the exact meaning of what someone said, but
not the exact words. We do not use quotation marks in reported speech. We can
either use the word that after the introductory verb (say, tell, etc.), or we
can omit it.
e.g. Tom said (that) it was nice to be home.
We can use the
verbs say and tell both in direct and reported speech. Tell is always followed
by a personal object (told me).
Say is used with or
without a personal object. When used with a personal object it is always
followed by the preposition to (said to me).
Study the
following examples:
direct speech reported speech
He said, „I‟m Ted.‟ He said (that) he was
Ted.
He said to me, „I‟m Ted.‟ He said to me (that) he was Ted. He told me, „I‟m Ted.‟ He told me (that) he was Ted.
(NOT: He
told that he was Ted)
Say and tell are also used with the following expressions:
say good morning/afternoon,
etc., something/nothing, etc., one‘s prayers, so, a few words, say so, say no
more, say for certain
tell the truth, a lie, a secret,
a story, the time, the difference, sb one‘s name, sb the way, one from another,
one‘s fortune
Ex. 82
Fill
in the gaps with say or tell in the correct tense.
A Katie (1)
...told... Dave that she had met a set of twins at a party. They looked
exactly the same,‘ she (2)............‘I couldn‘t (3). the difference between them.‘ ‗I‘ve got a twin
brother, too,‘
(4)..................Dave.
‗Are
you
(5)...................
me
the
truth?‘
asked
Katie.
(6)....................me
his name.‘ ‗His name is Stephen,‘ Dave (7).................. her. I‘ll take you
to meet him tomorrow.‘
В ‗You never listen to me, Тага (1).....................Jim. ‗I (2) good
morning to you
three times today
and you didn‘t
answer,‘ she (3) To
(4)........................ you the truth,
it makes me really angry. Why don‘t you listen
to me?‘ ‗Oh,
hello Тага,‘ said Jim. ‗Did you just (5) something?‘
С ‗Claire
(1).....................me that she and John are getting married,‘ (2) Sue.
‗She (3) that they‘re
going to have a big wedding with lots of guests.‘ That will be
expensive,‘ (4)..................Tom. ‗I thought
John (5)................ that
they couldn‘t afford a big
wedding.‘ ‗Well that‘s what Claire (6)................me,‘ (7). Sue.
‗I don‘t think she would
(8).. a lie.‘
REPORTED STATEMENTS
In reported speech
personal pronouns, possessive adjectives/possessive pronouns change according
to the meaning of the sentence.
e.g. Sam said,
I‘m leaving for Germany with my family tomorrow.‘
Sam said (that)
he was leaving for Germany with his family the following day.
We can report someone‘s words either a long
time after they were said (out-of-date-reporting)
or a short time after they were said (up-to-date-reporting).
out-of-date reporting
We usually report
someone‘s words a long time after they were said. In this case the introductory
verb is in the past simple and the tenses change as follows:
|
direct speech |
reported speech |
|
present simple ‘I want to go to bed early,’ he said. present continuous ‘She’s feeding the baby,’ he said. present perfect ‘I’ve bought a new dress,’ she said. past simple ‘I finished work early,’ Alex said. past continuous ‘I was planning to call you later,’ she said.
future (will) ‘I’ll talk to you tomorrow,’ she said. |
past simple He
said (that) he wanted to
go to bed early. past continuous He
said (that) she was feeding the
baby. past perfect She
said (that) she had bought a
new dress. past simple or past perfect Alex
said (that) he
(had) finished work early. past continuous or past perfect
continuous She said
(that) she was planning/had bean planning to call
me later.
conditional (would) She said
(that) she would talk
to
me the next day. |
The Past Perfect
and Past Perfect Continuous remain the same.
direct speech: The film had finished by the time I got home,‟ he said.
reported speech: He said (that) the film had finished by the
time he got home.
Certain words and
time expressions change according to the meaning of the sentence as follows:
now > then, at that time, immediately
today, tonight
> that day, that night yesterday >
the day before, the previous day tomorrow
> the following day, the next day this week > that week
last week >
the week before, the previous week next
week > the week after, the following week two days ago > two days before
here > there
come > go
When this/these
are used in time expressions, they change to that/those.
e.g. this week
> that week, these days > those days
When this/that/these/those
are not used in time expressions, they change as follows:
a)
as adjectives, that is, when
they are followed by a noun, they change to
the.
e.g. „This cake is delicious,‟ Pam told me.
> Pam told me (that) the cake was
delicious.
b)
as pronouns, that is, when they are not followed by a noun, they change to It or they/them.
e.g. a) „This is a brilliant
idea,‟ Debbie said. >
Debbie said (that) it was a brilliant idea.
b) He said, Those are the men who helped
me.‟ > He said (that) they were the men who
(had) helped him.
up-to-date reporting
When we report
someone‘s words a short time after they were said, the tenses can either change
or remain the same in reported speech.
direct speech: I‘m seeing the manager tomorrow,‘ Jack said to us.
reported speech:
Jack told us (that) he is seeing/was seeing the manager tomorrow.
Certain modal
verbs change in reported speech as follows:
will/shall -> would can ->
could/would be able to (future reference) may > might must > must/had to (obligation)
can > could shall > should (asking for advice)
♦ Would, could,
might, should, ought, had better and mustn‘t do not change in reported speech.
Must does not change in reported speech when it expresses a logical assumption.
He
said, ‗I‘ll have some
tea. He said (that) he would have some tea. He said, ‗She can type fast‘ He said (that) she could type fast.
He said, ‗I can talk to you tomorrow‘ He said
(that) he сould be able to talk to
me the next day. (it refers to the future)
He
said, ‗They may come home‘ He said (that) they might come home. He said,
‗What shall I tell her?‘ He asked what he should tell her.
He
said, ‗You must stay in‘ He said (that) I must/had to stay in. He
said, ‗She must be exhausted.‘ He said (that) she must be exhausted.
♦
In Type 1 conditionals tenses change in reported speech
as follows: the present simple
becomes
past
simple in the if-clause and will becomes would in the main clause.
direct speech: ‗If I have the time, I‘ll come round,‘ Lisa said.
reported speech: Lisa said (that) if she had the time, she would come
round.
♦
Type 2 and Type 3
conditionals do not change in reported speech. direct speech: ‗If she knew,
she would help us,‘ Tony said.
reported speech: Tony said (that) if she knew, she would help us.
♦
The verb tenses and time
expressions change in reported speech:
a)
when reporting someone‘s
words a long time after they were said (out-of-date reporting).
b)
when we consider what the
speaker says to be untrue.
direct speech: ‗I like Shakespeare‘s
plays a lot,‘ he said to us.
reported speech: He told us (that) he liked Shakespeare‘s plays a lot, but he didn‘t know the name of any.
c)
when the introductory verb
is in a past tense:
direct speech: ‗I‘m moving to a new flat next week,‘ she said.
reported speech: She said (that) she was moving to a new flat
the following week.
♦
The verb tenses can either
change or remain the same in reported
speech:
a) when
reporting someone‘s words a short time after they were said (up-to-date reporting).
b) when
reporting a general truth or law of nature.
direct speech: ‗The sun sets
in the west,‘ the teacher said. reported speech: The teacher said (that)
the sun sets/set in the west.
♦
The verb tenses remain the
same in reported speech:
When the introductory verb is in the present,
future or present perfect. direct speech: The singer says, ‗I enjoy cycling.‘ reported speech: The singer says (that) she enjoys cycling.
The introductory
verb is in the present tense:
a)
when we pass on messages.
e.g. Debbie says she needs the car tonight.
b)
when we report the content
of a letter, article, etc. while reading it.
e.g. The article
says that people use too much water.
c)
when we refer to something
someone says very often.
e.g. Mum often says that I shouldn‘t talk to
strangers.
Ex. 83
Fill
In the gaps with the correct pronoun or possessive adjective.
1.
James
said, „My boss wants me to go to London tomorrow.‟
James said ...his..
boss wanted.. to go to London the following day.
2.
Mary said, ‗I‘m waiting for my son to come out of school.‘
Mary said that.................was waiting for son
to come out of school.
3.
George said, ‗I‘ve bought a
new car for my mum.‘ George said ............. had bought a new car for mum.
4.
Julie said to me, ‗I need you to help me with the shopping.‘ Julie told me that ..............
needed. to help with the
shopping.
5.
John said, ‗I‘d like to take
you out to dinner.‘
John said................‘d like to take out
to dinner.
6.
Helen said to Jane, ‗I think
your new haircut is lovely.‘
Helen told Jane that..............thought. new haircut was lovely.
Ex. 84
Turn
the following sentences into reported speech.
1.
Robin
said, These biscuits taste delicious.‟
...Robin
said (that) the biscuits tasted delicious....
2.
‗I can‘t see you this
afternoon because I‘ve got a lot to do,‘ Ann told me.
3.
She came into the room
holding some letters in her hand and said, ‗I found these while I was tidying
the desk drawers.‘
4.
Fiona said, ‗That picture
was painted by my greatgrandfather.‘
5.
‗Those were good times for
my family,‘ Jack said.
6.
‗I received a parcel this
morning, but I haven‘t opened it yet,‘ Tom said.
7.
‗You mustn‘t do that again,‘
Mum said to Bob
8.
‗These shoes are worn out.
You‘d better throw them away,‘ Mum said to me.
Ex. 85
Turn
the following sentences into reported speech.
1.
He
said, „I‟m going to the station.‟
...He
said (that) he was going to the station...
2.
Tina said, ‗You should
exercise regularly.‘
3.
They said, ‗We had booked
the room before we left.‘
4.
Tom said. ‗This meal is delicious.‘
5.
‗I‘ve written you a letter,‘
she said to her friend.
6.
‗We‘ve decided to spend our
holidays in Jordan,‘ they told us.
7.
Jill said, ‗I‘ll go to the
bank tomorrow.‘
8.
She said to him, ‗We‘ve been
invited to a wedding.‘
9.
She told me, ‗You must leave
early tomorrow.‘
10.
‗They‘ve gone out for the
evening,‘ Jessie said to me.
11.
They said, ‗We may visit Joe tonight.‘
12.
She said, ‗I can meet you on Tuesday.‘
13.
Keith said, ‗There is a
letter for you on the table.‘
14.
‗We won‘t be visiting Tom
this evening,‘ Sam told us.
15.
Eric said, ‗They had been
talking on the phone for an hour before I interrupted them.‘
16.
‗I haven‘t spoken to Mary
since last week,‘ Gloria said.
17.
They delivered the letters
this morning,‘ she said.
18.
He said. ‗I‘d like to buy
this jumper.‘
19.
They aren‘t going on holiday
this year,‘ he said.
20.
Jane said. ‗I haven‘t
finished my homework yet.‘
21.
‗I‘m going to bed early
tonight,‘ Caroline said.
22.
‗My mother is coming to
visit us,‘ I said.
23.
‗We don‘t want to watch a
film tonight,‘ the children said.
24.
‗He‘s playing in the garden
now,‘ his mother said.
25.
She said, ‗You must do your
homework now.‘
Ex. 86
Turn
the sentences into reported speech. In which off the following sentences do the
tenses not change? In which do they not have to be changed? Why?
1.
The
article says, The artist only uses oil paints.‟
...The
article said (that) the artist only uses oil paints....
...The
tenses do not change because the introductory verb is in the present simple....
2
They are working hard
today,‘ he said.
3
‗I‘ve done the things you
asked me to do,‘ Mary said.
4.
The sun rises in the east,‘
she said.
5. ‗I‘ve
written you a letter,‘ she said to her friend.
6.
‗We‘ve never been on holiday
abroad,‘ they said.
7.
Mum says, ‗Dinner is ready.‘
8.
‗I‘ll start cooking at six
o‘clock,‘ she said.
9. ‗We
went to the supermarket yesterday,‘ he said.
10.
Mrs. Jones says, ‗My
daughter is going to have a baby.‘
11.
‗You‘re never going to get a
job,‘ Dad always says.
12.
‗Fish live in water,‘ he said.
13.
‗We went to the beach last
weekend,‘ they said
14.
‗He showed me his
photographs,‘ she said.
15.
‗I‘m working on my project now,‘ Billy said.
Ex. 87
Turn
the following sentences into reported speech.
1.
„Seaweed
grows in the sea,‟ the teacher said to the students.
...The
teacher said to the students/told the students (that) seaweed grows/grew in the
sea....
2.
‗I saw Amanda at the
cinema,‘ she said. (up-to-date reporting)
3.
‗They don‘t live here
anymore,‘ he said to me. (out-of-date reporting)
4.
‗Canada is a large country,‘
he said.
5.
The Statue of Liberty is in
America,‘ she said to us.
6.
‗I‘ll help you with your
homework,‘ he said. (out-of-date reporting)
7.
‗I would go on holiday if I
had enough money,‘ Bill said, (up-to-date reporting)
8.
‗If I‘m free, I‘ll call
you,‘ Tom said. (up-to-date reporting)
9.
‗You should make a
decision,‘ he said to us.
10.
‗You can ask John for
advice,‘ she said. (up-to-date reporting)
REPORTED QUESTIONS
Yesterday Eric had a job interview.
The
manager asked Eric if/whether he had had
any experience. He also asked him why
he wanted the job.
Reported questions are usually introduced
with the verbs ask, inquire, wonder or
the expression
want
to know.
When the direct question begins with a question word (who, where, how old, how long, when, why, what, etc.), the reported
question is introduced with the same question word.
e.g. „What do you want to know?‘ she asked
me. She asked me what I wanted to
know.
When the direct question begins with an auxiliary (is, do, have) or a model
verb (can, may, etc.), then the
reported question begins with if or whether.
e.g. ‗Have
you seen this man before?‘
he asked me. He asked me if/whether I had seen
the man before.
In
reported questions, the verb is in the affirmative. The question mark and
words/expressions such as please, well,
oh, etc. are omitted. The verb tenses, pronouns and time expressions change
as in statements.
e.g. ‗Can you hold
the door for me, please?‘ the man asked me. The man asked me if/whether I could hold the door for
him.
‗Where are
you going?‘ Sam asked her. Sam asked her where she was going.
(NOT: Sam
asked where was she going)
Ex. 88
Turn the following
into reported questions
1.
„Where
do you live?‟ I asked her.
...I
asked her where she lived...
2.
‗How old will you be on your
next birthday?‘ he asked me.
3.
‗Where is your umbrella?‘
she asked her daughter.
4.
‗Do you like playing
football?‘ John asked us.
5.
The boss asked, ‗What time
are you going home today?‘
6.
‗Will you take the children to school today?‘ he asked.
7.
‗Who called you today?‘ she asked.
8.
‗When will you decorate the
kitchen?‘ Martha asked.
9.
‗Who broke my vase?‘ I asked.
10.
Father asked, ‗Will you help
me lift these boxes, please?‘
11.
‗Can you speak a foreign
language?‘ she asked her.
12.
‗Where is the tourist
information centre?‘ we asked.
Ex. 89
Yesterday,
Marion met a couple who were on holiday in London. They were looking at a map.
She asked them some questions. Turn them into reported questions.
1.
„Are you lost?‟
...
Marion asked them if/whether they were lost.
2.
‗Can you speak English?‘
3.
‗Where are you from?‘
4.
‗Is your hotel near here?‘
5.
‗Where do you want to go?‘
6.
‗Were you looking for Big Ben?‘
7.
‗Have you been to the
British Museum?‘
8.
‗Have you visited Buckingham Palace?‘
9.
‗Do you like London?‘
REPORTED COMMANDS/REQUESTS/SUGGESTIONS
|
Let’s fly the kite. Pull
the strings harder! Unroll more string,
please. Don’t let go of the kite! |
Keith suggested flying the kite. He
told Paul to pull
the strings harder. He asked Paul to unroll more
string. He
also told him not to let go of the kite |
To report commands or instructions in
reported speech, we use the introductory verbs order or
tell + sb + (not)
to-infinitive.
e.g. ‗Put the gun down!‘ he said to him. He ordered him to put the gun down.
‗Don‘t look down!‘ he said to us. He told us not to look down.
‗Put the shopping
in the kitchen/ she said to her. She told
her to put the shopping in the kitchen.
To report requests, we use the introductory verbs ask or beg + sb + (not) to-infinitive.
The direct sentence usually contains the word
„please‟.
e.g. ‗Help me, please,‘ Jean said to Tom.
Jean asked Tom to help her.
‗Please, please don‘t call the police,‘ he
said to Colin. He begged Colin not to
call the police.
To report suggestions, we use the introductory
verb suggest
+ -ing form/that sb (should) + bare infinitive.
e.g. ‗Let‘s go outside,‘ I said to them.
‗We can/could go
outside,‘ I said to them.
‗Shall we go
outside?‘ I said to them.
‗How about going
outside?‘ I said to them.
I suggested going/that we (should) go
outside
Ex. 90
Fill
in the gaps with the introductory verbs in the list in the correct form.
order, tell, ask, beg, suggest
1.
Please visit me in hospital,‟ Joan said to Colin. Joan ...asked... Colin to visit her in hospital.
2.
‗Let‘s eat out this
evening,‘ Paul said to her. Paul eating
out that evening.
3.
‗Please, please be careful,‘
she said to him.
She him to be careful.
4.
‗Don‘t go near the fire,‘
Dad said to us.
Dad. us not to go near the fire.
5.
‗Be quiet!‘ the commander
said to the troops. The commander. the troops to be quiet.
Ex. 91
Turn
the following sentences into reported speech.
1.
The
doctor said to the patient, „Come back to me again next week.‟
...The doctor told
the patient to go back and him again the following week/the week after....
2.
The guard said to the
driver, ‗Stop!‘
3.
He said, ‗Shall we go for a walk?‘
4.
She said to him, ‗Please,
please don‘t leave me!‘
5.
Jenny said to Dave, ‗Please
help me with this.‘
6.
She said to him, ‗Open the window, please.‘
7.
Mother said, ‗How about going for a drive?‘
8.
She said, ‗Let‘s eat now.‘
Ex. 92
Choose
the correct answer.
1.
She
said that it was going to be a wonderful party.
a „It was going to be a wonderful party.‟
b „It‟s going to be a wonderful party.‟
2.
He said the bus might be a
little late that day. a ‗The bus was
a little late today.‘
b ‗The bus might
be a little late today.‘
3.
She told him that he should
study harder. a ‗You should study harder.‘
b ‗You should
have studied harder.‘
4.
He said that the fire had
done a lot of damage to the building. a
‗The fire had done a lot of damage to the building.‘
b ‗The fire has
done a lot of damage to the building.‘
5.
He said that Michael was the
best student he had ever taught. a
‗Michael is the best student I have ever taught.‘
b ‗Michael was
the best student I have ever taught.‘
6.
She told us that the new
furniture had been delivered the day before.
a ‗The new furniture had been delivered yesterday.‘
b ‗The new furniture
was delivered yesterday.‘
7.
They said that the manager
would inspect the office the following day.
a ‗The manager will inspect the office the following day.‘
b ‗The manager
will inspect the office tomorrow.‘
8.
He said that if we hadn‘t
acted so quickly, the accident would have been even worse. a ‗If you hadn‘t
acted so quickly, the accident would have been even worse.‘
b ‗If you
haven‘t acted so quickly, the accident would be even worse.‘
INTRODUCTORY
VERBS
|
agree
+ to-inf offer promise refuse *threaten |
‘Yes, I’ll give
you a lift.’ Shall I carry
the boxes?’ I promise I’ll help you.’ No, I
won’t buy you a car.’ Stop talking or I’ll send you out.’ |
He agreed to give me a lift. He offered to
carry the boxes. He promised
to help me. She refused to buy me a car. He threatened
to send
me out if I didn’t stop talking |
|
advise
+ sb + to-inf ask beg command
invite oreder *remind *warn |
‘You should see a doctor.’ ‘Could
you do something for me?’ ‘Please,
please call the police.’ ‘Drop your weapons!’
‘Will you
come to my
party?’ ‘Get out of the house!’ ‘Don’t forget to write to Paul.’ ‘Don’t go near the oven.’ |
He advised me to see a doctor. She asked me to do something for
her. She begged me to call
the
police. He commanded
them to
drop their weapons. She invited me to (go to) her party. She ordered me to get
out of the
house. She reminded me to write
to
Paul. She warned me not to go near the oven. |
|
admit
(to) +
gerund
accuse sb of
apologise for *boast about/of complain to
sb of deny insist on suggest |
‘Yes, I stole the plans.’
‘You lied to me.’
‘I’m sorry
I shouted at
you.’ ‘I’m the cleverest of all.’ ‘I have a headache.’
‘I didn’t take your bag.’ ‘You
must do your
work.’ ‘Let’s visit Jane.’ |
He
admitted (to) stealing/having stolen the
plans. She accused me of lying/having lied to her. He
apologised for shouting/having shouted at
me He
boasted of/about being the
cleverest of all. She complained to me of having a headache. He
denied taking/having taken my
bag. She insisted on me/my doing my
work. She suggested visiting Jane. |
|
complain
+ that deny explain
exclaim/remark
promise suggest |
‘You’re always late.’ ‘I didn’t take the money.’ ‘It’s a difficult situation.’ ‘What a beautiful baby he is!’ ‘I promise I’ll call
you.’ ‘You’d better go home.’ |
She complained that I was always
late. She denied
that she had taken the
money. He explained
that it was a difficult situation. She exclaimed/remarked
that he was a beautiful
baby She promised that
she
would call me. He
suggested that I (should) go home. |
|
+that-clause explain inform sb exclaim/remark |
‘I
don’t like him because he’s rude.’ ‘The results will come out
tomorrow.’ ‘What a glorious day!’ |
She explained
that she didn’t like him because he was rude. He informed
us that the results would
come out the next day. He exclaimed/remarked
that it was a |
glorious day.
*Note: admit, advise, boast,
insist, threaten, warn, remind can also be followed by a that- clause in
reported speech.
Ex. 93
Fill
in the gaps with one of the introductory verbs from the list below in the past
simple. agree, invite, warn, accuse, boast, complain, insist, explain, exclaim,
remind, suggest, promise
1.
„Will
you come to the ball?‟ he said to her. He …invited… her to go to the ball.
2.
‗I‘m the
best student in
the school,‘ he
said. He about being the best
student in the school.
3.
‗Yes, I‘ll lend you some
money,‘ he said to Jane. He.........................to lend Jane some money.
4.
‗What a beautiful dress she
is wearing!‘ he said. He that
she was wearing a
beautiful dress.
5.
He never buys
me flowers,‘ she
said. She that he never bought her flowers.
6.
‗Let‘s go for a picnic,‘ he said.
He going for a picnic.
7.
‗You stole the money,‘ Tom
said to Jim. Tom. Jim of stealing the money.
8.
‗Don‘t forget
to hang out the washing,‘
she said to me.
She me
to hang out the washing.
9.
‗I promise I‘ll write to
you,‘ she said to him. She to write to
him.
10.
‗You must finish the report,‘ she said to him.
She on him finishing the report.
11.
‗Don‘t touch the wet paint,‘
Dad said to us. Dad. us not to touch the
wet paint.
12.
There‘s nothing else I can
do,‘ he said.
He that there was nothing
else he could do.
Ex. 94
First,
choose an appropriate introductory verb, then report the sentences.
1.
„Please,
please don‟t go.‟
...
beg…
He begged…
me not to go.
2.
‗Yes, I‘ll do the shopping.‘
Paul
...................................................
3.
‗Everyone sit down!‘
The teacher ...................................................
4.
‗Could I borrow your pen?‘
She
...................................................
5.
‗It was me who made the mistake.‘
Mary ...................................................
6 . ‗You should
speak to the manager.‘ Jill ...................................................
7.
‗No, I won‘t type the letter
for you.‘ Bob
...................................................
8.
‗I promise I‘ll take you
home.‘ Jack ...................................................
9.
‗Fire at the enemy!‘
The
sergeant...................................................
10.
‗I‘ll send you to your room if you‘re
naughty.‘ Mum ...................................................
11.
‗No, I didn‘t call you.‘
Kim ...................................................
12.
‗Let‘s go for a walk.‘
Tom
...................................................
13.
‗I‘m sorry I broke your glasses‘ Ted
...................................................
14.
‗Don‘t forget to pay the
bills.‘ Sam ...................................................
15.
‗Don‘t go near the river.‘
Dad
...................................................
16.
‗You broke the window.‘
Peter
...................................................
17.
‗Children, be quiet!‘
Miss Black
...................................................
Ex. 95
Turn
the sentences into reported speech using an appropriate introductory verb.
1.
‗No, I won‘t do your
homework for you,‘ she said to me.
...She
refused to do my homework for me.....
2.
‗You lied to me,‘ Dennis
told Ann.
3.
‗I promise I won‘t tell
anyone your secret,‘ Тага said to Diana.
4.
Don‘t forget to post the
letters,‘ Mum said to me.
5.
I‘m sorry I ruined your
shirt,‘ Sarah told Frances.
6.
‗No, I didn‘t use Tim‘s
computer,‘ George said.
7.
Don‘t get too close to the
fire,‘ Mike said to the children.
8.
Let‘s have a party,‘ Simon
said.
9.
‗I‘ll punish you if you
behave badly,‘ Mum told the twins.
10.
It was me who broke the
vase,‘ she said.
11.
‗Could I use your phone,
please?‘ David asked me.
12.
‗Yes, I‘ll help you with the
washing-up,‘ Sandra told me.
13.
‗Everyone stop talking!‘ Mr
Jones told the class.
14.
Please, please, don‘t tell
anyone about this,‘ he said to us.
15.
You should go to the
dentist‘s,‘ she told her brother.
16.
‗Children, sit down!‘ the
school bus driver said.
17.
Throw down your weapons!‘
the policeman said to the robbers.
18.
‗No, you may not stay out
late tonight,‘ Dad said to Louise.
19.
‗You must wash your hands
before eating dinner,‘ she told the children.
20.
That‘s the most beautiful
necklace I‘ve ever seen!‘ Amanda said.
EXCLAMATIONS – YES/NO SHORT
ANSWERS – QUESTION TAGS
♦
We use the verbs exclaim/say that to report exclamations
which begin with 'What a/an ' or
'How.. ‟ in direct speech.
e.g. What an unusual design!' he said.
He exclaimed/said that it was an unusual
design. He exclaimed/ said that the
design was unusual.
But with exclamations such as 'Splendid!', 'Great!', 'Good!',
'Excellent!', 'Oh!', 'Oh dear!' etc. we use the expression give an exclamation of delight/ disgust/
relief/surprise, etc.
e.g. „Wow!' he said as he unwrapped his gift.
He gave an exclamation of surprise as he
unwrapped his gift.
♦
Study the following examples:
e.g. a) They said, „Thank you.' > They thanked us.
b)
„You fool!' she said. > She called
him a fool.
c)
„Happy Birthday!' we said to Tamzin. > We wished
Tamzin a happy birthday.
d)
„Congratulations!' they said to us. > They congratulated us.
♦
Yes/No short answers are
expressed in reported speech with
subject + appropriate auxiliary verb/ Introductory verb.
e.g. 'Will you help me decorate the cake?'
she asked him. Yes,' he said.
She
asked him to help her decorate the cake and he said he would/he agreed.
♦
Question tags are omitted in
reported speech. We use an appropriate introductory verb to convey the same meaning.
e.g.
'You won't tell anyone, will you?' she said to him. She asked him not to tell
anyone.
REPORTING
A DIALOGUE
In dialogues we use a mixture of statements,
questions, commands, requests, etc. In reported speech we use: and, at, adding that, and (he/she) added
that, because, but, since, and then (he/she) went on to say (that), while,
then, etc. to link the sentences in a dialogue. We can also use
introductory verbs in the present participle form (offering, begging, explaining, etc.). Words or exclamations such as
Oh, Oh dear, Well, etc., are omitted
in reported speech.
a)
‗Oh, this is a delicious
cake!‘ he said. ‗Who made it?‘
He
exclaimed/remarked that it was a delicious cake and asked who had made it
b)
He picked up the heavy bag and said, ‗Can
I carry it for you?‘ He picked up the heavy bag, offering to carry it for me.
с) Jill: Oh! I love your dress. Is it new? Ann: Well, actually it is.
Jill: Where did you buy it? I‘ve been looking for one like that for
ages!
Jill exclaimed that she loved Ann‘s dress and asked her if it was new. Ann replied that it was. Jill wanted
to know where Ann had bought it, explaining
that she had been looking for one like it for ages.
Ex. 96
Turn
the following sentences into reported speech.
1.
„Don‟t be late tonight,‟ said Dad. „You have to get up early tomorrow‟.
..Dad
asked us not to be late, explaining that we had to get up early the following
day.
2.
‗Let‘s go out tonight,‘ he
said. ‗We haven‘t been out for ages.‘
3.
‗I‘m exhausted,‘ he said.
‗I‘ve been working hard all week.‘
4.
‗You‘re late,‘ she said to
Tom. ‗I was about to go home.‘
5.
‗Are you busy?‘ he asked me.
‗I need to talk to you.‘
6.
‗Have you had your hair
cut?‘ he asked Jessie. ‗It looks great.‘
7.
‗I‘m bored,‘ Peter said.
This film is terrible.‘
8.
‗I‘m going shopping,‘ Linda
said. ‗I‘ll be back in an hour.‘
9.
‗Bill wants to talk to you,‘
Tina said to the boss. ‗He‘s waiting outside.‘
10.
‗Are you ready?‘ Mother said
to the children. ‗It‘s time to go.‘
11.
‗I‘m going to bed,‘ Emma
said. ‗I‘m tired.‘
12.
‗Wait for me,‘ I said. ‗I‘m
coming with you.‘
13.
‗Open the window,‘ he said.
‗It‘s hot in here.‘
14.
‗Go away,‘ she said to them.
‗I want to be alone.‘
15.
‗What time is it?‘ Bob asked.
‗My watch has stopped.‘
16.
‗Are you leaving now?‘ Sam said.
‗I‘ll give you a lift.‘
17.
‗I‘m sorry I‘m late. I lost my way,‘ she said to us.
18.
‗Who‘s there?‘ she asked.
‗Come in.‘
19.
‗Did you miss the bus?‘ he
said. ‗You‘re late.‘
20.
‗Have you got an umbrella?‘
Liz asked. ‗It‘s raining.‘
PUNCTUATION IN DIRECT SPEECH
We
put the speaker‘s words in quotation marks and we capitalise the first word of
the direct speech.
e.g. „He isn‘t at home.‘
We
mention the speaker before or after the direct speech. When the speaker is
mentioned before the direct speech, we put the comma outside the quotation
marks. When the speaker is mentioned after the direct speech, we put the comma
inside the quotation marks.
e.g. She said, „He isn‘t at home.‟ OR: ‗He isn‘t at
home,‟ she said.
If
the direct speech is a question and the person being spoken to comes after it,
we put a question mark and not a comma.
e.g. „Do you know him?‟ she asked me. OR: She asked me, „Do
you know him?‟
Ex. 97
Punctuate
the following, making any other necessary changes.
1.
shall
we meet again next Thursday Roger asked ...‟Shall we meet again next Thursday?‟ Roger asked....
2.
Jack said don‘t touch the wire
3.
where have you been Tina asked
4.
basketball is my favourite
sport Sam said to me
5.
Rita told me I have no time
to spare
6.
did you phone your uncle
Mother asked
7.
Sandra said I don‘t want to
stay here any longer
8.
the children are in the
garden Dorothy said
9.
why did you do that Bob asked
10.
Linda said close the window please
11.
Paul said I don‘t like
horror films
12.
they asked where are you going
13.
we‘re lost they said to me
Ex. 98
Turn
from direct into reported speech or vice versa.
1.
‗I have a lot of work to do
today,‘ she said. ...She said she had a lot of work to do....
2.
He asked her to phone him
later that evening.
3.
‗Where are you going in such
a hurry?‘ he asked her.
4.
Sue begged her friend not to
tell anyone what she had done.
5.
‗Are you ready to go to
school?‘ Mum asked us.
6.
Tom said he was nervous
because he had never been on a plane before.
7.
‗Can you pass me the
newspaper, please?‘ Jane asked Toby.
8.
John suggested that they go
to Italy on holiday.
9.
‗We could go for a picnic
tomorrow if you like,‘ said Jack.
Ex. 99
Turn
the following into reported speech. Use appropriate introductory verbs.
1.
Ben: „I didn‟t do very well
in the test.‟
...Ben
remarked that he hadn‟t done very well in the test
2.
Joe: ‗We won‘t get the
results until next week.‘
3.
Tania: ‗I‘ll be very
disappointed if I fail.‘
4.
Meg: ‗I had done a lot of revision.‘
5.
Ben: ‗Let‘s talk about
something else.‘
6.
Joe: ‗Does anyone want to
come to the cinema with me this afternoon?‘
7.
Tania: ‗My roommate is
having a party at the weekend. You‘re all invited.‘
8.
Meg: ‗I‘d love to come to
the party. Count me in.‘
