Reported speech

reported speech

Reported speech is the act of quoting what someone else said. There are two main ways you can quote what another person has said:

1) You can use ‘direct speech’ which is the act of copying exactly what someone else said, and if, in writing, you would need to use quotation marks.

2) We also have reported speech, or as it’s otherwise known indirect speech.

What happens in reported speech?

When you use reported speech or indirect speech, you need to change several elements of the sentence.

So, such elements that need to be changed within the sentence are pronouns and most importantly the verb tenses, which are governed by rules, all of which we will delve into below.

Examples of direct speech and reported speech (indirect speech)

  • Direct speech: ”I like going to the park”. Reporter: She said ”I like going to the park”.
  • Reported speech: ”I like going to the park”. Reporter: ”She said, (that) she liked going to the park”.

So, in the first example using ‘direct speech‘, the sentence goes as follows, ”I like going to the park”. This sentence had been reported directly, with no changes, hence the term, ‘direct speech’.

In the second example using reported speech, “I like going to the park”, had been reported indirectly: ”She said, she liked going to the park”.

Therefore, to use reported speech, we had to make changes to the new sentence which was reporting.

For instance: the pronouns, and the grammar — present to past because the reporter of the speech is now speaking in the present moment; a verb change is necessary.

Rules for using reported speech

Verb tense Direct Speech Reported Speech / Indirect Speech
Present simple > past simple I like to play sports. She said (that) she liked to play sports.
Present continuous > past continuous I am doing my exam. He said (that) he was doing his exam.
Past simple > past perfect I cleaned my room. She said (that) she had cleaned his room.
past continuous > past perfect continuous I was playing my video game. He said (that) he had been playing his video game.
Present perfect > past perfect I haven’t been to the park. She said (that) she hadn’t been to the park.
Past perfect > past perfect I had seen that guy before Wednesday. She said (that) she hadn’t seen that guy before Wednesday.
Present perfect continuous > past perfect continuous I have been living in Spain for two years. She said (that) she had been living in Spain for two years.
Future simple > conditional (would) I will go to the market. She said (that) she would go to the market.
Conditional (would) > would He wouldn’t go to the concert. He said (that) he wouldn’t go to the concert.
Ought to > ought to I ought to buy a phone. She said she ought to buy a phone.
May > could/would I may come tonight. He said he would/could come tonight.
Need > must/had to I need to get a new cup. He said (that) he must get a new cup/ he said that he had to get a new cup.
Can > could I can speak Spanish. She said (that) she could speak Spanish.
Could > could I could dance when I was younger. She said (that) she could dance when she was younger.
Shall > would They shall not come this evening. He said (that) they would’t come this/that evening.
Should > should I should buy a new phone. She said (that) she should buy a new phone.
Might > might I might arrive late today. She said (that) she might arrive late today/yesterday/the other day.
Must > must I must go to the mall. She said (that) she must go to the mall.

Importantly, this is a complete list of all active verb forms and modal auxiliaries with their respective forms that work in reported speech. Also, it is worth mentioning that time expressions or references to time can change. For example,

  • ”I cleaned my room yesterday” = He said (that) he had cleaned his room (yesterday/the other day/Tuesday/Friday/ two weeks ago).

The time reference will depend completely on the situation and point in time, this is subjective to the reporter.

See also