Direct and Indirect
Direct and Indirect
Direct and Indirect
Saying or quoting exactly what someone has said is called direct speech (sometimes
called quoted speech)
Here what a person says appears within quotation marks (“…”) and should be word for
word.
She said, “Today’s lesson is about direct and indirect speech.” or
“Today’s lesson is about direct and indirect speech.”, she said.
Indirect Speech / Reported Speech
Saying or reporting what someone said without quoting his exact words is called indirect
speech.
Here we don’t use quotation marks to enclose what the person said and does not have to
be word for word.
He said that yesterday’s lesson was about direct and indirect speech.
Reporting Verb
The verb in the first part of sentence (i.e. say, said, tell, admit, complain, explain remind,
reply think, hope, offer, refuse etc.) before the statement of a person in sentence is called
reporting verb.
How to Change Direct Speech into Indirect Speech?
Rule 1. (Adverbs of Time and Place)
If the reported sentence contains an expression of time, you must change it to fit in with
the time of reporting, and adverb of nearness should be put into those of distance.
Today => yesterday/ that day
This evening => that evening
These (days) => those (days)
Now => then
(A week) ago => (a week) before
Last weekend => the previous weekend
Here => there
Here after => there after
Next (week) => the following (week)/ a week after
Tomorrow => the next/following day
Thus => so
Last night => the previous night
Yesterday => the day before / the previous day
Hither => thither
Hence => thence
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Note: If something is said and reported at the same time, then the time expression can
remain the same.
He told me today, “I will go to Karachi tomorrow.”
He told me today he would go to Karachi tomorrow.
She told me this week, “we gave our exam last week.”
She told me this week, they had given their exam last wee.
Rule 2. Tenses
A) If the reporting verb is in present or future (i.e say, says or will say) then
don’t change the tense that you can find within the quotation marks.
He says,”I was a fool then.”
He says that he was a fool then.
I will say, “ He loves his mom.”
I will say that he loves his mom.
B) If reporting verb is in the past tense. the tense of the verbs in the reported speech or
indirect speech must be generally changed. This is because when we use reported speech,
we are usually talking about a time in the past (because obviously the person who spoke
originally spoke in the past). The verbs therefore usually have to be in the past too.
He said,”I am going to the cinema.”
He said he was going to the cinema.
Tense Change
As a rule when you report something someone has said you go back a tense.
Present Simple › Past simple
She said, ”it is cold,”
She said it was cold.
Present continuous › Past continuous
She said, “I’m teaching Math online.”
She said she was teaching Math online.
Present perfect › Past perfect
She said, “I’ve lived in Pakistan since 1999.”
She said she had lived in Pakistan since 1999.
Past simple › Past perfect
She said, “I taught active and passive yesterday.”
She said she had taught active and passive yesterday.
Past continuous › Past perfect continuous
She said, “I was teaching the lesson.”
She said she had been teaching the lesson.
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Past perfect › Past perfect
She said, “The lesson had already started when he arrived.”
NO CHANGE – She said the lesson had already started when he arrived.
Modal verb forms also sometimes change:
Will › would
She said, “I’ll teach English online tomorrow.”
She said she would teach English online tomorrow.
Can › could
She said, “I can teach English online.”
She said she could teach English online.
Must › had to
She said, “I must have a computer to teach English online.”
She said she had to have a computer to teach English online.
Shall › › should/ would
She said, “What shall we learn today?”
She asked what we should learn today.
He said, ”I shall appreciate it.”
He said he would appreciate it.
May › might
She said, “May I open a new browser?”
She asked if she might open a new browser.
Note – There is no change to; could, would, should, might and ought to.
“I might go to the cinema”, he said.
He said he might go to the cinema.
Rule 3.
If indirect speech the words within quotation marks talk of a universal truth or habitual
action or when a sentence is made and reported at the same time and the fact is still true
then the tense inside the quotation marks is not changed at all.
He said, ”My name is Ali.”
He said his name was Ali Or He said his name is Ali.
The teacher said,” the sun rises in the east.”
The teacher said that the sun rises in the east.
Shazia said, “I am thirsty.”
Shazia said she is thirsty.
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Rule 4. (Pronouns)
We have to change the pronouns to keep the same meaning of a sentence.
Ali said, “We are the best players.”
Ali said they were the best players.
Note: Sometimes we have to use a noun instead of a pronoun, otherwise the new
sentence is confusing consider the examples below:
Mohammad said, “He killed them.”
Mohammad said that the man had killed them.
(If we only make mechanical changes, then the new sentence can have different meaning)
Mohammad said he had killed them. (Mohammad himself killed them)
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EXERCISE 1: Punctuate the following to put them in Direct Speech: