Reported and Indirect Speech

There are different possibilities to express the content of statements and questions without quoting them.

Important:

a) If the reporting verb like "say", "tell" is in present tense, you don´t need to change the the tense.

p.e.: "Go home!" My boss tells me to go home.

b) If the reporting verb is in past tense, you need to change the tense.

Tense Direct Speech Reported Speech
present simple I´m hunry. She told me that she was hungry.
present continuous I am living in Paris. He said to me that he was living in Paris.
past simple I fell asleep. Mom said that she had fallen asleep.
past continuous I was living in Berlin. He said that he had been living in Berlin.
present perfect I haven´t talked to Anna. She told me that she hadn´t talked to Anna.
past perfect I had taken French lessons before. He said that he had taken French lessons before.
will-future I will see you later He told me that he would see me later.

c) You also need to change the time expressions

now then/at that time
tomorrow the following day
today that day
yesterday     the day before
last night the night before
last week the week before/previous week

 

 

Exercise:


Transfer the direct speech to reported speech.


1.) "I will go to the cinema tomorrow." ________________________________

2.) "I´m really hungry." __________________________________

3.) "I didn´t go to the shopping mall yesterday." ________________________________

4.) "He works in a book shop." ___________________________________

5.)  "I was waiting for the bus when Susan called me." _____________________________

6.) "I went to the park last week." ____________________________

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________

answers:

1.) "I will go to the cinema tomorrow." She told me that she would go to the cinema the following day.

2.) "I´m really hungry." He said that he was really hungry.

3.) "I went to the shopping mall yesterday." My sister told me that she had gone to the shopping mall the day before.

4.) "He works in a book shop." He told me that his brother worked in a book shop.

5.)  "I was waiting for the bus when Susan called me." My friend said that she had been waiting for the bus when Susan had called her.

6.) "I went to the park last week." She told me that she had gone to the park last week.