16 - ] Basic Grammar For Beginners
21 . Direct And Indirect Speech
1 - Reported Statements
1 . When the introductory verb [ say , tell , advise
, warn etc. ] is in the present perfect or future , direct statements can be
reported without any changes of tense .
A . He says , “The train will arrive late .”
He says that the train will arrive late .
B . She often says , “I feel hungry .”
She often says that she feels hungry .
C . She has said , “We will come to the party.”
She has said that they will come to the party .
2 . When the introductory verb is past simple or
past perfect , change the tense .
|
Direct Tense |
Indirect Tense |
Direct Tense |
Indirect Tense |
|
present simple visit - visits |
past simple visited |
present continuous am , is , are visiting |
past continuous was , were visiting |
|
present perfect has / have visited |
past perfect had visited |
past simple visited |
past perfect had visited |
|
future simple will visit |
future in the past would visit |
|
|
1 . Tom said , “It is late.”
Tom said that it was late .
2 . Sara said , “I want an apple .”
Sara said that she wanted an apple .
3 . Ali said , “I like reading .”
Ali said that he liked reading .
4 . Ahmad said , “I don’t like Math .”
Ahmad said that he didn’t like Math .”
3 . Changes in Pronouns and Possessive Adjectives.
|
Pronoun |
Possessive Adjective |
Pronoun |
Possessive Pronoun |
|
I → he , she |
my → his , her |
me → him , her |
mine →his , hers |
|
we → they |
our → their |
us → them |
ours → theirs |
|
you → I , we
|
your → my , our |
you → me , us |
yours , mine , ours |
4 .Changes of Adverbs
|
Direct |
Indirect |
Direct |
Indirect |
|
today |
on that day |
here |
there |
|
this |
that |
these |
those |
|
tomorrow |
on the next day , the following day |
now |
then |
|
yesterday |
the day before |
ago |
before |
|
tonight |
that night |
last week |
the week before |
Exercise
Change the following sentences into indirect speech :
1 . Edward said , “I like traveling by air .”
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2 . She said , “It is expensive to travel by air .”
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3 . Dina said , “I like watching television .”
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4 . Ahmad said , “I have good pictures .”
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5 . Diana said , “I want to see the picture .”
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6 . Huda said , “I know the address .”
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7 . He said , “It is getting dark .”
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8 . Anne said , “I don’t like games .”
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9 . The students said , “ We hate Science .”
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10 . Rose said , “I need some help .”
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11 . Vicky sad , “I am sorry .”
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12 . John said , “I like chocolate .”
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13 . He said , “I can’t go with you now .”
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14 . Sandy said , “I have a lot of work to do .”
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15 . Omar said , “I think my mother is the best cook
.”
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16 . The children said , “We enjoy sitting in the sun
.”
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17 . He said , “ I often see my friend in the
evenings .”
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18 . I said , “I am going out with my father .”
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19 . Mrs. Brown said , “I work with my husband in an
office .”
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20 . They said , “We don’t often watch television in
the morning .”
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21 . Victoria said , “I am preparing breakfast now .”
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22 . The customer said , “I think the prices here are
expensive .”
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23 . The porter said , “The train will leave the
station at 5 o’clock .”
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24 . The teacher said , “I’ll give you an English
Test tomorrow .”
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2 - Reported Questions
A. Questions with question words [ WH questions ]
1. When we report questions we do not use the
interrogative forms . The reported form of the question must be made as though
it were a positive statement [ we keep the question word ] and end the sentence with a full stop .
“Where are you going ?” she asked me .
She asked me where I was going .
“Why are you so late ?” the teacher asked me .
The teacher asked me why I was s late .
2 . “said” or “said to” is changed into asked .
Exercise
Change the following into indirect :
1 . Henry said to Nasser , “What are you eating ?”
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2 . The student said to his friend , “Where are the
rulers ?”
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3 . Suzan said to her sister , “Which dress do you
like best ?”
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4 . The passenger said to the bus-driver , “Why is
the bus late ?”
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5 . The girl said to her friend , “Who is the boy
with glasses ?”
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6 . Mohammad said to Ali , When will the lesson start
?”
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7 . Mary said to Sandy , “How is your leg ?”
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8 . Ahmad said to his father , “Which team do you
like best ?”
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9 . Alice said to Dina , “Where do you play tennis ?”
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10 . I said to my friend , “Why do you want to know
the time ?
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11 . I said to the policeman , “How can I get to the
center of town ?”
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12 . I said to Maria , “Why are you shouting ?”
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13 . I said to Gerald , “Who is the girl with the
long hair ?”
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14 . Jervis said to Potter , “Which color do you
prefer ?”
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15 . Allan said to his sister , “When are the guests
coming ?”
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16 . “Where do you come from ?” she asked me .
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17 . “What are you going to study tonight ?” I asked
her .
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18 . “Who lives in the big house ?” I asked
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19 . “When did you come from London ?” I asked her .
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20 . “Why are you late ?” she asked him .
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21 . “How did you find the ay ?” Dina asked Ahmad .
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22 . “What are you writing Dalia ?” I asked .
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23 . “How many questions did you write , Dalia ?” I
asked .
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24 . “How did you get that high mark ?” Suzan asked
Sally .
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25 . “How did you finish so quickly ?” the teacher
asked the student .
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26 . “What are you reading , Khalid ?” I asked .
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27 . “How many people did you invite , Tom ?” I asked
.
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28 . “What is mother doing in the kitchen , Sally ?”
I asked .
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2 . Questions starting with helping verbs
We use the linking words “if” or “whether” with questions starting with helping
verbs .
“Are you going to the match ?” she asked me .
She asked me whether / if I was going to the match .
“Has the postman brought anything for me ?” she asked
.
She asked if / whether the postman had brought
anything for her .
Exercise
Change the following into indirect speech :
1 . “Do you sleep in the afternoon ?” I asked him .
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2 . “Have you seen this film before ?” she asked me .
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3 . “Will you come to the party ?” I asked him
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4 . “Can you type?” I asked her .
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5 . “Has your father sold his car ?” I asked him .
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6 . “Does your mother always help you ?” she asked me
.
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7 . “Did you understand this lesson ?” I asked her .
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8 . “Is your father coming , too ?” she asked me .
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9 . “Is Monday a holiday ?” I asked her .
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10 . “Are the oranges fresh ?” I asked the
greengrocer .
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11 . “Are you leaving , Solomon ?” I asked .
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12 . “Will you wash the car , Ramon ?” I asked .
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13 . “Can you swim under water , Rashid ?” I asked .
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14 . “Do you ever go fishing , Nasser ?” I asked .
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15 . “Is the
ball ringing ?” mother asked me .
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16 . “Are the children still asleep ?” father asked .
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17 . “Are you getting better , Leslie ?” I asked .
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18 . “Will you cook dinner , Mary ?” I asked .
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19 . “Do you ever wear glasses , Tony ?” I asked .
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20 . “Can you ride a horse , Peter ?” I asked .
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21 . Does it ever rain in your country ?” he asked me
.
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22 . “Will you be here tomorrow morning ?” I asked
her .
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3 - Reported Commands And Requests
1 . When we use the imperative in direct speech to express a
command , demand or request , then in reported speech the imperative becomes
the infinitive [ we join using “to” or “not to” ] .
|
Direct Speech |
Reported Speech |
|
The captain said , “Guard the door.” |
The captain told him to guard the door . |
|
She said , “Don’t make a noise .” |
She told us not to make a noise . |
|
He said , “Please don’t open the door.” |
He asked me not to open the door . |
2 . The reporting verbs that we se to convey a
command are “tell” and “order / command” .
We choose which of these two we will use according to
the style and content of the sentence. We do not use “say (to)” .
The teacher said . “Look at the board .”
The teacher told us to look at the board .
My mother said to me , “Switch off the lights .”
My mother told me to switch off the lights .
The captain said to the soldiers , “Run !”
The captain ordered the soldiers to run .
3 . The reporting verbs that we use to convey a
demand or request are “ask” and “be” , again according to the style and content
of the sentences . We don not use “say(to)”.
I said to her , “Please carry the books for me .”
I asked her to carry the books for me .
The child said , “Please , please , don’t leave me !”
The child begged them not to leave him .
Note : Words like please , exclamations and generally
speaking , any words that are used to give color or emphasis to direct speech
are omitted in reported speech .
Exercise
Rewrite the sentences using the words given .
1 . Mrs. Nasser aid to Rashid , “Go to your room
.” [told]
Mrs. Nasser told
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2 . The teacher said to the class , “Pay attention ,
please .” [asked]
The teacher-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
3 . The sergeant said to the soldier , “Climb that
tree !” [ordered]
The sergeant
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4 . Alan said to me , “Please , don’t leave so early
.” [asked]
Alan
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5 . The girl said to her mother , “Oh , please let me
go to the party !” [begged]
The girl
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6 . The policeman said to the man , “Don’t move
!” [ ordered]
The
policeman-------------------------------------------------------------------------
7 . I said to him , “Close all the windows .” [told]
I told-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
8 . Nicola said to Dave , “Bring me some water ,
please .” [asked]
Nicola
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9 . Anne said to me , “Oh , please don’t throw away
this lovely picture !” [begged]
Anne
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10 . My mother said to my brother , “Take off your
wet clothes !” [to]
My mother told my brother --------------------------------------------------------
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