Reported speech

Reported speech

There are three areas of reported speech: reported statement, reported command and reported questions.
1)- reported statements:
Form: reporting verb + reported clause.
If the reporting verb is in the past tense, it is usual for the verb in the reported clause to “move one tense back” (present - past / present - past perfect / past – past perfect).
Ex: ‘I am going’. He said he was going.
‘She has passed her exam’. He told me she had passed her exam.
‘My father died when I was six’. She said her father had died when she was six/ she said her father died when she was six.
If the reporting verb is in the present tense, there is no change of tense in the reported clause.
Ex: ‘the train will be late’. He says the train will be late.
‘I come from Spain’. She says she comes from Spain.
If we have can, will in the reported speech, they will change and we would have could and would.
Ex: ‘Can you type?’ He asked me if I could type.
Others do not change: would, should, might, could, must and had to.
Ex: ‘You should go to bed’. He told me I should go to bed.
There are many reporting verbs: say, tell, explain, admit, warn and complain.
Sometimes the idea is reported rather than the actual words.
Ex: ‘I will lend you some money’. She offered to lend me some money.
‘I won’t help you’. He refused to help me.

2)- Reported commands:
Form: subject + reporting verb + indirect object + infinitive.
‘Go away’. He told them to go away.
‘Go back to work’. They urged the miners to go back to work.
‘Cut your hair’. She persuaded her son to have his hair cut.
‘Leave immediately’. I advised the stranger to leave the house immediately.

3)- Reported questions:
The “one tense back” rule is the same with reported questions as with reported statements.
Ex: ‘Why have you come here?’ I asked him why he had come here.
‘What time is it?’ He wants to know what time it is.
As it is no longer a direct question, the word order is not the question’s word order and the auxiliary do and did is not necessary.
Ex: ‘How long have you been here?’ He asked me how long I had been here.
‘Have you been to America?’ He wanted to know if/ whether I had been to America.