Introduction to Reported Speech

Reported Speech also known as Indirect Speech is how we represent the speech of other people or ourselves in the past.

Instead of repeating a person’s words exactly as they said them (Direct Speech), we report what they said by adjusting the grammar to fit our current perspective (Indirect Speech).

Before diving into the specific rules for tense and pronoun shifts, it is important to understand the structural differences and the usage of reporting verbs.

1. Direct vs. Indirect Speech

Let’s compare the two styles:

  • Direct Speech: “I am happy,” John said. (Repeats the exact words inside quotation marks).
  • Indirect/Reported Speech: John said that he was happy. (Reports the message without quotes, adjusting pronouns and tenses).

Converting direct speech to reported speech usually requires three types of adjustments:

  1. Tense Shifts: Stepping the tense back in time (Backshifting).
  2. Pronoun Changes: Adapting pronouns to match the reporter’s point of view.
  3. Time and Place Changes: Modifying time expressions (like tomorrow) and place expressions (like here) to fit the new context.

2. Structural and Formatting Differences

When we convert direct speech to indirect speech, we make several changes to the layout and formatting:

  • Quotation Marks: In indirect speech, we remove the quotation marks ("...").
  • Commas: We remove the comma that separates the reporting verb from the spoken quote.
  • Capitalization: The first word of the reported statement does not start with a capital letter (unless it is a proper noun or “I”).
  • Conjunctions: We often use the conjunction that to introduce the reported clause (though it is optional).

Examples:

  • Direct: She said, “I want to sleep.”
  • Indirect: She said that she wanted to sleep. OR She said she wanted to sleep.

3. Reporting Verbs: Say vs. Tell

The two most common verbs used to introduce reported speech are say and tell. They follow different grammatical patterns:

A. Using “Say”

We use say when we do not mention the listener (the person being spoken to) immediately after the verb.

  • Pattern: say + (that) + clause
  • Correct: He said he was tired.
  • Incorrect: He said me he was tired.

If we want to mention the listener with say, we must use the preposition to:

  • Correct: He said to me that he was tired. (Less common in reported speech).

B. Using “Tell”

We must use tell when we mention the listener (the indirect object) directly after the verb.

  • Pattern: tell + object + (that) + clause
  • Correct: He told me he was tired.
  • Incorrect: He told he was tired.

C. Say and Tell Comparison Table

Direct SpeechReported with “Say”Reported with “Tell"
"I am busy,” Mary said.Mary said she was busy.Mary told them she was busy.
”We are lost,” they said to us.They said they were lost.They told us they were lost.
”I will write,” Jack said.Jack said he would write.Jack told me he would write.

4. Overview of Speech Shifts

Here is a quick reference of the primary shifts that occur when reporting past speech:

Direct SpeechReported (Indirect) Speech
”I like cake.”He said that he liked cake.
”We are playing.”They said they were playing.
”I will call you.”She said she would call me.
”I have finished.”He said he had finished.
”Here is the key.”She said the key was there.
”I will do it tomorrow.”He said he would do it the next day.

5. Sub-Lessons in this Module

Throughout this module, we will explore reported speech in detail through four dedicated sub-lessons:

  1. Tense Shifts (Backshifting): Detailed rules of how to shift tenses back in time.
  2. Pronoun, Time, and Place Changes: Adjusting deictic words to fit the reporting context.
  3. Reporting Questions: Turning direct questions into reported statements using if, whether, and question words.
  4. Reporting Commands & Requests: Using reporting verbs with infinitives (to and not to).