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Direct vs. Reported Speech Guide

The document explains the differences between direct speech and reported speech, highlighting changes in tenses, word order, and pronouns. It provides examples for various verb tenses, including present, past, and future forms, demonstrating how they transform when reported. The document serves as a guide for correctly using reported speech in English.

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Ma Fernanda Vidable
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6 views5 pages

Direct vs. Reported Speech Guide

The document explains the differences between direct speech and reported speech, highlighting changes in tenses, word order, and pronouns. It provides examples for various verb tenses, including present, past, and future forms, demonstrating how they transform when reported. The document serves as a guide for correctly using reported speech in English.

Uploaded by

Ma Fernanda Vidable
Copyright
© All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd

Reported speech

When we report what someone said, we can use


direct speech with quotation marks or we can use
reported speech. In reported speech the tenses,
word-order and pronouns are often different from
those in the original sentence:

· I’ work near your office.

· She/he said (that) she worked near my office.


Direct speech Reported speech

· Present simple/continuous · Past simple/continuous


‘I commute to work every day’, Jake said. Jake said (that) he commuted to work
‘I am completing the questionnaire’, every day.
Tamara said to Mrs. Banks. Tamara told Mrs. Banks (that) she was
completing the questionnaire.

· Present perfect simple/continuous · Past perfect simple/continuous


‘Veronica has worked in the field of Matt said (that) Veronica had worked
medicine for fifteen years’, Matt said. in the field of medicine for fifteen years.
‘We’ve been living in the city for three Jenny told us (that) they had been
years’, Jenny told us. thinking about moving house.
· Past simple/continuous · Past perfect
simple/continuous
‘It’s snowed heavily’, Marie Marie said (that) it had snowed
said. heavily.
‘We were thinking about My grandparents told us (that)
moving house’, my they had been thinking about
grandparents told us. moving house.

· Future simple · Would+bare infinitive


‘I’ll reconnect the printer’, Marcus said (that) he would
said Marcus. reconnect the printer.
Future continuous Would+be+verb -ing
‘Jenny will be working on Tim told me (that) Jenny would be
Saturday’, Tim said to me. working on Saturday.

Be going to Was/were going to


‘We’re going to be late!’, Jeff told Jeff told us (that) we were going to
us. be late.

Imperative Full infinitive


‘Take your time’, my boss said to My boss told me to take my time.
me. Mum asked us not to waste time
‘Don’t waste time online, please’, online.
Mum said.

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