Grammar

B2
reported speech

Recommended for:
Gold Experience
Focus
High Note

2019 1
 We often have to report what
people have said or asked us.
When we do this, we need to
consider various things.
Let’s look at:
1. Tense change in reported speech.
2. Changing pronouns in reported speech.
3. Changes with time and place words.
4. Reported questions and word order.

Tense change…

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 Tense changes in reported
speech
example
She said she had an appointment that day.
direct speech reported speech

“I have an appointment today.” present simple past simple

Tom told me he was getting married the following June.
“I am getting married next June.” present continuous past continuous
Jayne said Adam had quit his job the week before.
“Adam quit his job last week.” past simple past perfect simple
He told Laura that the team had been playing well at that
time. present perfect past perfect
“The team has been playing well recently.” continuous continuous
Francesca said she had been there before. present perfect past perfect simple
“I have been there before.” simple
Diana told me she was going to visit her brother the am/is/are going to was/were going to
following day.
“I am going to visit my brother tomorrow.”
past perfect simple past perfect simple
Jim said that when he had arrived, Sarah had already left.
“When I arrived, Sarah hadatalready
Look left.”
these examples of
reported speech and work Now look at the direct Notice how the tenses
out what tense is being speech for each example. change from direct to
used in the highlighted What tenses are used? reported speech.
sections.
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 Tense changes in reported
speech
example
She said she had an appointment that day.
direct speech reported speech

“I have an appointment today.” present simple past simple

Tom told me he was getting married the following June.
“I am getting married next June.” present continuous past continuous
Jayne said Adam had quit his job the week before.
“Adam quit his job last week.” past simple past perfect simple
He told Laura that the team had been playing well at that
time. present perfect past perfect
“The team has been playing well recently.” continuous continuous
Francesca said she had been there before. present perfect past perfect simple
“I have been there before.” simple
Diana told me she was going to visit her brother the am/is/are going to was/were going to
following day.
“I am going to visit my brother tomorrow.”
past perfect simple past perfect simple
Jim said that when he had arrived, Sarah had already left.
“Whensaid
They I arrived,
they Sarah had already
had been left.” a lot before they had left.
working
past perfect continuous past perfect continuous
“We had been working a lot before we left.”

Notice how the tense does not change

here. It is the same with the Past
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 Things to consider…
example direct speech reported speech
He said that he would call us. will would
“I’ll call you.”
Chris said he could play football well. can could
“I can play football well.”
Tim told me he might come with us. may might
“I may come with you.”
The teacher said we had to arrive early. have to/must had to
“You must arrive early.”
You told me I should speak to you first. should/ought no change.
“You should speak to me first.” to/might/could/would

As well as tenses When the reporting verbs say and tell are
and grammatical in the present, future, or present
structures, modal perfect (e.g. He says; they have told
verbs can also me), the verb tenses when reported do
change. not change. E.g. He says he will call us;
We use the reporting verbs She has told me she has an appointment
say and tell when reporting today.
statements. Notice how we We don’t have
need an object with the verb to use that. It
tell.
Pronoun
can be changes…
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 Pronoun change in reported
speech Jude told
Jude said ………….
had to give
me we
she
us them
would tell ………….
“I will tell you how the money soon so
much it is later.” how much it was
they could book
later.
the tickets.
“You have to give us
the money soon so Later that Jude said Julia
we can book the day… would
us meet
“Julia will meet
tickets.” you at Ok. I’ll give it to her
…………. at the
the theatre.” tonight at our theatre.
Spanish class.
She told me that
Look at the highlighted Julia was going to
“Julia
pronouns is going to call
in the call …………….
me/us
youhow
conversation and later.” later.
they need to change in
reported speech. Often it is necessary to
change the pronouns
Now look at what else and possessive
the girl said. What do adjectives in reported
you think the missing speech, so that we know Time and place
pronouns are? exactly who is being word changes…

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referred to.
 Time and place changes in
reported speech
example direct speech reported speech
She said she had an appointment that day. Today That day
Tom told me he was getting married the following June. Next June The following June
Jayne said Adam had quit his job the week before. Last week The week before
He told Laura that the team had been playing well at that time. Recently At that time
Diana told me she was going to visit her brother the following Tomorrow The following day
day.
Here
Francesca said she had been there before. There

Look at the time and place words in

Look at these examples you
bold. Can you remember what
saw earlier.
these words were in direct speech?

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 Time and place changes
We often need to change the time and place words when we report direct speech as
we don’t know exactly when the person was referring to when they made the
statement.
direct speech reported speech
Now; at the moment; recently Then; at that time
Today/tonight That day/that night
Yesterday The day before; the previous
day
Tomorrow The following day; the next day As with the verb tenses
and grammatical
Next week/month/year/June The following
structures, remember that
week/month/year/June
these don’t change if the
Last week/month/year The previous week; the week reporting verbs say or tell
before are in the present, future
A week/month ago The previous week; the week or present perfect. E.g.
before She says that she has an
appointment today.
This/these That/those
Here There
Reported
questions…
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 Questions in reported speech
Where are you Daniel asked me if I
going on holiday had time off. He asked
next week? what my plans were.

A few weeks later…

Mallorca in Spain. Do Craig asked me where I
you have time off? was going on holiday the
What are your plans? following week.

If there is no question
Do we use the word (it’s a yes/no
No If (or
auxiliary verbs do, question), what whether)
does, did? follows the verb ask?

Look at the reported

Which reporting The word
Ask questions. What do you
verb do we often order is
notice about the word order
use in questions? the same
of the questions?
as the
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 Questions in reported speech
Do you have time What are your
off? plans?

When reporting
questions, as well as
Step 1. The reporting verb Step 1. The reporting verb
Often to changing the tenses,
He asked (me) ask. He asked (me) pronouns, time and
place words, the
Step 2. Add if or whether (if there Step 2. The question word (what, word order is also
is an auxiliary do, does, did, omit where, how, etc.); omit the different.
it) There is auxiliary verb do, does, did
still no
He asked (me) if He asked (me) what There are two types
auxiliary
do. of questions: open
Step 3. Write the question as if it Step 3. Write the question as if it (Wh-) and closed
was affirmative (subject 1st), was affirmative (subject 1st), (yes/no). Let’s look
changing the tenses, pronouns, changing the tenses, pronouns, at the closed
etc. too. etc. too. example first and
He asked (me) if I had time He asked (me) what my plans then the open
off. were. question.
Don’t use a My plans were is the subject + verb. If you
question mark! are finding it hard to think what the word
order should be, imagine the answer to the Let’s practise!
question. E.g. My plans were to go
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 Practice activities
Write these statements and questions in reported speech.

1. Jack and Helen asked me, “Did you enjoy the film last week?” This can be
was or were
Jack and Helen asked me if I had enjoyed the film the week before.
because of
2. “The council has been cleaning the streets more recently,” Laura told us. the
conditional
Laura told us (that) the council had been cleaning the streets more at that time.
structure.
3. “I may take the train to work next week if the traffic is bad,” said Philip.
Philip said (that) he might take the train to work the following week if the traffic was/were
bad.
4. Claire asked us, “What time did you go home last night?” The reporting verb is
in the present, so we
Claire asked us what time we had gone home the night before.
don’t change the
5. Charlie says, “I have been looking for you all day.” tenses or time/place
Charlie says (that) he has been looking for me all day. words.

6. “They must come home right way,” said Tom and Will’s father. But be careful! The
pronoun changes,
Tom and Will’s father said (that) they had to go home right away.
so the verb needs
This needs to change to to be conjugated
go not come because we correctly.
don’t know where the
Copyright © 2019 by Pearson Education Gold Experience | Focus | High Note father is.