reported speech exercises c2

Reported Speech – Free Exercise

Write the following sentences in indirect speech. Pay attention to backshift and the changes to pronouns, time, and place.

• Two weeks ago, he said, “I visited this museum last week.” → Two weeks ago, he said that   . I → he|simple past → past perfect|this → that|last …→ the … before
• She claimed, “I am the best for this job.” → She claimed that   . I → she|simple present→ simple past|this→ that
• Last year, the minister said, “The crisis will be overcome next year.” → Last year, the minister said that   . will → would|next …→ the following …
• My riding teacher said, “Nobody has ever fallen off a horse here.” → My riding teacher said that   . present perfect → past perfect|here→ there
• Last month, the boss explained, “None of my co-workers has to work overtime now.” → Last month, the boss explained that   . my → his/her|simple present→ simple past|now→ then

Rewrite the question sentences in indirect speech.

• She asked, “What did he say?” → She asked   . The subject comes directly after the question word.|simple past → past perfect
• He asked her, “Do you want to dance?” → He asked her   . The subject comes directly after whether/if |you → she|simple present → simple past
• I asked him, “How old are you?” → I asked him   . The subject comes directly after the question word + the corresponding adjective (how old)|you→ he|simple present → simple past
• The tourists asked me, “Can you show us the way?” → The tourists asked me   . The subject comes directly after whether/if |you→ I|us→ them
• The shop assistant asked the woman, “Which jacket have you already tried on?” → The shop assistant asked the woman   . The subject comes directly after the question word|you→ she|present perfect → past perfect

Rewrite the demands/requests in indirect speech.

• The passenger requested the taxi driver, “Stop the car.” → The passenger requested the taxi driver   . to + same wording as in direct speech
• The mother told her son, “Don’t be so loud.” → The mother told her son   . not to + same wording as in direct speech, but remove don’t
• The policeman told us, “Please keep moving.” → The policeman told us   . to + same wording as in direct speech ( please can be left off)
• She told me, “Don’t worry.” → She told me   . not to + same wording as in direct speech, but remove don’t
• The zookeeper told the children, “Don’t feed the animals.” → The zookeeper told the children   . not to + same wording as in direct speech, but remove don’t

How good is your English?

Find out with Lingolia’s free grammar test

Take the test!

Maybe later

English Grammar Online Exercises and Downloadable Worksheets

Online exercises.

• Reported Speech

Levels of Difficulty : Elementary Intermediate Advanced

• RS012 - Reported Speech Intermediate
• RS011 - Reported Speech Intermediate
• RS010 - Reporting Verbs Advanced
• RS009 - Reporting Verbs Advanced
• RS008 - Reporting Verbs Advanced
• RS007 - Reporting Verbs Intermediate
• RS006 - Reported Speech Intermediate
• RS005 - Reported Speech - Introductory Verbs Advanced
• RS004 - Reported Speech Intermediate
• RS003 - Reporting Verbs Intermediate
• RS002 - Reported Speech Intermediate
• RS001 - Reported Speech Intermediate
• Gerund - Infinitive
• Adjective - Adverb
• Modal Verbs
• Passive Voice
• Definite and Indefinite Articles
• Prepositions
• Connectives and Linking Words
• Quantifiers
• Question and Negations
• Relative Pronouns
• Indefinite Pronouns
• Possessive Pronouns
• Phrasal Verbs
• Common Mistakes
• Missing Word Cloze
• Word Formation
• Multiple Choice Cloze
• Prefixes and Suffixes
• Key Word Transformation
• Editing - One Word Too Many
• Collocations
• General Vocabulary
• Adjectives - Adverbs
• Gerund and Infinitive
• Conjunctions and Linking Words
• Question and Negation
• Error Analysis
• Translation Sentences
• Multiple Choice
• Banked Gap Fill
• Open Gap Fill
• General Vocabulary Exercises
• Argumentative Essays
• Letters and Emails
• English News Articles
• Privacy Policy

Grammar Exercise: Reported Speech Worksheet.

Choose the correct reporting verb from this list and finish the reported speech for each example.

1. "I'd go and see a doctor if I were you," Julie said to me. Julie me to go and see a doctor.

2. "Can you come and help me with this box?" John me to help him with the box.

3. "This is an exam Mr. Jenkins!! Shut up now!!!" The headmaster Mr. Jenkins to shut up.

4. "That road is very dangerous so just be very careful!" His mother him that the road was very dangerous and to be careful.

5. "Liverpool won the match last night." The journalist that Liverpool had won the match the previous night.

6. "Why don't we go and see that new film at the cinema." Bill going to see the new film at the cinema.

7. "I can come and look after the children tomorrow night." Jane to come and look after the children the following day.

8. "The lesson starts at six o'clock in the evening." The teacher us that the lesson started at six in the evening.

• Advanced Grammar
• Advanced Vocabulary
• ##PLACEHOLDER##
• iOS/Android App
• First Words
• Grammar Guide
• Pre-Intermediate
• Intermediate
• Grammar Exercises

Reading Exercises

Listening exercises.

• Business English

Vocabulary Exercises

• Picture Quizzes
• NEW B1 Preliminary
• C1 Advanced
• C2 Proficiency
• Phrasal Verbs
• Phrasal Verbs Definitions

Pronunciation

• Pronunciation Exercises

Español / Castellano

• Aprender Español
• Learn Spanish

Main navigation

Learning english, reporting verbs, how difficult was this activity.

Practise using reporting verbs such as threaten, deny and advise. Read the sentences and choose the correct part of speech to follow the reporting verb.

Try these activities next

Which as a relative pronoun

Choose which parts of these sentences have been left out

Fronting substitution and ellipsis

Identify some elements of spoken English

Reported Speech CAE 2

Loading ad...

AleMore2020

Fill in the gaps. More than one answer possible.

• Google Classroom
• Microsoft Teams
• Download PDF

Search form

• B1-B2 grammar

Reported speech

Daisy has just had an interview for a summer job. 

Instructions

As you watch the video, look at the examples of reported speech. They are in  red  in the subtitles. Then read the conversation below to learn more. Finally, do the grammar exercises to check you understand, and can use, reported speech correctly.

Sophie:  Mmm, it’s so nice to be chilling out at home after all that running around.

Ollie: Oh, yeah, travelling to glamorous places for a living must be such a drag!

Ollie: Mum, you can be so childish sometimes. Hey, I wonder how Daisy’s getting on in her job interview.

Sophie: Oh, yes, she said she was having it at four o’clock, so it’ll have finished by now. That’ll be her ... yes. Hi, love. How did it go?

Daisy: Well, good I think, but I don’t really know. They said they’d phone later and let me know.

Sophie: What kind of thing did they ask you?

Daisy: They asked if I had any experience with people, so I told them about helping at the school fair and visiting old people at the home, that sort of stuff. But I think they meant work experience.

Sophie: I’m sure what you said was impressive. They can’t expect you to have had much work experience at your age.

Daisy:  And then they asked me what acting I had done, so I told them that I’d had a main part in the school play, and I showed them a bit of the video, so that was cool.

Sophie:  Great!

Daisy: Oh, and they also asked if I spoke any foreign languages.

Sophie: Languages?

Daisy: Yeah, because I might have to talk to tourists, you know.

Sophie: Oh, right, of course.

Daisy: So that was it really. They showed me the costume I’ll be wearing if I get the job. Sending it over ...

Ollie: Hey, sis, I heard that Brad Pitt started out as a giant chicken too! This could be your big break!

Daisy: Ha, ha, very funny.

Sophie: Take no notice, darling. I’m sure you’ll be a marvellous chicken.

We use reported speech when we want to tell someone what someone said. We usually use a reporting verb (e.g. say, tell, ask, etc.) and then change the tense of what was actually said in direct speech.

So, direct speech is what someone actually says? Like 'I want to know about reported speech'?

Yes, and you report it with a reporting verb.

He said he wanted to know about reported speech.

I said, I want and you changed it to he wanted .

Exactly. Verbs in the present simple change to the past simple; the present continuous changes to the past continuous; the present perfect changes to the past perfect; can changes to could ; will changes to would ; etc.

She said she was having the interview at four o’clock. (Direct speech: ' I’m having the interview at four o’clock.') They said they’d phone later and let me know. (Direct speech: ' We’ll phone later and let you know.')

OK, in that last example, you changed you to me too.

Yes, apart from changing the tense of the verb, you also have to think about changing other things, like pronouns and adverbs of time and place.

'We went yesterday.'  > She said they had been the day before. 'I’ll come tomorrow.' >  He said he’d come the next day.

I see, but what if you’re reporting something on the same day, like 'We went yesterday'?

Well, then you would leave the time reference as 'yesterday'. You have to use your common sense. For example, if someone is saying something which is true now or always, you wouldn’t change the tense.

'Dogs can’t eat chocolate.' > She said that dogs can’t eat chocolate. 'My hair grows really slowly.' >  He told me that his hair grows really slowly.

What about reporting questions?

We often use ask + if/whether , then change the tenses as with statements. In reported questions we don’t use question forms after the reporting verb.

'Do you have any experience working with people?' They asked if I had any experience working with people. 'What acting have you done?' They asked me what acting I had done .

Is there anything else I need to know about reported speech?

One thing that sometimes causes problems is imperative sentences.

You mean like 'Sit down, please' or 'Don’t go!'?

Exactly. Sentences that start with a verb in direct speech need a to + infinitive in reported speech.

She told him to be good. (Direct speech: 'Be good!') He told them not to forget. (Direct speech: 'Please don’t forget.')

OK. Can I also say 'He asked me to sit down'?

Yes. You could say 'He told me to …' or 'He asked me to …' depending on how it was said.

OK, I see. Are there any more reporting verbs?

Yes, there are lots of other reporting verbs like promise , remind , warn , advise , recommend , encourage which you can choose, depending on the situation. But say , tell and ask are the most common.

Great. I understand! My teacher said reported speech was difficult.

And I told you not to worry!

Check your grammar: matching

Check your grammar: error correction, check your grammar: gap fill, worksheets and downloads.

What was the most memorable conversation you had yesterday? Who were you talking to and what did they say to you?

Sign up to our newsletter for LearnEnglish Teens

We will process your data to send you our newsletter and updates based on your consent. You can unsubscribe at any time by clicking the "unsubscribe" link at the bottom of every email. Read our privacy policy for more information.

Reported speech - 1

Reported speech - 2

Reported speech - 3

Worksheets - handouts

Exercises: indirect speech

• Reported speech - present
• Reported speech - past
• Reported speech - questions
• Reported questions - write
• Reported speech - imperatives
• Reported speech - modals
• Indirect speech - tenses 1
• Indirect speech - tenses 2
• Indirect speech - write 1
• Indirect speech - write 2
• Indirect speech - quiz
• Reported speech - tenses
• Indirect speech – reported speech
• Reported speech – indirect speech

• B1-B2 grammar

Reported speech: statements

Do you know how to report what somebody else said? Test what you know with interactive exercises and read the explanation to help you.

Look at these examples to see how we can tell someone what another person said.

direct speech: 'I love the Toy Story films,' she said. indirect speech: She said she loved the Toy Story films. direct speech: 'I worked as a waiter before becoming a chef,' he said. indirect speech: He said he'd worked as a waiter before becoming a chef. direct speech: 'I'll phone you tomorrow,' he said. indirect speech: He said he'd phone me the next day.

Try this exercise to test your grammar.

Grammar B1-B2: Reported speech 1: 1

Read the explanation to learn more.

Grammar explanation

Reported speech is when we tell someone what another person said. To do this, we can use direct speech or indirect speech.

direct speech: 'I work in a bank,' said Daniel. indirect speech: Daniel said that he worked in a bank.

In indirect speech, we often use a tense which is 'further back' in the past (e.g. worked ) than the tense originally used (e.g. work ). This is called 'backshift'. We also may need to change other words that were used, for example pronouns.

Present simple, present continuous and present perfect

When we backshift, present simple changes to past simple, present continuous changes to past continuous and present perfect changes to past perfect.

'I travel a lot in my job.' Jamila said that she travelled a lot in her job. 'The baby's sleeping!' He told me the baby was sleeping. 'I've hurt my leg.' She said she'd hurt her leg.

Past simple and past continuous

When we backshift, past simple usually changes to past perfect simple, and past continuous usually changes to past perfect continuous.

'We lived in China for five years.' She told me they'd lived in China for five years. 'It was raining all day.' He told me it had been raining all day.

Past perfect

The past perfect doesn't change.

'I'd tried everything without success, but this new medicine is great.' He said he'd tried everything without success, but the new medicine was great.

No backshift

If what the speaker has said is still true or relevant, it's not always necessary to change the tense. This might happen when the speaker has used a present tense.

'I go to the gym next to your house.' Jenny told me that she goes to the gym next to my house. I'm thinking about going with her. 'I'm working in Italy for the next six months.' He told me he's working in Italy for the next six months. Maybe I should visit him! 'I've broken my arm!' She said she's broken her arm, so she won't be at work this week.

Pronouns, demonstratives and adverbs of time and place

Pronouns also usually change in indirect speech.

'I enjoy working in my garden,' said Bob. Bob said that he enjoyed working in his garden. 'We played tennis for our school,' said Alina. Alina told me they'd played tennis for their school.

However, if you are the person or one of the people who spoke, then the pronouns don't change.

'I'm working on my thesis,' I said. I told her that I was working on my thesis. 'We want our jobs back!' we said. We said that we wanted our jobs back.

We also change demonstratives and adverbs of time and place if they are no longer accurate.

'This is my house.' He said this was his house. [You are currently in front of the house.] He said that was his house. [You are not currently in front of the house.] 'We like it here.' She told me they like it here. [You are currently in the place they like.] She told me they like it there. [You are not in the place they like.] 'I'm planning to do it today.' She told me she's planning to do it today. [It is currently still the same day.] She told me she was planning to do it that day. [It is not the same day any more.]

In the same way, these changes to those , now changes to then , yesterday changes to the day before , tomorrow changes to the next/following day and ago changes to before .

Do this exercise to test your grammar again.

Grammar B1-B2: Reported speech 1: 2

Language level

Hello Team. If the reporting verb is in the present perfect, do we have to backshift the tenses of the direct speech or not?    For example: He has said, "I bought a car yesterday."    

1- He has said that he bought a car yesterday.

2- He has said that he had bought a car the previous day.

• Log in or register to post comments

Hello Ahmed Imam,

It's not necessary to backshift the verb form if the situation being reported is still true. For example:

"I'm a doctor"

She told me she is a doctor. [she was a doctor when she said it and she is still doctor now]

She told me she was a doctor. [she was a doctor when she said it and may or may not still be a doctor now]

The reporting verb in your example would be 'said' rather than 'has said' as we are talking about a particular moment in the past. For the other verb both 'bought' and 'had bought' are possible without any change in meaning. In fact, when the verb is past in the original sentence we usually do not shift the verb form back.

The LearnEnglish Team

Hello again. Which one is correct? Why?

- He has said that he (will - would) travel to Cairo with his father.

The present perfect is a present form, so generally 'will' is the correct form.

In this case, assuming that the man said 'I will travel to Cairo', then 'will' is the correct form. But if the man said 'I would travel to Cairo if I had time to do it', then 'would' would be the correct form since it is part of a conditional statement.

I think you were asking about the first situation (the general one), though. Does that make sense?

Best wishes, Kirk LearnEnglish team

Thank you for the information. It states that If what the speaker has said is still true or relevant, it's not always necessary to change the tense. I wonder if it is still correct to change the tense in this example: 'London is in the UK', he said. to He said London was in the UK. Or  it has to be the present tense. 

Hello Wen1996,

Yes, your version of the sentence is also correct. In this case, the past tense refers to the time the speaker made this statement. But this doesn't mean the statement isn't also true now.

Good evening from Turkey.

Is the following example correct: Question: When did she watch the movie?

She asked me when she had watched the movie. or is it had she watched the movie. 

Do Subjects come before the verbs? Thank you. 

Hello muratt,

This is a reported question, not an actual question, as you can see from the fact that it has no question mark at the end. Therefore no inversion is needed and the normal subject-verb word order is maintained: ...she had watched... is correct.

You can read more about this here:

https://learnenglish.britishcouncil.org/grammar/b1-b2-grammar/reported-speech-questions

Thank you for your response.

Hello Sir, kindly help with the following sentence-

She said, "When I was a child I wasn't afraid of ghosts." 

Please tell me how to write this sentence in reported/ indirect speech.

Online courses

Group and one-to-one classes with expert teachers.

Learn English in your own time, at your own pace.

One-to-one sessions focused on a personal plan.

Get the score you need with private and group classes.  

Reported speech – advanced

English Reading Grammar Songs Idioms

Reported speech can be more complicated than I showed you on the Reported speech – basic page.  For example, there are more words that change besides  pronouns , possessive adjectives , and  verb tenses .     Place words   and   time words   also   change. 

To review, the first kind of reported speech is with statements .   All the examples below are statements.  Later we’ll look at imperatives, questions and other types of sentences.

In a statement that can be dropped anytime before a subject and verb, so I will put it in parentheses – ( that ) .  When you see this word in the examples that follow, remember that you can drop it if you want to.

It’s important to know which words you have to change in reported speech.

These verb tenses change :

present simple –>  past simple

Example: He said, “ I like to eat watermelon in the summertime.” He said ( that ) he liked to eat watermelon in the summertime..

present continuous –>  past continuous

Example: They said, “ We are putting together a basketball team.” They said ( that ) they were putting together a basketball team.

past simple –>  past perfect

Example: He told them, “ I went to our usual pub, but none of you were there.” He told them ( that ) he had gone to their usual pub, but ( that ) none of them had been there.

present perfect –>  past perfect

Example: He said, “ My family have lived in this area for generations.” He said ( that ) his family had lived in that area for generations.

present perfect continuous –>  past perfect continuous

Example: They said, “ We ’ve been practicing for hours.” They said ( that ) they ’d been practicing for hours.

Past continuous –>  past perfect continuous

Example: She said, “ I was working in the garden all afternoon.” She said ( that ) she had been working in the garden all afternoon.

However, these verb tenses don’t change:

past perfect –>  past perfect

Example: I said to her, “ I had forgotten to lock the door.” I told her ( that ) I had forgotten to lock the door.

past perfect continuous –>  past perfect continuous

Example: She said, “ I had been wondering about that for a long time.” She said ( that ) she had been wondering about that for a long time.

The following modals change :

will –>  would

Example: He told me, “ I ’ll be there at 11:00 at the very latest.” He told me ( that ) he would be here at 11:00 at the very latest.

can –>  could

Example: She said, “ I can be at the meeting tomorrow morning.” She said ( that ) she could be at the meeting tomorrow morning.

may –>  might

Example: She said, “ I may be late, but I ’ll be there.” She said ( that ) she might be late, but ( that ) she ’d be there.

have to   –> had to

Example: He told her, “ I have to go to New York on business.” He told her ( that ) he had to go to New York on business.

must –> had to

Example: She said, “ I must see the dentist sometime this month.” She said ( that ) she had to see the dentist sometime this month.

However, these modals don’t change:

might –>  might

Example: He told them, “There’s one thing I might do for you .” He told them ( that ) there was one thing he might do for them .

could  –>  could

Example: He said, “ I could n’t come yesterday because I lost my car keys.” He said ( that ) he could n’t come yesterday because he had lost his car keys.

would –>  would

Example: I told them, “ I would visit more often if I could.” I told them ( that ) I would visit more often if I could.

should –>  should

Example: She said to him, “I think I should go stay with my aunt in Toronto.” She told him ( that ) she thought she should go stay with her aunt in Toronto

ought to  –>  ought to

Example: Mother told the children,” You ought to keep your rooms clean.” Mother told the children ( that ) they ought to keep their rooms clean.

had better –>  had better

Example: I said to her, “ You ’d better not be late for your appointment.” I said ( that ) she ’d better not be late for her appointment.

used to –>  used to

Example: He said, “ I used to be a fireman in Chicago.” He said ( that ) he used to be a fireman in Chicago.

Place words often change .  However, if the place hasn’t changed from the direct speech to the reported speech, then don’t change these words:

here –>  there this –>  that these –>  those

Examples: He said, “ I ’m supposed to meet him here later.” He told me ( that ) he was supposed to meet him there later. (I’m in a different place when I report the speech.)

They said to us, “ You can use this room for a meeting. They said ( that ) we could use that room for a meeting. (We’re in a different place when we report the speech.)

He said, “ I read these books when I was young.” He said ( that ) he had read those books when he was young. (The person is in a different place when he reports the speech.)

Time words often change .  However, if the time is still the same at the time of the reporting, then don’t change the time word.

next –>  the following last –>  the previous / the ____ before today –> that day tomorrow –>  the next day / the following day yesterday –> the previous day / the day before now –>  then in ____  –>  ____ later this –>   that

Examples: She said, “The store is having a sale next Friday.” She told  us ( that ) the store was having a sale the following Friday.

I said to him, “ I didn’t sleep very well last night.” I told him ( that ) I hadn’t slept very well the previous night ( the night before .)

He told me, “ My girlfriend is leaving for Los Angeles today .” He told me ( that ) his girlfriend was leaving for Los Angeles that day .

They told us, “ We ’re having a game tomorrow at the park.” They told us ( that ) they were having a game the next day ( the following day ) at the park.

He said to him, ” I could n’t find my bus pass yesterday .” He told him ( that ) he could n’t find his bus pass the previous day ( the day before .)

I told her, “ You have to come with me now .” I told her ( that ) she had to come with me then .

She said, “ I ‘ll   be finished   in half an hour .” She said ( that ) she   would  be finished  half an hour later .

John said, “ I can help you this Saturday.” John said ( that ) he could help us that Saturday.

In addition to statements, there are other kinds of sentences that you can report.

The imperative ( commands ) is a little different than statements in reported speech .  The verb becomes an infinitive (with to ).  Use told for your reporting verb or asked if there is a “please.”

Examples: I said to her, “ Go pick up the kids.” I told her to go pick up the kids.

He said to them, “Please take your seats.” He asked them to take their seats.

We said to the team, “ Do your best but most of all have fun.” We told the team to do their best but most of all to have fun.

The nurse said to us, “Please wait here and someone will be with you shortly.” The nurse asked us to wait here and ( that ) someone would be with us shortly.

Questions are also different in reported speech .

If it is a yes/no or a choice question , then use if .   Always use the reporting verb asked .  Also, there is no inversion of the subject and verb like in a real question.  Also remember to drop the question mark (?) because it’s no longer a question.

Examples: He said , “ Would you like coffee or tea?”  (Choice) He asked us if we would like coffee or tea.

My neighbor said , “ Could you look after my dog for a week?”  (Yes or no) My neighbor asked me if I could look after her dog for a week.

He said , “ Is it on the top or the bottom shelf?”  (Choice) He asked if it was on the top or the bottom shelf.

He asked her, “ Do you live around here?”  (Yes or no) He asked her if she lived around here.

Notice that there is no subject-verb inversion ( would we or could we ) in reported questions.  Always put the subject before the verb in reported speech ( we would or we could ).

If it’s an information question ( who , what , where , when , why , how ), then repeat the question word.   As above, don’t invert the subject and verb .   Again, drop the question mark.

Examples: She said, “ What time is it ?” She asked me what time it was .

He asked her, “ Where can I go for coffee around here?” He asked her where he could go for coffee around there.

He asked me, “ Why are you always so tired?” He asked me why I was always so tired.

We asked him, “ How can we find out if we passed or not?” We asked him how we could find out if we had passed or not.

When reporting invitations , there are 2 ways to do it – the regular way or with an infinitive .  Use the reporting verbs invited or asked .  Once again, drop the question mark.

Examples: She said to him, “ Would you like to go on a picnic with us ?” She asked him if he would like to go on a picnic with them . She invited him to go on a picnic with them .

He said to her, “ Would you please not smoke in my car?” He asked her if she would not smoke in his car.. He asked her not to smoke in his car. [Note that the not is before  to , not after.]

We said to them, “ Would you like to come over for coffee?” We asked them if they would like to come over for coffee. We invited them to come over for coffee.

When reporting advice , there are 2 ways to do it – the regular way or with the infinitive .  Use the reporting verb told or advised .

Examples: He said to his daughter, “ You should clean up a bit before he arrives.” He told his daughter ( that ) she should clean up a bit before he arrived. He advised his daughter to clean up a bit before he arrived.

She told her boyfriend, “ You should call me when you arrive in Calgary.” She told her boyfriend ( that ) he should call her when he arrived in Calgary. She advised her boyfriend to call her when he arrived in Calgary.

The teacher said to the students, “ You should check your writing for mistakes.” The teacher told the students ( that ) they should check their writing for mistakes. The teacher advised  the students to check their writing for mistakes.

When reporting requests , do it the regular way or use the infinitive .  The reporting verb is asked .

Examples: The coach said to the team, “ Could you please be on time tomorrow ?” The coach asked the team if they could be on time the following day . The coach asked the team to be on time the following day .

The man said to us, “ Would you please be quiet so I can hear my cellphone.?” The man asked us if we would please be quiet so he could hear his cellphone. The man asked us to please be quiet so he could hear his cellphone

I said to him, “ Can you help me move on the weekend?” I asked him if he could help me move on the weekend. I asked him to help me move on the weekend.

When reporting permission given, do it the regular way or use an infinitive .  The reporting verbs to use are told , invited or gave (someone) permission .

Examples: I said to Jonathan, “ You ca n stay at my place for awhile.” I told Jonathan ( that ) he could stay at my place for awhile. I invited Jonathan to stay at my place for awhile.

He said to his friend, “ You can use my bike this afternoon.” He told his friend ( that ) he could use his bike that afternoon.” He gave his friend permission to use his bike that afternoon.

We told them, “ You can stay here until the store closes.” We told them ( that ) they could stay until the store closed. We invited them to stay until the store closed.

One last thing.  If the reporting verb is in the present tense ( say , tell , ask ), or if you’re reporting the speech immediately, then make no verb changes.

Examples: She said, “ What time are we going home?” She asked what time we are going home.  [Immediate reporting.  No change in time or place.]

His friend always tells him, “ You would be rich if you worked harder.” His friend always tells him ( that ) he would be rich if he worked harder.  [Reporting verb is present tense.]

They asked us, “ Will you help us.” They asked us if we will help them.  [Immediate reporting.]

Let’s review:

Statements:

She said , “The rainbow is beautiful.” She said ( that ) the rainbow was beautiful.

Imperative:

He told the class, “ Take your seats.” He told the class to take their seats.

Yes/no or choice question:

John said , “ Would you please  stop talking.” John asked them if they would stop talking.

Information question:

They asked me, “ When will the game start?” They asked me when the game would start.

Reporting invitations, advice, requests and permission:

We told them, “ You can stay overnight, but you must leave in the morning. We told them ( that ) they could stay overnight but they had to leave in the morning. We invited them to stay overnight but they had to leave in the morning.

Immediate reporting or when the  reporting verb is present tense – no verb tense change:

She asks me all the time, “ Are you going for a run?” She asks me all the time if I ‘m going for a run.

Study this page again, and when you’re ready, take the following quiz .

Your Score:  

Your ranking:  .

© 2013 Ambien Malecot

Comment (1)

kevin | June 12, 2014

Hi, Ambien, i really love this one !

You must be logged in to post a comment

Reporting Verbs Exercise 1

Perfect english grammar.

Hello! I'm Seonaid! I'm here to help you understand grammar and speak correct, fluent English.

Read more about our learning method