Reported Speech Indirect Speech

If we report what another person has said, we usually do not use the speakers exact words (direct speech),
but reported (indirect) speech.

Direct Speech Indirect Speech
Will Would
"I'll go to the movies tomorrow," John said. John said he would go to the moviesthe next day.
"Will you help me move?" she asked. She asked me if I would help her move.
Can Could
Debra said, "Allen can work tomorrow." Debra said Allen could work the next day.
"Can you open the window, please?", he asked. He asked me if I could open the window.
Must Had to
"You must wear your seatbelt," mom said. My mom said I had to wear my seatbelt.
She said, "You must work tomorrow." She said I had to work the next day.

Direct Speech Reported Speech
Present Simple Past Simple
"He's American," she said. She said he was American.
"I'm happy to see you," Mary said. Mary said that she was happy to see me.
He asked, "Are you busy tonight?" He asked me if I was busy that night.
Present Continuous Past Continuous
Dan is living in San Francisco," she said. She said Dan was living in San Francisco.
He said, "I'm making dinner." He told me that he was making dinner.
"Why are you working so hard?" they asked. They asked me why I was working so hard.
Past Simple Past Perfect Simple
"We went to the movies last night," he said. He told me they had gone to the movies the night before.
"Greg said, "I didn't go to work yesterday." Greg said that he hadn't gone to work the day before.
"Did you buy a new car?" she asked. She asked me if I had bought a new car.
Present Perfect Simple Past Perfect Simple
"Heather said, "I've already eaten." Heather told me that she'd already eaten.
"We haven't been to China," they said. They said they hadn't been to China.
"Have you worked here before?" I asked. I asked her whether she'd worked there before.
*Questions
You have to:
1) transform the question into an indirect question
2) use the interrogative or if / whether
Type Example
with interrogative
direct speech Why dont you speak English?
reported speech He asked me why I didnt speak English.
without interrogative
direct speech Do you speak English?
reported speech He asked me whether / if I spoke English.

Changes on time expressions
Direct Speech Indirect Speech
today that day
tonight that night
this week/month/year that week / month / year
tomorrow the next day
next week/month/year the following week / month / year
yesterday the day before / the previous day
last week/month/year
the day / month / year before o the
previous day / month / year
now then / at that moment
here there






Reported Statements: Present Simple
1. I live in New York She said ________________________________________________________
2. He works in a bank She told me _____________________________________________________
3. Julie doesnt like going out much She said ________________________________________________________
4. I dont have a computer. She said ________________________________________________________
5. They never arrive on time She said ________________________________________________________
6. We often meet friends in London at the weekend He told me ______________________________________
7. David doesnt have any children She said ________________________________________________________
8. I dont go to the gym very often She said ________________________________________________________
9. Lucy owns three flats in the city She said ________________________________________________________
10. I never get up early on Sundays She said ________________________________________________________
Reported statements: Past simple
1. I went to the cinema yesterday. He told me ______________________________________________________
2. Jane left the party early. She said ______________________________________________________________
3. I didn't go out at the weekend. She said ________________________________________________________
4. He didn't like chocolate as a child. She said ______________________________________________________
5. They visited Japan. They said that ______________________________________________________________
Reported statements: Present Perfect
1. The car has broken down. Dad said _____________________________________________ down.
2. I have read that book. Ben said _____________________________________________that book.
3. I have seen the film. Lily said _____________________________________________the film.
4. Lucy has had a baby. Mike said _____________________________________________ a baby.
5. We have written the invitations. The friends said __________________________________the invitations.


I couldn't believe my eyes
In this activity the teacher creates situations for the students to get plenty of practice with the form and meaning of the past perfect.
Procedure
Introduction
To get the activity off to a good start its good to use your best acting skills.
Begin the class looking a little upset or flustered and apologise, telling students youve had a bad couple of days. When they ask what
happened (or if they dont, just carry on anyway!) tell them that your house has been burgled. I usually build it up a little bit first with a
story about how I finished work late and then I had problems on the way home and then couldnt believe my eyes when I got home.
Begin the main part of the story by saying:

When I arrived home I realized Id been burgled. I couldnt believe my eyes. The burglars:
o had broken down the door
o had left my papers and photos all over the floor
o had locked my dog in the cellar/shed had taken my... ( a special item)
o had smashed a window
o had stolen my laptop
o had eaten the cake Id bought for my (friend/daughter/wife)s birthday
o had urinated all over the floor

And of course any others you might want to add.
As you tell your story explain, or ask other class members to explain, any vocabulary students are not sure of.
Focus on language
Once your students have a good mental picture of the crime scene write the first sentence up on the board:

When I arrived home I saw the burglars...
Together as a class get students to remember the various events and write up the list on the board. Then spend some time thinking
about the form and meaning.
o Do students know the name of this tense? (past perfect)
o How is it formed? (had + past participle)
o Why do we use this tense and not the simple past in this example? (The starting point for the story is when the teacher arrives home
from work. The burglars actions all happen before this point in the past)
o How could we tell the same story using only the simple past? (The burglars broke down the door. They stole the laptop etc. The teacher
arrived home.)
o Why do we use the past perfect in this story? (For dramatic effect/ to make the story more interesting)
Practice activity
Put students into groups of three or four and give each group a situation. They should keep this secret from other groups.
1. Parents arrive home from holiday having left their teenage son in charge of the house. They soon realize hes had a big party
while they were away. Start: When they arrived home they saw...
2. A man arrived home having left his new puppy on its own for the first time. Start: When he arrived home he saw...
3. Someone arrived home to discover his/her partner has clearly found out about the affair he/shed been having with his/her
secretary. Start: When s/he arrived home s/he saw...
4. A teacher came back into the class and realized she shouldnt have left the students on their own for that long. Start: She walked
back in and saw...
The teacher needs to go to each group just to make sure they have the idea of what to do and then continue to help and monitor
throughout the activity.
Follow up
Once students have written seven or eight sentences, stop the activity and pass the papers from group to group. Each group should
read the sentences and see if they can guess what the situation was from the sentences.
Fluency-class discussion
Open the question up and find out if students have any similar stories to tell when they have arrived somewhere to find that things were
not as they should be. Help students to use the right tenses as they speak, or, so as not interrupt the flow, note down probl em areas
just relating to the past perfect and go over these at the end of the discussion.




















1. She said she lived in New York.
2. She told me he worked in a bank.
3. She said Julie didnt like going out much.
4. She said she didnt have a computer .
5. She said they never arrived on time.
6. He told me they often met friends in London at the weekend.
7. She said David didnt have any children.
8. She said she didnt go to the gym very often.
9. She said Lucy owned three flats in the city.
10. She said she never got up early on Sundays.
11. He said she met her boyfriend at the cinema every Friday night.
12. She said they didnt travel much.
13. She said John didnt live in Japan any more.
14. She told me they worked in Hong Kong.
15. She said she had to work until seven or eight pm every night.
16. She said she didnt want to go to the theatre next weekend.
17. She said they liked working in Paris.
18. She said she didnt have enough time to do everything.
19. She told me Tony hated mushrooms.
20. She said they often went on holiday in July.