Reported Speech (Using "Said")
She said that Jill met her boyfriend at the cinema every Friday night.
He said he was listening to his new CD.
"I'm listening to my new CD."
"Can you help me?"
She ...
She asked if I could help her.
We use Reported Speech to...
To either report (told) or quote (said) what another person or people said.
"My sister doesn't like mushrooms"
Kimberly to John
Kimberly told John (that) her sister didn't like mushrooms.
"We ate Chinese food and then we walked home."
He said they had eaten Chinese food and then they had walked home.
Or
He said they ate Chinese food and then they walked home.
He said he would visit his grandma that summer.
"I'll visit my grandma this summer."
"Is this the road to the station?"
She ...
She asked if that was the road to the station.
How do we change the verb tenses when we use Reported Speech?
We have to use the immediate past of the original sentence we are reporting:
Present Simple to Simple Past
Simple Past to Simple Past or Past Perfect
etc...
"It rained a lot in London last summer"
Sharon to Jim
Sharon told Jim it had rained a lot in London the previous summer.
Or
Sharon told Jim it rained a lot in London the previous summer.
"He hasn't been to school this week."
She said he hadn't been to school that week.
She said she didn't go to the gym very often.
"I don't go to the gym very often."
"Why did you go out last night?"
Mom ...
Mom asked why I had gone out the previous night.
Or
Mom asked why I went out the previous night.
How do we report questions in Reported Speech?
If if is a question using any auxiliary, for a yes or no answer, we use "ask" and "if"
If the question uses a "Wh-" then we use "ask" and the "Wh-" question.
"I forgot the homework on my bedside table"
Chris to Tiffany
Chris told Tiffany he had forgotten his homework on his bedside table.
Or
Chris told Tiffany he forgot his homework on his bedside table.
"We aren't visiting Paris during our trip."
He said that they weren't visiting Paris during their trip.
"We went to Paris at the weekend."
"Do you like horror movies?"
Tom
Tom asked if I liked horror movies.
Do we have to change the time expressions in Reported Speech?
Yes, we do.
Depending on the time expression, that's how we change it.
"I invited some friends over but I don't know how to cook!"
Warren to Estella
Warren told Estella he had invited some friends over but he didn't know how to cook.
Or
Warren told Estella he invited some friends over but he didn't know how to cook.
"I can't help your brother tomorrow"
She said she couldn't help my brother the following day.
She said she had visited Paris three times.
"I have visited Paris three times."
"Where will your brother live after graduating?"
John
John asked were would my brother live after graduating.
What's the difference between Direct and Indirect Speech?
Direct Speech refers to all verb tenses that we know.
Indirect Speech refers to how we report something.
"I will travel to Australia next year"
Scott to Amber
Scott told Amber he would travel to Australia the following year.