Reported Speech (Direct/Indirect)

What is a Reported Speech?

Simply put, a Reported Speech is reporting or telling your listeners what you heard from someone else, or what they said to you. It is a way of relaying or conveying someone else’s words or statements. This can be done either directly (verbatim, in exactly the same words) or indirectly (paraphrase).

Reporting Speech Indirectly: 2 Simple Rules

#1 Reporting verbs in Present or Future Tense – tense in reported speech is unchanged.

 

1. 1. He says, “The teacher is going to teach a new topic.”
   2. He says that the teacher is going to teach a new topic.

 

1. 1.  He will say, “The teacher is going to teach a new topic.”
   2. He will say that the teacher is going to teach a new topic.

#2 Reporting verbs in Past Tense – tense is reported speech is changed to the Corresponding Past Tense.

 

1. 1. He said, “The teacher is going to teach a new topic.”
   2. He said that the teacher was going to teach a new topic.

 

1. 1. He said, “The teacher was going to teach a new topic.”
   2. He said that the teacher would be going to teach a new topic.Or, He said that the teacher would be teaching a new topic.

Reported Speech Samples