rules of reported speech class 9

Talk to our experts

1800-120-456-456

• Reported Speech

Reported Speech How does it Work?

Indirect speech or Reported speech is just a way of expressing your intent in questions, statements or other phrases, without essentially quoting them outrightly as the way it is done in indirect speech.

Reported Speech Rules

To understand Reported Speech Grammar and Reported Verbs, you need to first understand reported speech rules and how it works. Here are some types of reported speech:

Reported Statements

Reported speech is used when someone says a sentence, like, "I'm going to the movie tonight". Later, we want to tell a 3rd person what the first person is doing.

It works like this:

We use a reporting verb i.e 'say' or 'tell'. In the present tense, just put in 'he says.

Direct Speech: I like burgers.

Reported Speech: He says (that) he likes burgers.

You don't need to change the tense, but you do need to switch the 'person' from 'I' to 'he’. You also need to change words like 'my' and 'your'.

But, in case the reporting verb is in the past tense, then change the tenses in the reported speech itself.

Reported Questions

Reported questions to go like 

Direct Speech: Where do you reside?

We make the change to reported speech by-

It is similar to reported statements. The tense changes are exact, and we keep the question’s word. But we need to change the grammar of that normal sentence into positive. For eg:

Reported Speech: He asked me where I resided.

The direct speech question is in the present simple tense. We make a present simple question with 'do' or 'does'. For that, I need to take that away. Then change the verb to the past simple. 

Direct Speech: Where is Jolly?

Reported Speech: He asked me where Jolly was.

The direct question is the present simple of 'be'. We change the question form of the present simple of being by changing the position of the subject and the verb. So, change them back before putting the verb into the past simple.

Here Are Some More Examples

Reported Requests

The reported speech goes a long way. What if a person asks you to do something politely or make a request? It’s called a reported request. For example

Direct Speech: Close the door, please / Could you close the door please? / Would you mind closing the door, please?

All these requests mean the same, so we don't need to report every word there when we tell a 3rd person about it. 

We can simply use 'ask me + to + infinitive':

Reported Speech: They asked me to close the door.

Direct Speech: Please be punctual.

Reported Speech: They asked us to be punctual.

Reported Orders

And lastly, how about when someone doesn't ask that politely? This is known as an 'order' in English, which is when someone tells you to do something pretty much directly. This is called a reported order. For example

Direct Speech: Stand up right now!

We make this into a reported speech in the same way as that for a request. Just use 'tell' rather than 'ask':

Reported Speech: She told me to stand up right now.

Time Expressions within the Ambit of Reported Speech

Sometimes when we want to change the direct speech into reported speech, we will have to change the time expressions too. We don't necessarily always have to do that. However, It depends on when we heard the speech in indirect form and when we said the speech in reported form. 

For Example,

It's Sunday. Kiran Ma’am says "I'm leaving today".

If You tell someone on Sunday, You will say "Kiran Ma’am said she was leaving today".

If you tell someone on Tuesday, You will say "Kiran Ma’am said she was leaving yesterday".

If you tell someone on Friday, you will say "Kiran Ma’am said she was leaving on Sunday ".

If you tell someone a month later, you will say "Kiran Ma’am said she was leaving that day".

So, technically there's no easy way to convert. You need to put in real effort and have to think about it when the direct speech is said.

Here's a Table of How Some Conversions can be Made 

now can be converted to then / at that time

today can be converted to yesterday / that day / Tuesday / the 27 th of June

yesterday can be converted to the day before yesterday / the day before / Wednesday / the 5th of December

last night can be converted to the night before, Thursday night

last week can be converted to the week before / the previous week

tomorrow can be converted to today / the next day / the following day / Friday

Now Let us Check our Understanding Through this Table

This is all about reported speech. English grammar is a tricky thing given both the rules and practice. Reading these rules solely will not help you to get a strong grasp of them. You also have to practice reported speech sentences in practical life to know how and when they can be used.

FAQs on Reported Speech

1. How to convert present tenses to reported speech and give some examples.

There are certain rules to follow while converting sentences to reported speech. We need to manage tenses also.

Usually, the present sentences change to simple past tense.

Ex: I do yoga every morning

She said that she did yoga every morning.

I play cricket a lot

He said that he played cricket a lot 

Usually The present continuous tense changes to the past continuous tense. 

Ex: My friend is watching a movie.

She said that her friend was watching a movie.

We are eating dinner

They said that they were eating dinner.

Usually, the  Present Perfect Tense changes into Past Perfect Tense

Ex: I have been to the USA

She told me that she had been to the USA.

She has finished her task.

She said that she had finished her task.

Usually the Present Perfect Progressive Tense changes into Past Perfect Tense

2. How to convert present tenses to reported speech and give some examples.

Usually the Past Simple Tense changes into the Past Perfect Tense.

Ex: He arrived on Friday

He said that he had arrived on Friday.

My mom enjoyed the stay here

He said that his mom had enjoyed the stay there.

Usually, the Past Progressive Tense changes into the Perfect Continuous Tense

Ex: I was playing the cricket

He said that he had been playing cricket.

My husband was cooking

She said that her husband had been cooking.

Usually, the Past Perfect Tense doesn’t change.

Ex: She had worked hard.

She said that she had worked hard.

And also the Past Perfect Progressive Tense doesn’t change.

3. State the rules for conversion of future tenses into reported speech

There are rules to follow while converting the future tenses to reported speech.

In general, the Future Simple Tense changes into would. And also the future Progressive Tense changes into “would be”. The Future Perfect Tense changes into “would have”. The Future Perfect Progressive Tense changes into “would have been”.

Ex: I will be attending the wedding.

She said that she would be attending the wedding.

4. Give examples for conversion of  ‘can ‘, ‘can’t’ and ‘will’,’’won’t’ 

5. Give some examples for reported requests and reported orders.  

Question and Answer forum for K12 Students

Reported Speech Exercises for Class 9 CBSE With Answers

Reported speech is when we express or say things that have already been said by somebody else.

Basic  English Grammar  rules can be tricky. In this article, we’ll get you started with the basics of sentence structure, punctuation, parts of speech, and more.

We also providing Extra Questions for Class 9 English Chapter wise.

Reported Speech Exercises for Class 9 CBSE With Answers Pdf

When we say things that have been said, we use two ways of expressing it. The first is direct speech when we express what the speaker said as it is and the second is indirect speech where we express what was said in our words.

Examples: If you ask your friend Pradeep, ‘Did you take my book?’, the reply could be ‘Your book is with Jai.’ Now, we can report this statement in two ways:

• Pradeep told me, ‘Your book is with Jai’.
• Pradeep told me that my book is with Jai.

Rules For Reported Speech While changing direct speech into reported speech or vice versa, the following change:

• the reporting verb
• the pronouns
• the situations
• report using present and future tenses
• modal verbs
• word order with who, which, and what

Changes in reporting verb:

• Affirmative sentences: said, told (object), asserted, replied, assured, informed, responded, whispered, alleged, believed, assumed, though.
• Interrogative sentences: asked, inquired, wanted to know, enquired When we report.
• Imperative sentences: ordered, begged, pleaded, implored, advised, demanded.

Change of pronouns:

• Direct speech: Surabhi said, “I am reading.”
• Indirect speech: Surabhi said that she was reading.
• A first-person and second-person generally change to a third person (depending upon the object to reporting verb).

Change of tenses:

In general, the present tense becomes past tense; past and perfect tenses become the past perfect tense.

Change Of Situations: Examples:

• Surabhi said, “I read this book last week.” (direct speech)
• Surabhi said that she had read that book the previous week, (indirect speech)

If the speaker talks about a universal truth, the tense is unchanged.

In case of questions and answers: Examples:

• Surabhi asked, “Have you read this book?” (Direct Speech)
• Surabhi asked if/whether I had read that book. (Indirect Speech)
• Surabhi asked, “Where is the book?” (Direct Speech)
• Surabhi asked where the book was. (Indirect Speech)

(a) yes/no questions – use if/whether (b) wh-questions – use the wh-word

Word Order:

• Surabhi asked, “What’s the matter?”
• Surabhi asked what the matter was. (what + the matter + was)
• Surabhi asked what was the matter, (what + was + the matter)

Can Be Either:

• who/which/what + complement + be or
• who/which/what + be + complement

Reported speech using present and future tenses: Examples:

• Surabhi said, “The sun rises in the east.” (Direct Speech)
• Surabhi said that the sun rises in the east. (Indirect Speech)
• Surabhi said, “I will read this book.” (Direct Speech)
• Surabhi said that she will read that book. (Indirect Speech)

If the original speaker’s present and future are still present and future, the tense remains unchanged. In case of modal verbs:

would, should, could, might, ought to, and must remain unchanged. Example:

• Surabhi said, “I can solve this sum.” (Direct Speech)
• Surabhi said that she could solve that sum. (Indirect Speech)

In our daily lives, we use reported speech in many forms. We use reported speech to report statements, questions, requests or even commands. There are certain things we need to keep in mind when we report each of them.

• When we report statements, we have to make sure what changes need to be made in the pronoun, tense or temporal-spatial expression.
• When we transform questions into reported speech, we have to check whether or not to change the tense, pronoun as well as place and time expression.
• Upon changing, we have to ensure that the question is an indirect question.
• We also have to make use of words such as where, when, how, if, whether etc.
• In transforming requests and commands into reported speech, tenses are not relevant.
• We only have to ensure that there are changes in the pronoun and the place and time expression.

Reported Speech Exercises Solved Example for Class 9 CBSE

Diagnostic Test 18

The child called out to his mother to (a) ……………………… . The mother replied that (b) ……………………… . She asked her son if (c) ……………………… . Her son replied in the affirmative. He added that (d) ……………………… . The mother then wanted to know what (e) ……………………… . The child informed her (f) ……………………… . Answer: (a) come and look as the house across the road was on fire. (b) she couldn’t go then as she was cooking. (c) the Fire Brigade was there. (d) they had just arrived and the men were jumping down from the engine. (e) the people of the house were doing. (f) that some of them were standing in the street holding an umbrella and others were throwing valuables down from the window into it.

Class 9 English Grammar: Direct And Indirect Speech

• Study Again

1. Direct and Indirect Speech: The words spoken by a person can be reported in two ways—Direct and Indirect. When we quote the exact words spoken by a person, we call it Direct Speech. Sohan said to Mohan, “I am going to school.” The exact words spoken by Sohan are put within inverted commas. But when we give the substance of what Sohan said, it is called the Indirect Speech. You can master in English Grammar of various classes by our articles like Tenses, Clauses, Prepositions, Story writing, Unseen Passage, Notice Writing etc.

2. Reporting Clause and Reported Speech: Sohan told Mohan that he was going to school. The words which generally come before the inverted commas are called the reporting clause, i.e. Sohan said to Mohan and the verb ‘said’, is called the reporting verb. The words spoken by Sohan and put within inverted commas are called the reported speech, i.e. “I am going to school.”

3. Rules for Changing Direct Speech into Indirect Speech: In the Indirect speech, no inverted commas are used. The conjunctions that, if, whether, are generally used after the reporting verb. The first word of the reported speech begins with a capital letter. The tense of the reporting verb is never changed. The reporting verb changes according to sense: it may be told, asked, inquired,etc.

4. Rules for the Change of Pronouns: The first person pronouns (I, me, my, we, us, our) in the reported speech change according to the subject of the reporting verb. The pronouns of the second person (you, your, yourself) in the reported speech change according to the object of the reporting verb. The pronouns of the third person do not change.

For example: He said, “I like the book.” He said that he liked the book. He said to me, “Do you like the book?” He asked me if I liked the book. He said, “He likes the book.” He said that he liked the book.

5. Changes in words expressing nearness, time, auxiliaries, etc.

6. Change in Tenses: If the reporting verb is in the present or the future tense, the tense of the reported speech is not changed: Satish says, “I am flying a kite.” Satish says that he is flying a kite. Satish will say, “I want a glass of milk.” Satish will say that he wants a glass of milk.

If the reporting verb is in the past tense, then the tense of the reported speech will change as follows: If the direct speech expresses a historical fact, a universal truth or a habitual fact. tense of the direct speech will not change:

Direct : He said, “Honesty is the best policy.” Indirect : He said that honesty is the best policy. Direct : He said, “The sun rises in the east.” Indirect : He said that the sun rises in the east. Direct : Rakesh said, “I am an early riser.” Indirect : Rakesh said that he is an early riser. Direct : She said, “God is omnipresent.” Indirect : She said that God is omnipresent. Direct : The teacher said, “The First World War started in 1914.” Indirect : The teacher said that the First World War started in 1914.

7. Changing Statements into Indirect Speech: The reporting verb “said to’ is changed to ‘told, ‘replied’, ‘‘remarked’, The reporting verb is not followed by an object, it is not changed. The inverted commas are removed. The conjunction that is used to connect the reporting clause with the reported speech. The rules for the change of pronouns, tenses, etc. are followed.

Direct : Ramu said, “I saw a lion in the forest.” Indirect : Ramu said that he had seen a lion in the forest. Direct : Satish said to me, “I am very happy here.” Indirect : Satish told me that he was very happy there. Direct : He said, “I can do this work.” Indirect : He said that he could do that work. Direct : Renu said to me, “I was washing the clothes.” Indirect : Renu told me that she had been washing the clothes. Direct : She said, “I am not well.” Indirect : She said that she was not well. Direct : He said to Sita, “I have passed the test.” Indirect : He told Sita that he had passed the test Direct : I said to my friend, “He has been working very hard.” Indirect : I told my friend that he had been working very hard. Direct : My friend said to me, “I shall go to Delhi tomorrow.” Indirect : My friend told me that he would go to Delhi the next day. Direct : I said, “I agree to what he said.” Indirect : I said that I agreed to what he had said. Direct : The student said to the teacher, “I am sorry that I am late.” Indirect : The student told the teacher that he was sorry that he was late.

8. Rules for the Change of Interrogative (Questions) sentences: The reporting verb ‘say’ is changed into ask, inquire, The interrogative sentence is changed into a statement by placing the subject before the verb and the full stop is put at the end of the sentence. If the interrogative sentence has a wh-word (who, when, where, how, why, etc) the wh- word is repeated in the sentence. It serves as a conjunction. If the interrogative sentence is a yes-no answer type sentence (with auxiliary verbs aw, are, was, were, do, did, have, shall, etc), then if or ‘ whether’ is used as a conjunction. The auxiliaries do, does, did in a positive question in the reported speech are dropped. The conjunction that is not used after the reporting clause.

Direct : I said to him, “Where are you going?” Indirect : Tasked him where he was going. Direct : He said to me, “Will you go there?” Indirect : He asked me if I would go there. Direct : My friend said to Deepak, “Have you ever been to Agra?” Indirect : My friend asked Deepak if he had ever been to Agra. Direct : I said to him, “Did you enjoy the movie?” Indirect : I asked him if he had enjoyed the movie. Direct : I said to her, “Do you know him?” Indirect : I asked her if she knew him. Direct : He said to me, “Will you listen to me?” Indirect : He asked me if I would listen to him. Direct : I said to him, “When will you go there?” Indirect : I asked him when he would go there. Direct : He said to me, “How is your father?” Indirect : He asked me how my father was. Direct : I said to him, “Are you happy?” Indirect : I asked him if he was happy. Direct : He said to her, “Do you like apples?” Indirect : He asked her if she liked apples.

9. Changing Commands and Requests into Indirect Speech: In imperative sentences having commands, the reporting verb is changed into command, order, tell, allow, request,etc. The imperative mood is changed into the infinitive mood by putting to, before the verb. In case of negative sentences, the auxiliary ‘do’ is dropped and ‘to’ is placed after ‘not:

Direct : She said to me, “Open the window.” Indirect : She ordered me to open the window. Direct : The captain said to the soldiers, “Attack the enemy.” Indirect : The captain commanded the soldiers to attack the enemy. Direct : I said to him, “Leave this place at once.” Indirect : I told him to leave that place at once. Direct : The teacher said to the students, “Listen to me attentively.” Indirect : The teacher asked the students to listen to him attentively. Direct : The Principal said to the peon, “Ring the bell.” Indirect : The Principal ordered the peon to ring the bell. Direct : The master said to the servant, “Fetch me a glass of water.” Indirect : The master ordered the servant to fetch him a glass of water. Direct : I said to him, “Please bring me a glass of water.” Indirect : I requested him to bring me a glass of water. Direct : I said to my friend, “Please lend me your book.” Indirect : I requested my friend to lend me his book.

Exercise (Solved) Change the following sentences into Indirect Speech: (a) He said, “I will do it now.” Answer: He said that he would do it then. (b) He says, “Honesty is the best policy.” Answer: He says that honesty is the best policy. (c) Ramesh says, “I have written a letter.” Answer: Ramesh says that he has written a letter. (d) She said, “Mahesh will be reading a book.” Answer: She said that Mahesh would be reading a book. (v) She said, “Where is your father?” Answer: She inquired where his father was. (vi) He said to me, “Please take your book.” Answer: He requested me to take my book. (vii) The Principal said to the peon, “Let this boy go out.” Answer: The Principal ordered the peon to let that boy go out. (viii) He said to me, “May you live long!” Answer: He prayed that I might live long. (ix) She said, “Goodbye friends!” Answer: She bade goodbye to her friends. (x) The students said, “Alas! I wasted my time last year.” Answer: The students regretted that he had wasted his time the previous year.

Iswaran the Storyteller (25 Item/s)

A house is not a home (17 item/s), a slumber did my spirit seal (poem) (11 item/s), reach for the top (33 item/s), the adventures of toto (30 item/s), roman numerals chart, general knowledge & general awareness notes: awards and honours, comptia a+ core certification: sodimm features, khan academy class 10 math videos and exercises (ncert), ncert solutions for class 6 history - what books and burials tell us.

250+ Top Skills To Find & Keep A Job

500+ Pages of Distilled Wisdom

250+ easy-to-follow guides 5000+ proven tips 13 types of essential skills the world's first & only encyclopedia of self help, self improvement & career advice, welcome to fatskills, join 4 million+ people from around the world who have taken our online quizzes to test & improve their basic knowledge of what they are studying..

❤ If you liked Fatskills , you can support us by checking out Tiny Skills - 250+ Top Work & Persoal Skills Made Easy Our mission is to help improve your scores in any subject and exam using 28500+ online quizzes, practice tests & study guides.

21.5k practice tests / practice exams and online quizzes. 1.85 million+ multiple choice test questions / practice questions 700+ subjects covering all test prep, competitive exams, certification exams, entrance exams, & school / college exams., about | explore | user guide | topics | subjects | career aptitude tests | community | resources | what should we know privacy | terms |, without work one finishes nothing. - ralph waldo emerson © the simple project 2024.

    ©2024 The Simple Project .

25,000+ students realised their study abroad dream with us. Take the first step today

Meet top uk universities from the comfort of your home, here’s your new year gift, one app for all your, study abroad needs, start your journey, track your progress, grow with the community and so much more.

Verification Code

An OTP has been sent to your registered mobile no. Please verify

Thanks for your comment !

Our team will review it before it's shown to our readers.

• Reported Speech /

Reported Speech Exercises For Class 9 [PDF Available]

• Updated on  
• Feb 19, 2024

Reported speech exercises for class 9: In this vast realm of English Grammar , reported speech , commonly known as indirect speech, plays an important role in conveying information relayed from another person. However, for class 9 students, grasping the nuances of reported speech is essential for effective communication and comprehension. The blog article below aims to provide class 9 students with engaging exercises to solidify their preparation.

This Blog Includes:

Definition of reported speech, reported speech rules to know, quiz for reported speech exercises for class 9, exercise 1: change direct speech to reported speech, exercise 2: choose the correct reported speech, exercise 3: create reported speech, exercise 4: fill in the blanks with the appropriate reported speech, exercise 5: convert sentences to indirect speech, exercise 6: change into reported speech, exercise 7: convert sentences to indirect speech, exercise 8: complete the sentences to reported speech.

Oxford Learner’s Dictionary definition of reported speech is “ A report of what somebody has said that does not use their exact words.”

As per the Macmillan Dictionary, the words that you use to report what someone else has said are known are reported speech.

MUST READ! Reported Speech: Definition, Rules, Usage with Examples, Tips, Exercises for Students

Here are some common rules for changing direct speech to reported speech:

➡️ We use conjunctions like ‘if’, and ‘whether’ after the reporting verb in reported speech

➡️ The reporting verb’s tense is never altered.

➡️ The verb of reporting varies according to sense: it can be told, inquired, asked, etc.

➡️ First and foremost, we do not use inverted commas in reported speech which must be clear from the example given above.

Also Read:  Useful Idioms for IELTS Exams That Will Boost Your Score

Here’s a quiz on reported speech for students. Each question presents a direct speech statement, and you need to rewrite it in reported speech. Choose the correct option for each question.

Question 1: Direct Speech: “I love playing the guitar.”

a) He loves playing the guitar. b) I love playing the guitar. c) He loved playing the guitar. d) I loved playing the guitar.

Question 2: Direct Speech: “We are going to the park tomorrow.”

a) They are going to the park tomorrow. b) We were going to the park tomorrow. c) They were going to the park tomorrow. d) We go to the park tomorrow.

Question 3: Direct Speech: “She said, ‘I have already finished my homework.'”

a) She said that she already finished her homework. b) She said that she had already finished her homework. c) She says that she finished her homework already. d) She said that she has already finished her homework.

Question 4: Direct Speech: “The teacher exclaimed, ‘What a wonderful painting!'”

a) The teacher exclaimed that it was a wonderful painting. b) The teacher exclaimed what a wonderful painting it was. c) The teacher exclaimed that what a wonderful painting. d) The teacher exclaimed a wonderful painting.

Question 5: Direct Speech: “I will call you later.”

a) He said that he will call you later. b) He said that he would call you later. c) He says that he will call you later. d) He says that he would call you later.

Question 6: Direct Speech: “They said, ‘We haven’t received the email.'”

a) They said that they haven’t received the email. b) They said that they didn’t receive the email. c) They said that they hadn’t received the email. d) They say that they haven’t received the email.

Question 7: Direct Speech: “Tom said, ‘I can swim.'”

a) Tom said that he could swim. b) Tom says that he could swim. c) Tom said that he can swim. d) Tom says that he can swim.

• b) I love playing the guitar.
• a) They are going to the park tomorrow.
• b) She said that she had already finished her homework.
• b) The teacher exclaimed what a wonderful painting it was.
• b) He said that he would call you later.
• c) They said that they hadn’t received the email.
• a) Tom said that he could swim.

Also Read: 50 Examples of Direct and Indirect Speech Interrogative Sentences

Following are some useful reported speech exercises for class 9. Convert the following sentences from direct speech to reported speech:

Direct Speech : She said, “I am going to the store.”

Reported Speech : She said that she was going to the store.

Direct Speech : He said, “I will finish the project by Friday.”

Reported Speech : He said that he would finish the project by Friday.

Direct Speech : “We have completed our homework,” they said.

Reported Speech : They said that they had completed their homework.

Direct Speech : “They are coming to the party,” she said.

Reported Speech : She said that they were coming to the party.

Direct Speech : “I can speak French,” he said.

Reported Speech : He said that he could speak French.

Read the following sentences and choose the correct reported speech option:

Direct Speech : “I saw Sarah yesterday,” Tom said.

a) Tom said he had seen Sarah yesterday.

b) Tom said he sees Sarah yesterday.

Correct Answer: a) Tom said he had seen Sarah yesterday.

Direct Speech : “I’m going to the cinema tonight,” she said.

a) She said she was going to the cinema that night.

b) She said she is going to the cinema tonight.

Correct Answer: a) She said she was going to the cinema that night.

Direct Speech : “We will travel to Paris next week,” they said.

a) They said they will travel to Paris next week.

b) They said they would travel to Paris the following week.

Correct Answer: b) They said they would travel to Paris the following week.

Direct Speech : “I have finished my work,” he said.

a) He said he has finished his work.

b) He said he had finished his work.

Correct Answer: b) He said he had finished his work.

Direct Speech : “I’m cooking dinner right now,” she said.

a) She said she was cooking dinner right then.

b) She said she is cooking dinner right now.

Correct Answer: a) She said she was cooking dinner right then.

Must Read: Subject-Verb Agreement: Definition, 12 Rules & Examples

Form reported speech for the following direct speech sentences:

Direct Speech : “She will be here soon,” he said.

Reported Speech : He mentioned that she would be there soon.

Direct Speech : “I don’t like seafood,” she said.

Reported Speech : She expressed that she didn’t like seafood.

Direct Speech : “They were studying in the library,” he said.

Reported Speech : He mentioned that they had been studying in the library.

Direct Speech : “I am working on a new project,” she said.

Reported Speech : She mentioned that she was working on a new project.

Direct Speech : “We have completed the assignment,” they said.

Reported Speech : They confirmed that they had completed the assignment.

Also Read: Tenses Rules: Charts, Examples, Types [PDF Available]

Practise the following direct sentences to appropriate report speech. 

She said, “I have been to Paris before.”

Reported Speech : She mentioned that she had been to Paris before.

“We will come early,” they said.

Reported Speech : They said that they would come early.

“He’s writing a novel,” she said.

Reported Speech : She mentioned that he was writing a novel.

“I won’t be able to attend the meeting,” he said.

Reported Speech : He said that he wouldn’t be able to attend the meeting.

“We were watching a movie,” they said.

Reported Speech : They mentioned that they had been watching a movie.

Also Read:  Adjective: Definition, Usage, Example, Forms, Types

Change the following sentences into indirect speech:

• He said, “Honesty is the best policy.”
• He said, “The sun rises in the east.”
• Rakesh said, “I am an early riser.”
• She said, “God is omnipresent.”
•  The teacher said, “The First World War started in 1914.”

Exploring the Types of Reported Speech: A Complete Guide

Read the following sentences and convert them into reported speech.

• Rahul said, “I get up early every morning.”
• Andrew said, “I can do this work.”
• Priya said, “It is hot outside.”
• Raj said to Marie, “I will go to London tomorrow.”
• Archie said to me, “I will cook today’s dinner.”

Check Your Answers:

• Rahul said that he got up early every morning.
• Andrew said that he could do that work.
• Priya said that it was hot outside.
• Raj informed Marie that he would go to London the next day.
• Archie said to me that he would cook that day’s dinner.

Must Read: Reported Speech For Class 10: Exciting Exercises with Answers [PDF]

Convert the following direct speech sentences into indirect speech.

• Direct Speech: “I love playing basketball,” said Sarah.
• Direct Speech: “We are going to visit Paris next month,” said Tom.
• Direct Speech: “She has already finished her homework,” said Jack.
• Direct Speech: “They will arrive at 9 o’clock,” said the receptionist.
• Direct Speech: “I have never been to Japan,” said Emily.
• Sarah said that she loved playing basketball.
• Tom said that they were going to visit Paris the following month.
• Jack said that she had already finished her homework.
• The receptionist said that they would arrive at 9 o’clock.
• Emily said that she had never been to Japan.

Reported speech exercises help reinforce understanding of how to report what someone else has said. They aid in learning how to shift verb tenses, pronouns, time expressions, and other changes when reporting speech.

When converting direct speech to reported speech, pay attention to the changes in verb tenses, pronouns, time expressions, and other relevant modifications based on the context and the tense used in the original sentence.

Common changes include the shift of tenses (present to past, future to conditional), pronoun changes, changes in time expressions (today to that day, tomorrow to the next day), and changes in modal verbs (can to could, will to would, etc.).

This was all about the Reported Speech Exercises for Class 9 Students with Answers. Hope you understand the concept and where it’s used. Keep an eye on Leverage Edu for more exciting and informative blogs.

Vaishnavi Shukla

Vaishnavi has 2+ years of experience in SEO and Content Marketing. She is highly proficient in English, possessing exceptional language skills and a deep understanding of English grammar and communication. Currently working on Ed Tech, Finance, Lifestyle, and other niches. All her works are infused with love for writing!

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment.

Contact no. *

Leaving already?

8 Universities with higher ROI than IITs and IIMs

Grab this one-time opportunity to download this ebook

Connect With Us

25,000+ students realised their study abroad dream with us. take the first step today..

Resend OTP in

Need help with?

Study abroad.

UK, Canada, US & More

IELTS, GRE, GMAT & More

Scholarship, Loans & Forex

Country Preference

New Zealand

Which English test are you planning to take?

Which academic test are you planning to take.

Not Sure yet

When are you planning to take the exam?

Already booked my exam slot

Within 2 Months

Want to learn about the test

Which Degree do you wish to pursue?

When do you want to start studying abroad.

January 2024

September 2024

What is your budget to study abroad?

How would you describe this article ?

Please rate this article

We would like to hear more.

Have something on your mind?

Make your study abroad dream a reality in January 2022 with

India's Biggest Virtual University Fair

Essex Direct Admission Day

Why attend .

Don't Miss Out

Reported Speech - English Grammar for Class 9 - Class 9 - Notes, Videos & Tests

Part of the course, reported speech study material.

Videos for Reported Speech - English Grammar for Class 9 | Class 9

Notes for reported speech - english grammar for class 9, online test for reported speech - english grammar for class 9, extra questions for reported speech - english grammar for class 9, other chapters in english grammar for class 9, frequently asked questions on class 9 preparation.

• What are the questions asked in Class 9 examinations? As per the CBSE exam pattern for Class 9 2021, the type of questions asked in the examination are Very Short Answer (VSA) type, Short Answer(SA) type, and Long Answer (LA) type. There will be CBSE internal marks for Class 9 2022 of 20 marks for both the terms.

Top Courses for Class 9

Importance of Reported Speech Class 9

Reported speech notes free pdf download, important questions for reported speech, reported speech practice questions, welcome back, create your account for free.

Forgot Password

Unattempted tests, change country, practice & revise.

Reported Speech: Rules, Examples, Exceptions

👉 Quiz 1 / Quiz 2

Advanced Grammar Course

What is reported speech?

“Reported speech” is when we talk about what somebody else said – for example:

• Direct Speech: “I’ve been to London three times.”
• Reported Speech: She said she’d been to London three times.

There are a lot of tricky little details to remember, but don’t worry, I’ll explain them and we’ll see lots of examples. The lesson will have three parts – we’ll start by looking at statements in reported speech, and then we’ll learn about some exceptions to the rules, and finally we’ll cover reported questions, requests, and commands.

So much of English grammar – like this topic, reported speech – can be confusing, hard to understand, and even harder to use correctly. I can help you learn grammar easily and use it confidently inside my Advanced English Grammar Course.

In this course, I will make even the most difficult parts of English grammar clear to you – and there are lots of opportunities for you to practice!

Backshift of Verb Tenses in Reported Speech

When we use reported speech, we often change the verb tense backwards in time. This can be called “backshift.”

Here are some examples in different verb tenses:

Reported Speech (Part 1) Quiz

Exceptions to backshift in reported speech.

Now that you know some of the reported speech rules about backshift, let’s learn some exceptions.

There are two situations in which we do NOT need to change the verb tense.

No backshift needed when the situation is still true

For example, if someone says “I have three children” (direct speech) then we would say “He said he has three children” because the situation continues to be true.

If I tell you “I live in the United States” (direct speech) then you could tell someone else “She said she lives in the United States” (that’s reported speech) because it is still true.

When the situation is still true, then we don’t need to backshift the verb.

He said he HAS three children

But when the situation is NOT still true, then we DO need to backshift the verb.

Imagine your friend says, “I have a headache.”

• If you immediately go and talk to another friend, you could say, “She said she has a headache,” because the situation is still true
• If you’re talking about that conversation a month after it happened, then you would say, “She said she had a headache,” because it’s no longer true.

No backshift needed when the situation is still in the future

We also don’t need to backshift to the verb when somebody said something about the future, and the event is still in the future.

Here’s an example:

• On Monday, my friend said, “I ‘ll call you on Friday .”
• “She said she ‘ll call me on Friday”, because Friday is still in the future from now.
• It is also possible to say, “She said she ‘d (she would) call me on Friday.”
• Both of them are correct, so the backshift in this case is optional.

Let’s look at a different situation:

• On Monday, my friend said, “I ‘ll call you on Tuesday .”
• “She said she ‘d  call me on Tuesday.” I must backshift because the event is NOT still in the future.

Review: Reported Speech, Backshift, & Exceptions

Quick review:

• Normally in reported speech we backshift the verb, we put it in a verb tense that’s a little bit further in the past.
• when the situation is still true
• when the situation is still in the future

Reported Requests, Orders, and Questions

Those were the rules for reported statements, just regular sentences.

What about reported speech for questions, requests, and orders?

For reported requests, we use “asked (someone) to do something”:

• “Please make a copy of this report.” (direct speech)
• She asked me to make a copy of the report. (reported speech)

For reported orders, we use “told (someone) to do something:”

• “Go to the bank.” (direct speech)
• “He told me to go to the bank.” (reported speech)

The main verb stays in the infinitive with “to”:

• She asked me to make a copy of the report. She asked me  make  a copy of the report.
• He told me to go to the bank. He told me  go  to the bank.

For yes/no questions, we use “asked if” and “wanted to know if” in reported speech.

• “Are you coming to the party?” (direct)
• He asked if I was coming to the party. (reported)
• “Did you turn off the TV?” (direct)
• She wanted to know if I had turned off the TV.” (reported)

The main verb changes and back shifts according to the rules and exceptions we learned earlier.

Notice that we don’t use do/does/did in the reported question:

• She wanted to know did I turn off the TV.
• She wanted to know if I had turned off the TV.

For other questions that are not yes/no questions, we use asked/wanted to know (without “if”):

• “When was the company founded?” (direct)
• She asked when the company was founded.” (reported)
• “What kind of car do you drive?” (direct)
• He wanted to know what kind of car I drive. (reported)

Again, notice that we don’t use do/does/did in reported questions:

• “Where does he work?”
• She wanted to know  where does he work.
• She wanted to know where he works.

Also, in questions with the verb “to be,” the word order changes in the reported question:

• “Where were you born?” ([to be] + subject)
• He asked where I was born. (subject + [to be])
• He asked where was I born.

Reported Speech (Part 2) Quiz

Learn more about reported speech:

• Reported speech: Perfect English Grammar
• Reported speech: BJYU’s

If you want to take your English grammar to the next level, then my Advanced English Grammar Course is for you! It will help you master the details of the English language, with clear explanations of essential grammar topics, and lots of practice. I hope to see you inside!

I’ve got one last little exercise for you, and that is to write sentences using reported speech. Think about a conversation you’ve had in the past, and write about it – let’s see you put this into practice right away.

Master the details of English grammar:

More Espresso English Lessons:

About the author.

Shayna Oliveira

Shayna Oliveira is the founder of Espresso English, where you can improve your English fast - even if you don’t have much time to study. Millions of students are learning English from her clear, friendly, and practical lessons! Shayna is a CELTA-certified teacher with 10+ years of experience helping English learners become more fluent in her English courses.

• Reported Speech

Reported Speech: Whenever you are quoting someone else’s words , you use two kinds of speeches – Direct or Indirect speech . In this chapter, we will learn all about Direct and Indirect speech and how to convert one into another.

Suggested Videos

Reported speech- how does it work.

Whenever you report a speech there’s a reporting verb used like “say” or “tell”. For example:

Direct speech: I love to play football .

Reported speech: She said that she loves to play football. (Note 1 : Assume a gender if not mentioned already. Note 2: Using “that” is optional. This sentence could also have been written as “She said she loves to play football.”)

The tense doesn’t have to be changed in this case of reported speech. But of the reporting verb is in the past tense , we do change the tense of the sentence.

Browse more Topics under Transformation Sentences

• Active and Passive Voice
• Parts of Speech
• Types of Sentences

Reported speech- Play of the tenses:

Learn more about  Parts of Speech here in detail

This is a summary table that will be crystal clear to you as you read further. Just come back to this table after this section and use this as a summary table:

Some word transitions from direct to reported speech that will come in handy:

• Will becomes would
• Can becomes could
• would stays would
• should stays should
• must stays must or had to(matter of choice)
• shall becomes should

Exception : A present tense in direct speech may not become a past tense in the reported speech if it’s a fact or something generic we are talking about in the sentence. For example-

Direct speech: The sun rises from the East.

Reported speech: She said that the sun rises/rose from the East.

Reported speech- Handling questions:

What happens when the sentence we are trying to report was actually a question? That’s something we are going to deal with in this section. Reported questions- It’s quite interesting. let’s get into it:

Well the good news is that the tense change you learnt above stays the same in reported speech for questions. The only difference is that when you report a question, you no more report it in the form of a question but in the form of a statement. For example:

Direct speech: Where do you want to eat?

Reported speech: She asked me where I wanted to eat.

Notice how the question mark is gone from the reported speech. The reported speech is a statement now. Keep that in mind as you read further.

Remember the tense change? Let’s apply that to a few questions now.

Now these are questions that have wordy answers to them. What about the questions that has yes/no answers to them? In these type of questions just add “if” before asking the question. For example:

• Direct speech: Would you like to eat some cupcakes?
• Reported speech: He asked me if i would like to eat some cupcakes.
• Direct speech: Have you ever seen the Van Gogh paintings?
• Reported speech: She asked me if I had ever seen the Van Gogh paintings.
• Direct speech: Are you eating your vegetables?
• Reported speech: She asked if I was eating my vegetables.

Reported speech- Reported requests:

Well not all questions require answers. Some questions are polite requests. Remember? Could you please try to remember? And then there are request statements. Let’s see how do we convert these into reported speech.

Reported request = ask me + to + verb or requested me + to +verb

Just add this rule to your reported speech and you have what is called a reported request.

Reported speech- Reported orders:

Well, not everyone is going to be polite. Sometimes, we get orders. Now how will you report them? Unlike the request, the reporting verb isn’t ask but told or tell. Also, when in orders, sometimes subjects are omitted but while reporting we have to revive the subjects. Let’s see a few examples:

• Direct speech: Sit down!
• Reported speech: She told  me to sit down.
• Direct speech: don’t worry!
• Reported speech: She told me not to worry.

Reported speech- Time transitions:

With that, you have everything it takes to understand reported speech. you are all se to change the direct to reported speech. Go ahead and try a few examples. All the best!

Customize your course in 30 seconds

Which class are you in.

Transformation of Sentences

• Active and Passive voice

37 responses to “Active and Passive voice”

Simple but very nice explanation and helpfull too.

What is the voice change of ” I have endeavoured to understand the fundamental truths.”

ENDEAVOUR HAS BEEN MADE BY ME TO UNDERSTAND THE FUNDAMENTAL TRUTH.

The fundamental truths have been endeavoured to be understood by me

The fundamental truths to understand had been endeavoured by him

The fundamental truths have endeavoured to be understood by me

The fundamental truths has been understood endeavoured to by me

How to change the voice for the following sentence – the books will be received by tomorrow

By whom? We need a subject. If the subject was for example “The library”, then the sentence in active voice would read “The library will receive the books by tomorrow”.

You will receive the books by tomorrow.

Tomorrow you will receive the book

You will receive the books (by) tomorrow.

Someone will receive the books by tomorrow

Tomorrow will be receive the books

HE WILL RECEIVE THE BOOKS BY TOMORROW.

By tomorrow the books will be received.

By tomorrow, you will receive the books

Tomorrow received the book

Change this “take right and turn left” into passive voice

Let the right be taken amd left be turned

‘amd’ is “and” 😅

You are advised to take right and turn left

Very helpful information thanks

Very well explained all basics that can lead to gain further knowledge very easily

What is in this box change into passive

what is the voice change of,” some people think nuclear is the best, because it doesnt add to global warming “….

Brilliant stuff!! – Rishabh

A kite was made by Ravi . What is the active form of this statement???

how to change into passive this sentence “when they were shifting the patient to the I.C.U.,he died

change into passive voice this sentence “when they were shifting the patient to I.C.U.,he died .

May you tell us tense conversion in voice.

Sentences without action like…. Jim is a doctor . Is it active or passive and if any how would you decide without having a main verb ?

It is named after the name of its principal tree ‘sundari'(passive)

how can ocean be object 🙄???

They made a bag

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Download the App

Reported Speech

Perfect english grammar.

Reported Statements

Here's how it works:

We use a 'reporting verb' like 'say' or 'tell'. ( Click here for more about using 'say' and 'tell' .) If this verb is in the present tense, it's easy. We just put 'she says' and then the sentence:

• Direct speech: I like ice cream.
• Reported speech: She says (that) she likes ice cream.

We don't need to change the tense, though probably we do need to change the 'person' from 'I' to 'she', for example. We also may need to change words like 'my' and 'your'. (As I'm sure you know, often, we can choose if we want to use 'that' or not in English. I've put it in brackets () to show that it's optional. It's exactly the same if you use 'that' or if you don't use 'that'.)

But , if the reporting verb is in the past tense, then usually we change the tenses in the reported speech:

• Reported speech: She said (that) she liked ice cream.

* doesn't change.

• Direct speech: The sky is blue.
• Reported speech: She said (that) the sky is/was blue.

Click here for a mixed tense exercise about practise reported statements. Click here for a list of all the reported speech exercises.

Reported Questions

So now you have no problem with making reported speech from positive and negative sentences. But how about questions?

• Direct speech: Where do you live?
• Reported speech: She asked me where I lived.
• Direct speech: Where is Julie?
• Reported speech: She asked me where Julie was.
• Direct speech: Do you like chocolate?
• Reported speech: She asked me if I liked chocolate.

Click here to practise reported 'wh' questions. Click here to practise reported 'yes / no' questions. Reported Requests

There's more! What if someone asks you to do something (in a polite way)? For example:

• Direct speech: Close the window, please
• Or: Could you close the window please?
• Or: Would you mind closing the window please?
• Reported speech: She asked me to close the window.
• Direct speech: Please don't be late.
• Reported speech: She asked us not to be late.

Reported Orders

• Direct speech: Sit down!
• Reported speech: She told me to sit down.
• Click here for an exercise to practise reported requests and orders.
• Click here for an exercise about using 'say' and 'tell'.
• Click here for a list of all the reported speech exercises.

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

Read more about our learning method

Perfectyourenglish.com

English Grammar Lessons And Worksheets

• Class 9 worksheets
• Reported Speech Worksheet for Class 9 CBSE

by Manjusha Nambiar · Published February 1, 2024 · Updated April 6, 2024

When we report questions, the question word (who, what, which etc.) is retained in the reported speech.

Note that a reported question has the same word order as a statement. That means the subject goes before the auxiliary verb.

• The teacher said, ‘What are you doing?’
• The teacher asked what I was doing. (NOT The Teacher asked that what I was doing.) (NOT The teacher asked what was I doing.)

In order to report Yes/No questions , we use the conjunction if or whether.

• ‘Would you like a cup of coffee?’ she asked.
• She asked if / whether I would like a cup of coffee.

Reporting commands

In order to report a command, we use a reporting verb like asked, told, requested, warned, advised, begged, urged, commanded, ordered etc.

• Direct speech: ‘Help me, please,’ she cried.
• Indirect speech: She begged them to help her.

Reported speech worksheet

Sentences are given in the direct speech. Change them into the indirect / reported speech.

1. ‘Leave me alone,’ she said.

2. ‘I don’t know what I am supposed to do,’ he said.

3. ‘How are we going to overcome this difficulty?’ they said.

4. Mother said, ‘Have you applied for that job?’

5. ‘Please wait for me,’ said the girl.

6. ‘It doesn’t work,’ she said.

7. ‘I can drive any car,’ she said.

8. Sam said, ‘I haven’t heard anything from them yet.’

9. ‘Close the doors and windows before you leave,’ said the woman.

10. ‘Should I wait any longer?’ he asked.

11. ‘Whose bag is this?’ he asked.

12. ‘I will wait outside,’ he said.

13. ‘Have you brought your lunch?’ she asked.

14. ‘Take this file with you when you go to work,’ she said to me.

15. ‘Be careful when you cross the road,’ said the mother to the children.

16. ‘Please wait a minute,’ the receptionist said to me.

17. ‘I don’t want to go,’ Maya said to me.

18. ‘Why are you crying?’ mother said to me.

19. ‘Do you know Rahul’s address?’ Rohit asked me.

20. ‘Submit your work before Monday,’ the teacher said to the students.

1. She requested / told me / us to leave her alone.

2. He said that he didn’t know what he was supposed to do.

3. They wondered how they were going to overcome that difficulty.

4. Mother asked if / whether I had applied for that job.

5. The girl requested me to wait for her.

6. She said that it didn’t work.

7. She said that she could drive any car.

8. Sam said that he hadn’t heard anything from them yet.

9. The woman told us to close the doors and windows before we left.

10. He asked if / whether he should / had to wait any longer.

11. He asked whose bag that was.

12. He said that he would wait outside.

13. She asked me if / whether I had brought my lunch.

14. She told me to take that file with me when I went to work.

15. The mother warned / advised the children to be careful when they cross the road.

16. The receptionist asked / requested me to wait a minute.

17. Maya told me that she didn’t want to go.

18. Mother asked me why I was crying.

19. Rohit asked me if / whether I knew Rahul’s address.

20. The teacher told / instructed the students to submit their work before Monday.

Related posts:

• Reported Speech Worksheet For Class 10 | Reporting Questions
• Reported Speech Worksheet for Class 10 KSEEB SSLC
• Direct And Indirect Speech Worksheet For Class 10
• Reported Speech Worksheet for Class 9
• Reported Speech Worksheet for Class 10 CBSE
• Direct And Indirect Speech Worksheet For Class 8 CBSE
• Reported Speech Worksheet For Classes 9 And 10
• Reported Speech Worksheet For Class 10

Tags: reported speech worksheet for class 9

Manjusha Nambiar

Hi, I am Manjusha. This is my blog where I give English grammar lessons and worksheets.

• Next story  EssayFlow Review: The Free Undetectable AI Essay Writer Tool
• Previous story  Gerund or Infinitive Worksheet for Class 8

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Explore perfectyourenglish.com

Useful links

• English Grammar
• Business English
• A word a day
• B2 First (Cambridge English)
• Bank PO English
• CBSE Grammar Worksheets
• Class 10 worksheets
• Class 11 Worksheets
• Class 2 Worksheets
• Class 3 worksheets
• Class 4 worksheets
• Class 5 worksheets
• Class 6 worksheets
• Class 7 worksheets
• Class 8 worksheets
• Class 9 and 10 worksheets
• Grammar exercises
• Karnataka Board English
• Kerala Syllabus English
• Maharashtra Syllabus English
• Phrasal verbs
• PSC Coaching
• Reading comprehension
• Sample Letters
• Tamil Nadu Board English
• Test Preparation
• Uncategorized
• Vocabulary exercises

Never Miss an Update!

Enter your email address to receive our lessons in your inbox:

Delivered by FeedBurner

Sites in our network

NCERT Guides

Learn Maths Online | Free NCERT Maths Solutions

Recent Posts

• EssayFlow Review: The Free Undetectable AI Essay Writer Tool
• Gerund or Infinitive Worksheet for Class 8
• Finite And Non-Finite Verbs Worksheet For Class 8 With Answers
• Change Affirmative to Negative | Class 8 Grammar Worksheets

• English Grammar
• Clause structure and verb patterns

Reported speech

Level: intermediate

Reporting and summarising

When we want to report what people say, we don't usually try to report their exact words. We usually give a  summary , for example:

Direct speech (exact words) :

Mary :  Oh dear. We've been walking for hours! I'm exhausted. I don't think I can go any further. I really need to stop for a rest. Peter :  Don't worry. I'm not surprised you're tired. I'm tired too. I'll tell you what, let's see if we can find a place to sit down, and then we can stop and have our picnic.

Reported speech (summary) :

When Mary complained that she was tired out after walking so far, Peter said they could stop for a picnic.

Reporting verbs

When we want to report what people say, we use reporting verbs . Different reporting verbs have different patterns, for example:

Mary complained (that) she was tired . (verb + that clause) She asked if they could stop for a rest . (verb + if clause) Peter told her not to worry . (verb + to -infinitive) He suggested stopping and having a picnic . (verb + - ing form) 

See reporting verbs with that , wh-  and if clauses , verbs followed by the infinitive , verbs followed by the -ing form .

GapFillDragAndDrop_MTY1NTE=

GapFillTyping_MTY1NTI=

Tenses in reported speech

When reporting what people say or think in English, we need to remember that the rules for tense forms in reported speech are exactly the same as in the rest of the language.

This is a letter that Andrew wrote ten years ago:

If we wanted to report what Andrew said in his letter, we might say something like this: 

Andrew said that when he  was  22, he was an engineering student in his last month at university. He wanted  to travel abroad after he  had finished  his course at the university, but he would need to earn some money while he was abroad so he wanted  to learn to teach English as a foreign language. A friend  had recommended  a course but Andrew needed more information, so he wrote to the school and asked them when their courses started  and how much they were . He also wanted to know if there was  an examination at the end of the course.

We would naturally use past tense forms to talk about things which happened ten years ago. So, tenses in reports and summaries in English are the same as in the rest of the language.

Sometimes we can choose between a past tense form and a  present tense  form. If we're talking about the past but we mention something that's still true , we can use the present tense:

John said he'd stayed at the Shangri-la because it' s the best hotel in town. Mary said she enjoyed the film because Robert de Niro is her favourite actor. Helen said she  loves visiting New York.

or the past tense:

John said he'd stayed at the Shangri-la because it was the best hotel in town. Mary said she enjoyed the film because Robert de Niro was her favourite actor. Helen said she  loved visiting New York.

If we're talking about something that  everybody knows is true , we normally use the present tense :

Michael said he'd always wanted to climb Everest because it' s the highest mountain in the world. Mary said she loved visiting New York because it' s such an exciting city.

Hi! I found the following paragraph from a grammar site while I was studying the reported speech. Can you help me? It says; --> We can use a perfect form with have + -ed form after modal verbs, especially where the report looks back to a hypothetical event in the past: He said the noise might have been the postman delivering letters. (original statement: ‘The noise might be the postman delivering letters.’)

And my question is: How do we understand if it is a hypothetical event in the past or not? We normally don't change 'might' in reported speech. (e.g. ‘It might snow tonight,’ he warned. --> He warned that it might snow that night.) But why do we say 'He said the noise might have been the postman delivering letters.' instead of 'He said that the noise might be the postman delivering letters.’ What's the difference between these two indirect reported speeches? Could you please explain the difference? And I also found this example which is about the same rule above: --> He said he would have helped us if we’d needed a volunteer. (original statement: a) ‘I’ll help you if you need a volunteer’ or b) ‘I’d help you if you needed a volunteer.’) Can you also explain why we report this sentence like that. How can we both change a) and b) into the same indirect reported speech? Thank you very much!

• Log in or register to post comments

Hello Melis_06,

1. He said the noise might have been the postman delivering letters. 2. He said that the noise might be the postman delivering letters.

In sentence 1 it is clear that the noise has ended; it is a noise that 'he' could hear but it is not a noise that you can hear now. In sentence 2 the noise could have ended or it could be a noise that you can still hear now. For example, if the noise is one which is constant, such as a noise that comes from your car engine that you are still trying to identify, then you would use sentence 2. In other words, sentence 2 allows for a wider range of time possibilities - both past (ended) and present (still current).

Your second question is similar:

He said he would have helped us if we needed a volunteer - you no longer need a volunteer

He said he would help us if we needed a volunteer - this could still be relevant; you may still need a volunteer.

The LearnEnglish Team

Hello my friend : what are you doing now? me : I'm eating an apple now and My friend repeated his question now

my question

Can I repeat the sentence in the past ( I was eating an apple) and mean( I'm eating an apple now) ?

You can but it is unusual. If you say  I was eating an apple  (past continuous), it means that it was in the past. You already finished eating the apple and you are not eating it now. But if your friend asked you just a moment ago, I guess you are still eating the apple when she/he asks the second question, so I would say  I'm eating an apple  (because you are still doing it).

Alternatively, you can use a past tense reporting verb e.g. I said I was eating an apple  (referring to the time of the first question), or  I said I 'm eating an apple  (to show that you are still eating it now, at the moment of speaking).

LearnEnglish team

Am I correct then? When someone wants us to repeat the sentence we have just said a moment ago we say 'I said I am doing...' if we are still doing that action. But if we are done with that action, then we say 'I said I was doing...' Did I get it right? Thanks!

Hello Meldo,

Yes, that's correct. Well done!

Hi. I wish to enquire if the verb tense used after a conjunction also changes in complex sentences as per tense transition rules, especially if it is already in simple past tense. In order to explain, could you please solve the following for me: 1. It has been quite a while since I last saw you. 2. Nevertheless, she has been quite desensitized to such perverse actions to the extent that it seldom ever seems obnoxious to her. 3. Let me keep this in my cupboard lest I misplace this. 4. I had arrived at the station before you even left your house. 5. I met my grandfather before he died.

Hi Aamna bluemoon,

The verb may or may not be backshifted, depending on whether the original speaker's point of view and the reporter's point of view are the same or not. For example:

• She said it had been quite a while since she last saw me . (it seems relatively recent, for both the original speaker and the reporter)
• She said it had been quite a while since she had last seen us . (a lot of time has passed between speaking and reporting this, or the situation has changed a lot since then e.g. they have met frequently since then)
• She said she had met her grandfather before he died . (seems quite recent)
• She said she had met her grandfather before he'd died . (a lot of time has passed between speaking and reporting this)

I hope that helps.

Hi, can you help me, please? How could I report this famous quotation: 'There's no such things as good news in America'.

Hi bri.q630,

First of all, the sentence is not grammatically correct. The phrase is 'no such thing' (singular), not 'things'.

How you report it depends. Using 'said' as the reporting verb we have two possibilities:

1. They said (that) there's no such thing as good news in America. 2. They said (that) there was no such thing as good news in America.

Sentence 2 tells that only about the time when 'they' said it. It does not tell us if it is still true or not.

Sentence 1 tells us that what 'they' said is still relevant today. In other words there was no good news (in their opinion) when they spoke, and there is still no good news now.

Thank you Peter,

All things are getting clear to me.

So, you mean, I can use both sentences depending on what I want to indicate, can't I?

then the possible indications are bellow, are those correct?

1-a I remembered the World War 2 ended in 1945. (This would be indicated the statement is still ture.)

1-b I remembered the World War 2 had ended in 1945. (This would be indicated I might missunderstand.)

2-a I felt time is money. (This would be indicated the statement is still ture.)

2-b I felf time was money. (This would be indicated I might not feel any more.)

3-a I knew the sun rises in the east. (This would be indicated the statement is still true.)

3-b I knew the sun rase in the east. (This would be indicated I might misunderstand or forget.)

4-a I guessed* that Darth Vader is Luke's father. (This would be indicated I still believe he is.*sorry for the typo)

4-2 I guessed that Darth Vader was Luke's father. (This would be indicated I might know he is not.)

Thank you in advance.

Hello again Nobori,

1-a I remembered the World War 2 ended in 1945. (This would be indicated the statement is still ture.) 1-b I remembered the World War 2 had ended in 1945. (This would be indicated I might missunderstand.)

Both forms are possible here. The 'ending' is a moment in the past; after this there is no war. By the way, we treat 'World War 2' as a name so there is no article before it.

2-a I felt time is money. (This would be indicated the statement is still ture.) 2-b I felf time was money. (This would be indicated I might not feel any more.)

That's correct. Remember that backshifting the verb does not mean something is no longer true; it simply does not tell us anything about the present. Here, it tells the reader how you felt at a given moment in time; you may 

3-a I knew the sun rises in the east. (This would be indicated the statement is still true.) 3-b I knew the sun rase in the east. (This would be indicated I might misunderstand or forget.)

That's also correct. Again, remember that backshifting the verb does not mean something is no longer true; it simply does not tell us anything about the present.

4-a I guessed* that Darth Vader is Luke's father. (This would be indicated I still believe he is.*sorry for the typo) 4-2 I guessed that Darth Vader was Luke's father. (This would be indicated I might know he is not.)

Again, correct. In the second example it might still be true that he is Luke's father, or it might have turned out to be not true. The sentence does not tell us.

Hi Peter, Thank you for your thoughtful answer. Allthing is now very clear to me. Best

Hi, I am translating a fiction novel into English and need your help regarding the reporting speech as for few things I am not getting any clear understanding over the internet. As you know in fiction, we need to write in non-ordinary way to create unique impressions of the word and academic writing is different than speaking. Will be grateful if you could give your insight below, especially considering in the context of fiction/academic writing.

1) Let’s say If someone is giving a speech or presentation, I want to mix their speech, indirect-direct and past tense- present tense. Below are three examples:

-He said, their company makes excellent profit every year OR their company made excellent profit every year ( can both be correct? As the sentence)

- Roger had given his speech yesterday. He said, their company makes excellent profit every year and your company will sustain for next hundred years.(Can YOUR be used in the sentence)

- Roger said people wants to feel important OR Roger said people wanted to feel important (which will be correct as this is a trait which is true in past and present)

2) He thought why he is talking to her OR He thought why he was talking to her (are both write? As usually I see in novels the second example with WAS)

3) Gia was sitting with Jake and she told him she had met with her last year. Her mother had taken her to the dinner. Her mother had told her about her future plans. Her mother also had paid the bill for the dinner. (Do I need to use every time past perfect in this example though it doesn’t feel natural? As a rule of thumb I think past perfect needs to be used when we talk about another past event in the past )

Hello Alamgir3,

We're happy to help with a few specific grammar questions, but I'm afraid we can't help you with your translation -- I'd suggest you find an editor for that.

1) In the second clause, you can use present or past. We often use the present when it's still true now, but the past is not wrong. FYI we don't normally use a comma after 'said' in reported speech.

2) 'Why was he talking to her?' he thought.

3) This is really more of a question of style than grammar. Here I would suggest doing something like combining the four sentences into two and then leaving out 'had' in the second verb in each sentence. Even if it isn't written, it's understood to be past perfect.

All the best, Kirk LearnEnglish team

Hello teachers, I'm sorry, I could not find where to new post. Could you tell me about the back-sifting of thoughts bellow? Which forms are correct?

1-a I remembered the World War 2 ended in 1945. 1-b I remembered the World War 2 had ended in 1945.

2-a I felt time is money. 2-b I felf time was money.

3-a I knew the sun rises in the east. 3-b I knew the sun rase in the east.

4-a I guess that Darth Vader is Luke's father. 4-2 I guessed that Darth Vader was Luke's father.

Do those questions have the same conclusion as indirect speech, such as say and tell?

Hello Nobori,

The verb form remains the same when we want to make it clear that the situation described by the verb is still true, and this works in the same way as indirect speech. For example:

She said she loves me. [she loved me then and she loves me still] She said she loved me. [she loved me then; no information on how she feels now]

Other than this rule, the choice is really contextual and stylistic (up to the speaker). Sometimes a choice implies something. For example, the saying 'time is money' is a general statement, so if you choose to backshift here the listener will know it is an intentional choice and suspect that something has changed (you no longer believe it).

Hi teachers, I've read almost the section of comments below and my summarize is the present tense only can be used if the statement is still true now and past simple only tells the statement was true in the past and doesn't tell the statement is true or not now. Just to make sure, I wanna ask, If I'm not sure whether the statement is still true or not now, can I choose backshift instead (this is still apply to past tense become past perfect)? Thank you

Hello rahmanagustiansyah,

It sounds to me as if you've got the right general idea. Could you please give a couple of example sentences that illustrate your question?

Thanks in advance, Kirk The LearnEnglish Team

For example, Steve said "Anna hates you." Then I wanna tell about that to my friend, but I'm not sure whether Anna still hates me or not now. What should I choose between these two options. Answer 1:Steve said Anna hates me or Answer 2 : Steve said Anna hated me. Thank you

Hi rahmanagustiansyah,

In that case, I would choose answer 2. I might even add "... but I don't know if she still does" to the sentence to clarify, if that is the key point you want to communicate.

Jonathan The LearnEnglish Team

Hello Natasa Tanasa,

Both sentences are grammatically possible.

The first sentence is only possible if when the person asks the original question the woman is no longer there (she has already gone). The second sentence can be used in this situation too, or in a situation in which the woman was still there when the original question was asked. As the past tense is used in the original question ( Who was... ), both sentences are possible.

Hello Ahmed Imam,

When the situation is still true at the time of reporting, we can leave the verb form unchanged. For example:

1. She told me she loved me.

2. She told me she loves me.

In sentence 1 we know she loved me when she told me but we don't know whether or not she loves me now. In sentence 2, we know she loved me when she told me and we know that she loves me now.

In your example, if the supermarket is still in the same place then we can use either form. If the supermarket has been closed down or moved to another location then we need to use was .

As for which is 'safer', you'll need to make your own mind up! Keeping the verb in the same form carries more specific information and that may be appropriate or even important.

Hello eugelatina87,

I'll give you a hint: a verb is missing from the question.

Does that help you complete it?

All the best,

The first two sentences are possible and they can both mean that he is still Mary's boyfriend now. The first one makes this more clear, but the second one doesn't only refer to the past.

Hello magnuslin

Regarding your first question, the most common way of saying it is the second one. In some very specific situation, perhaps the first option would be possible.

This also answers your second question. It is not necessary to always backshift using the tenses you mention.

As for your third question, no, it is not necessary. In fact, it is probably more common to use the past simple in the reported speech as well. 

All the best

Hello manu,

Both forms are possible. If you use  had been  then we understand that he was there earlier but not when he said it - in other words, when he said it he had already left. If you use was then he may have left at the time of speaking, or he may have still been there.

Hello _princess_

I would recommend using answer a) because this is the general pattern used in reported speech. Sometimes the verb in the reported clause can be in the present tense when we are speaking about a situation that is still true, but the reported verb in the past tense can also have the same meaning. Since here the time referred to could be either past or present, I'd recommend using the past form.

Hello mwright,

This is an example of an indirect question. An indirect question reports a question, but is not a question itself, which is why we do not use a question mark at the end. Since it is not a question, we use the normal word order without inversion or auxiliary verbs. For example:

Indicative: He lives in Rome. Interrogative: Does he live in Rome? (Where does he live?) Reported: She asked if he lives in Rome. (She asked where he lives.)  

Hello ahlinthit

There are different styles of punctuating direct speech -- in other words, you might find other sources that will disagree with me -- but what I would use here is something different: "The boss is dead!" said the doctor.

Hope this helps.

Best wishes

Hello Timmosky,

The form that comes after the auxiliary verb 'do' (or 'does' or 'did') is not the plural present simple verb, but rather the bare infinitive (also known as 'base form' or 'first form') of the verb. Does that make sense?

All the best, Kirk The LearnEnglish Team

Hello sky-high,

This is very formal language. The phrase 'to the effect that' means 'with the meaning that'. In this context it can be understood to mean 'with the result that'.

Best wishes,

The difference is quite logical. If we use 'said' then we are talking about a claim by Peter in the past which he may or may not still maintain. If we use 'says' then we are talking about an opinion expressed by Peter which he still holds.

The reported information (whether or not Rooney is in good shape) can refer to only the past or to the present as well and the statement (what Peter thinks) can separately refer to only the past or the present as well. Of course, all of this is from the point of view of the person reporting Peter's opinion, and whether or not they think that Peter still thinks now what he thought then.

Both are possible. If you use the present tense then it is clear that the statement is still true (i.e. the business was not growing when Mary spoke and is still not growing now). If you use the past tense then no information is given regarding the present (i.e. the business was growing when Mary spoke and may or may not be growing now).

Hello aseel aftab,

It should be 'if they had'. This is not from this page, is it? I don't see it anywhere here, but if I've missed it please let me know.

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.  

CBSE Class 9 English Grammar - Direct And Indirect Speech

January 17, 2023 by Bhagya

CBSE Class 9 English Grammar – Direct And Indirect Speech

Formulae Handbook for Class 9 Maths and Science Educational Loans in India

1. Direct and Indirect Speech: The words spoken by a person can be reported in two ways— Direct and Indirect. When we quote the exact words spoken by a person, we call it Direct Speech.

• Sohan said to Mohan, “I am going to school.”

The exact words spoken by Sohan are put within inverted commas. But when we give the substance of what Sohan said, it is called the Indirect Speech.

You can master in  English Grammar  of various classes by our articles like Tenses, Clauses, Prepositions, Story writing, Unseen Passage, Notice Writing etc.

2. Reporting Clause and Reported Speech: Sohan told Mohan that he was going to school. The words which generally come before the inverted commas are called the reporting clause, i.e. Sohan said to Mohan and the verb ‘said’, is called the reporting verb. The words spoken by Sohan and put within inverted commas are called the reported speech, i.e. “I am going to school.”

More Resources for CBSE Class 9

• NCERT Solutions
• NCERT Solutions Class 9 Maths
• NCERT Solutions Class 9 Science
• NCERT Solutions Class 9 Social Science
• NCERT Solutions Class 9 English
• NCERT Solutions Class 9 Hindi
• NCERT Solutions Class 9 Sanskrit
• NCERT Solutions Class 9 IT
• RD Sharma Class 9 Solutions

3. Rules for Changing Direct Speech into Indirect Speech:

• In the Indirect speech, no inverted commas are used.
• The conjunctions that, if, whether , are generally used after the reporting verb.
• The first word of the reported speech begins with a capital letter.
• The tense of the reporting verb is never changed.
• The reporting verb changes according to sense: it may be told, asked, inquired ,etc.

4. Rules for the Change of Pronouns:

• The first person pronouns (I, me, my, we, us, our) in the reported speech change according to the subject of the reporting verb.
• The pronouns of the second person (you, your, yourself) in the reported speech change according to the object of the reporting verb.
• The pronouns of the third person do not change.

For example :

• He said, “I like the book.” He said that he liked the book.
• He said to me, “Do you like the book?” He asked me if I liked the book.
• He said, “He likes the book.” He said that he liked the book.

• If the reporting verb is in the present or the future tense, the tense of the reported speech is not changed:
• Satish says, “I am flying a kite.”
• Satish says that he is flying a kite.
• Satish will say, “I want a glass of milk.”
• Satish will say that he wants a glass of milk.

• If the direct speech expresses a historical fact, a universal truth or a habitual fact. tense of the direct speech will not change: Direct     : He said, “Honesty is the best policy.” Indirect : He said that honesty is the best policy. Direct     : He said, “The sun rises in the east.” Indirect : He said that the sun rises in the east. Direct     : Rakesh said, “I am an early riser.” Indirect : Rakesh said that he is an early riser. Direct     : She said, “God is omnipresent.” Indirect : She said that God is omnipresent. Direct     : The teacher said, “The First World War started in 1914.” Indirect : The teacher said that the First World War started in 1914.

7. Changing Statements into Indirect Speech:

• The reporting verb “said to’ is changed to ‘told, ‘replied’, ‘‘remarked’,
• The reporting verb is not followed by an object, it is not changed.
• The inverted commas are removed. The conjunction that is used to connect the reporting clause with the reported speech.
• The rules for the change of pronouns, tenses, etc. are followed. Direct     : Ramu said, “I saw a lion in the forest.” Indirect : Ramu said that he had seen a lion in the forest. Direct     : Satish said to me, “I am very happy here.” Indirect : Satish told me that he was very happy there. Direct     : He said, “I can do this work.” Indirect : He said that he could do that work. Direct     : Renu said to me, “I was washing the clothes.” Indirect : Renu told me that she had been washing the clothes. Direct     : She said, “I am not well.” Indirect : She said that she was not well. Direct     : He said to Sita, “I have passed the test.” Indirect : He told Sita that he had passed the test Direct     : I said to my friend, “He has been working very hard.” Indirect : I told my friend that he had been working very hard. Direct     : My friend said to me, “I shall go to Delhi tomorrow.” Indirect : My friend told me that he would go to Delhi the next day. Direct     : I said, “I agree to what he said.” Indirect : I said that I agreed to what he had said. Direct     : The student said to the teacher, “I am sorry that I am late.” Indirect : The student told the teacher that he was sorry that he was late.

8. Rules for the Change of Interrogative (Questions) sentences:

• The reporting verb ‘say’ is changed into ask, inquire,
• The interrogative sentence is changed into a statement by placing the subject before the verb and the full stop is put at the end of the sentence.
• If the interrogative sentence has a wh-word (who, when, where, how, why, etc) the wh- word is repeated in the sentence. It serves as a conjunction.
• If the interrogative sentence is a yes-no answer type sentence (with auxiliary verbs aw, are, was, were, do, did, have, shall, etc), then if or ‘ whether’ is used as a conjunction.
• The auxiliaries do, does, did in a positive question in the reported speech are dropped.
• The conjunction that is not used after the reporting clause. Direct     : I said to him, “Where are you going?” Indirect : Tasked him where he was going. Direct     : He said to me, “Will you go there?” Indirect : He asked me if I would go there. Direct     : My friend said to Deepak, “Have you ever been to Agra?” Indirect : My friend asked Deepak if he had ever been to Agra. Direct     : I said to him, “Did you enjoy the movie?” Indirect : I asked him if he had enjoyed the movie. Direct     : I said to her, “Do you know him?” Indirect : I asked her if she knew him. Direct     : He said to me, “Will you listen to me?” Indirect : He asked me if I would listen to him. Direct     : I said to him, “When will you go there?” Indirect : I asked him when he would go there. Direct     : He said to me, “How is your father?” Indirect : He asked me how my father was. Direct     : I said to him, “Are you happy?” Indirect : I asked him if he was happy. Direct     : He said to her, “Do you like apples?” Indirect : He asked her if she liked apples.

9. Changing Commands and Requests into Indirect Speech:

• In imperative sentences having commands, the reporting verb is changed into command, order, tell, allow, request, etc.
• The imperative mood is changed into the infinitive mood by putting to, before the verb. In case of negative sentences, the auxiliary ‘do’ is dropped and ‘to’ is placed after ‘not: Direct     : She said to me, “Open the window.” Indirect : She ordered me to open the window. Direct     : The captain said to the soldiers, “Attack the enemy.” Indirect : The captain commanded the soldiers to attack the enemy. Direct     : I said to him, “Leave this place at once.” Indirect : I told him to leave that place at once. Direct     : The teacher said to the students, “Listen to me attentively.” Indirect : The teacher asked the students to listen to him attentively. Direct     : The Principal said to the peon, “Ring the bell.” Indirect : The Principal ordered the peon to ring the bell. Direct     : The master said to the servant, “Fetch me a glass of water.” Indirect : The master ordered the servant to fetch him a glass of water. Direct     : I said to him, “Please bring me a glass of water.” Indirect : I requested him to bring me a glass of water. Direct     : I said to my friend, “Please lend me your book.” Indirect : I requested my friend to lend me his book.

Exercise (Solved)

Change the following sentences into Indirect Speech: (i) He said, “I will do it now.” Answer: He said that he would do it then.

(ii) He says, “Honesty is the best policy.” Answer: He says that honesty is the best policy.

(iii) Ramesh says, “I have written a letter.” Answer: Ramesh says that he has written a letter.

(iv) She said, “Mahesh will be reading a book.” Answer: She said that Mahesh would be reading a book.

(v) She said, “Where is your father?” Answer: She inquired where his father was.

(vi) He said to me, “Please take your book.” Answer: He requested me to take my book.

(vii) The Principal said to the peon, “Let this boy go out.” Answer: The Principal ordered the peon to let that boy go out.

(viii) He said to me, “May you live long!” Answer: He prayed that I might live long.

(ix) She said, “Goodbye friends!” Answer: She bade goodbye to her friends.

(x) The students said, “Alas! I wasted my time last year.” Answer: The students regretted that he had wasted his time the previous year.

CBSE Class 9 English Grammar – Direct And Indirect Speech

Table of Contents

Fill Out the Form for Expert Academic Guidance!

Please indicate your interest Live Classes Books Test Series Self Learning

Verify OTP Code (required)

I agree to the terms and conditions and privacy policy .

Fill complete details

Target Exam ---

1. Direct and Indirect Speech: The words spoken by a person can be reported in two ways— Direct and Indirect. When we quote the exact words spoken by a person, we call it Direct Speech.

• Sohan said to Mohan, “I am going to school.”

The exact words spoken by Sohan are put within inverted commas. But when we give the substance of what Sohan said, it is called the Indirect Speech.

Notice Writing etc.

2. Reporting Clause and Reported Speech: Sohan told Mohan that he was going to school. The words which generally come before the inverted commas are called the reporting clause, i.e. Sohan said to Mohan and the verb ‘said’, is called the reporting verb. The words spoken by Sohan and put within inverted commas are called the reported speech, i.e. “I am going to school.”

3. Rules for Changing Direct Speech into Indirect Speech:

• In the Indirect speech, no inverted commas are used.
• The conjunctions that, if, whether , are generally used after the reporting verb.
• The first word of the reported speech begins with a capital letter.
• The tense of the reporting verb is never changed.
• The reporting verb changes according to sense: it may be told, asked, inquired ,etc.

4. Rules for the Change of Pronouns:

• The first person pronouns (I, me, my, we, us, our) in the reported speech change according to the subject of the reporting verb.
• The pronouns of the second person (you, your, yourself) in the reported speech change according to the object of the reporting verb.
• The pronouns of the third person do not change.

For example :

• He said, “I like the book.” He said that he liked the book.
• He said to me, “Do you like the book?” He asked me if I liked the book.
• He said, “He likes the book.” He said that he liked the book.

• If the reporting verb is in the present or the future tense, the tense of the reported speech is not changed:
• Satish says, “I am flying a kite.”
• Satish says that he is flying a kite.
• Satish will say, “I want a glass of milk.”
• Satish will say that he wants a glass of milk.

• If the direct speech expresses a historical fact, a universal truth or a habitual fact. tense of the direct speech will not change: Direct : He said, “Honesty is the best policy.” Indirect : He said that honesty is the best policy. Direct : He said, “The sun rises in the east.” Indirect : He said that the sun rises in the east. Direct : Rakesh said, “I am an early riser.” Indirect : Rakesh said that he is an early riser. Direct : She said, “God is omnipresent.” Indirect : She said that God is omnipresent. Direct : The teacher said, “The First World War started in 1914.” Indirect : The teacher said that the First World War started in 1914.

7. Changing Statements into Indirect Speech:

• The reporting verb “said to’ is changed to ‘told, ‘replied’, ‘‘remarked’,
• The reporting verb is not followed by an object, it is not changed.
• The inverted commas are removed. The conjunction that is used to connect the reporting clause with the reported speech.
• The rules for the change of pronouns, tenses, etc. are followed. Direct : Ramu said, “I saw a lion in the forest.” Indirect : Ramu said that he had seen a lion in the forest. Direct : Satish said to me, “I am very happy here.” Indirect : Satish told me that he was very happy there. Direct : He said, “I can do this work.” Indirect : He said that he could do that work. Direct : Renu said to me, “I was washing the clothes.” Indirect : Renu told me that she had been washing the clothes. Direct : She said, “I am not well.” Indirect : She said that she was not well. Direct : He said to Sita, “I have passed the test.” Indirect : He told Sita that he had passed the test Direct : I said to my friend, “He has been working very hard.” Indirect : I told my friend that he had been working very hard. Direct : My friend said to me, “I shall go to Delhi tomorrow.” Indirect : My friend told me that he would go to Delhi the next day. Direct : I said, “I agree to what he said.” Indirect : I said that I agreed to what he had said. Direct : The student said to the teacher, “I am sorry that I am late.” Indirect : The student told the teacher that he was sorry that he was late.

8. Rules for the Change of Interrogative (Questions) sentences:

• The reporting verb ‘say’ is changed into ask, inquire,
• The interrogative sentence is changed into a statement by placing the subject before the verb and the full stop is put at the end of the sentence.
• If the interrogative sentence has a wh-word (who, when, where, how, why, etc) the wh- word is repeated in the sentence. It serves as a conjunction.
• If the interrogative sentence is a yes-no answer type sentence (with auxiliary verbs aw, are, was, were, do, did, have, shall, etc), then if or ‘ whether’ is used as a conjunction.
• The auxiliaries do, does, did in a positive question in the reported speech are dropped.
• The conjunction that is not used after the reporting clause. Direct : I said to him, “Where are you going?” Indirect : Tasked him where he was going. Direct : He said to me, “Will you go there?” Indirect : He asked me if I would go there. Direct : My friend said to Deepak, “Have you ever been to Agra?” Indirect : My friend asked Deepak if he had ever been to Agra. Direct : I said to him, “Did you enjoy the movie?” Indirect : I asked him if he had enjoyed the movie. Direct : I said to her, “Do you know him?” Indirect : I asked her if she knew him. Direct : He said to me, “Will you listen to me?” Indirect : He asked me if I would listen to him. Direct : I said to him, “When will you go there?” Indirect : I asked him when he would go there. Direct : He said to me, “How is your father?” Indirect : He asked me how my father was. Direct : I said to him, “Are you happy?” Indirect : I asked him if he was happy. Direct : He said to her, “Do you like apples?” Indirect : He asked her if she liked apples.

9. Changing Commands and Requests into Indirect Speech:

• In imperative sentences having commands, the reporting verb is changed into command, order, tell, allow, request, etc.
• The imperative mood is changed into the infinitive mood by putting to, before the verb. In case of negative sentences, the auxiliary ‘do’ is dropped and ‘to’ is placed after ‘not: Direct : She said to me, “Open the window.” Indirect : She ordered me to open the window. Direct : The captain said to the soldiers, “Attack the enemy.” Indirect : The captain commanded the soldiers to attack the enemy. Direct : I said to him, “Leave this place at once.” Indirect : I told him to leave that place at once. Direct : The teacher said to the students, “Listen to me attentively.” Indirect : The teacher asked the students to listen to him attentively. Direct : The Principal said to the peon, “Ring the bell.” Indirect : The Principal ordered the peon to ring the bell. Direct : The master said to the servant, “Fetch me a glass of water.” Indirect : The master ordered the servant to fetch him a glass of water. Direct : I said to him, “Please bring me a glass of water.” Indirect : I requested him to bring me a glass of water. Direct : I said to my friend, “Please lend me your book.” Indirect : I requested my friend to lend me his book.

Exercise (Solved)

Change the following sentences into Indirect Speech: (i) He said, “I will do it now.” Answer: He said that he would do it then.

(ii) He says, “Honesty is the best policy.” Answer: He says that honesty is the best policy.

(iii) Ramesh says, “I have written a letter.” Answer: Ramesh says that he has written a letter.

(iv) She said, “Mahesh will be reading a book.” Answer: She said that Mahesh would be reading a book.

(v) She said, “Where is your father?” Answer: She inquired where his father was.

(vi) He said to me, “Please take your book.” Answer: He requested me to take my book.

(vii) The Principal said to the peon, “Let this boy go out.” Answer: The Principal ordered the peon to let that boy go out.

(viii) He said to me, “May you live long!” Answer: He prayed that I might live long.

(ix) She said, “Goodbye friends!” Answer: She bade goodbye to her friends.

(x) The students said, “Alas! I wasted my time last year.” Answer: The students regretted that he had wasted his time the previous year.

Related content

Talk to our academic expert!

Language --- English Hindi Marathi Tamil Telugu Malayalam

Get access to free Mock Test and Master Class

Register to Get Free Mock Test and Study Material

Offer Ends in 5:00