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Reporting Verbs

Reporting verbs are used to report what someone has said or done. Common reporting verbs include say, tell, assure, advise, agree, and suggest. Reporting verbs can be followed by a that-clause to report a statement. They can also be followed by an infinitive to report a request, promise, or action. Some reporting verbs like suggest can be followed by a gerund. Using a variety of reporting verbs makes reported statements more concise and clarifies meaning.

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Eduardo Racua
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378 views5 pages

Reporting Verbs

Reporting verbs are used to report what someone has said or done. Common reporting verbs include say, tell, assure, advise, agree, and suggest. Reporting verbs can be followed by a that-clause to report a statement. They can also be followed by an infinitive to report a request, promise, or action. Some reporting verbs like suggest can be followed by a gerund. Using a variety of reporting verbs makes reported statements more concise and clarifies meaning.

Uploaded by

Eduardo Racua
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Reporting verbs

Form
subject + reporting verb + (that) + clause
She explained (that) she had been away at the time.

subject + reporting verb + direct object + (that) + clause


He assured me (that) there would be no delay

subject + reporting verb + infinitive
She refused to work on Sundays.

subject + reporting verb + direct object + infinitive


She reminded me to come to the meeting.
 

Use of reporting verbs


Reporting verbs are used in reported speech

The most common reporting verbs are say and tell. However, there are a


number of other reporting verbs that can be used instead of say or tell to
make more efficient (i.e. shorter) statements and questions.

Consider this original statement in direct speech:


'I'm sure that everything will be alright'

If we reported the statement with say, we would get :

He said that he was sure that everything would be alright

This is an acceptable statement in English, if rather long. However, the


words I'm sure that... in this sentence can have the function of assuring
someone. Therefore, we can use the reporting verb assure
He assured me that everything would be alright
This is a) shorter, and b) makes the function of the sentence absolutely
clear.
 

Common reporting verbs - say pattern


The following common reporting verbs follow the same pattern as say
i.e. verb + (that) + clause :

admit
advise*
agree
announce
claim
complain
confirm
declare
explain
insist
mention
promise*
propose
say
suggest
warn*

* also used with other patterns - see below


 

Common reporting verbs - tell pattern


The following common verbs follow the same pattern as tell
i.e. verb + direct object + (that) + clause :

advise
assure
convince
inform
notify
persuade
promise
reassure
remind
tell
warn
 

Reporting actions : requests, promises etc


These are usually reported using an infinitive structure :

reporting verb + infinitive with to

Examples:
They agreed to pay the legal costs.
He promised to come as soon as possible.

Common reporting verbs that follow this pattern are :


agree
ask
claim
demand
offer
promise
propose
refuse
threaten

Some verbs can be followed by an object and infinitive :


reporting verb + direct object + infinitive with to
Examples:
He reminded me to call Kath.
She warned them not to mention it.

Common reporting verbs that follow this pattern are :


advise
ask
beg
convince
encourage
forbid
instruct
invite
order
persuade
remind
tell
urge
warn (not to)
 

Reporting verbs followed by a gerund


Some reporting verbs are followed by a gerund, not an infinitive :

Direct speech : 'Why don't we have the party at Peter's place?'


Reported speech : She suggested having the party at Peter's place.

Common reporting verbs that can be followed by a gerund are :


admit
deny
mention
proposed
report
suggest
NB All of these reporting verbs can also use
a verb + that + clause structure (see above).

Compare :
He admitted that he had taken the money.
He admitted taking the money.

She proposed setting up a committee.


She proposed that we set up a committee.

He mentioned seeing Martin.


He mentioned that he had seen Martin

The sentences in each pair have the same meaning.

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