Exercise on Reported Speech

Mixed Exercise 1

Complete the sentences in reported speech. Note whether the sentence is a

request, a statement or a question.

1. He said, "I like this song."

→ He said

2. "Where is your sister?" she asked me.

→ She asked me

3.  
4. "I don't speak Italian," she said.
→ She said 
5. "Say hello to Jim," they said.
→ They asked me 
6. "The film began at seven o'clock," he said.
→ He said 
7. "Don't play on the grass, boys," she said.
→ She told the boys 
8. "Where have you spent your money?" she asked him.
→ She asked him 
9. "I never make mistakes," he said.
→ He said 
10. "Does she know Robert?" he wanted to know.
→ He wanted to know 
11. "Don't try this at home," the stuntman told the audience.
→ The stuntman advised the audience 

Exercise on Reported Speech

Mixed Exercise 2
 Complete the sentences in reported speech. Note whether the sentence is a
request, a statement or a question and whether you have to change the tenses
or not.

1. "I was very tired," she said.

→ She said 
2. "Be careful, Ben," she said.
→ She told Ben 
3. "I will get myself a drink," she says.
→ She says 
4. "Why haven't you phoned me?" he asked me.
→ He wondered 
5. "I cannot drive them home," he said.
→ He said 
6. "Peter, do you prefer tea or coffee?" she says.
→ She asks Peter 
7. "Where did you spend your holidays last year?" she asked me.
→ She asked me 
8. He said, "Don't go too far."
→ He advised her 
9. "Have you been shopping?" he asked us.
→ He wanted to know 
10. "Don't make so much noise," he says.
→ He asks us 

Exercise on Reported Speech

Reported Speech without backshift – Change of Pronouns

Helen is in front of the class holding a presentation on London. As Helen is

rather shy, she speaks with a very low voice. Your classmate Gareth does not
understand her, so you have to repeat every sentence to him.

Complete the sentences in reported speech (no backshift). Note the change of
pronouns and verbs.

 Helen: I want to tell you something about my holiday in London.

 Gareth: What does she say?
 You: She says that 
 Helen: I went to London in July.
 Gareth: What does she say?

 You: She says that 

 Helen: My parents went with me.
 Gareth: What does she say?

 You: She says that 

 Helen: We spent three days in London.
 Gareth: What does she say?

 You: She says that 

 Helen: London is a multicultural place.
 Gareth: What does she say?

 You: She says that 

 Helen: I saw people of all colours.
 Gareth: What does she say?

 You: She says that 

 Helen: Me and my parents visited the Tower.
 Gareth: What does she say?

 You: She says that 

 Helen: One evening we went to see a musical.
 Gareth: What does she say?

 You: She says that 

 Helen: I love London.
 Gareth: What does she say?

 You: She says that 

 Helen: The people are so nice there.
 Gareth: What does she say?
 You: She says that 

Exercise on Reported Speech

backshift
 Rewrite the sentences in reported speech. Change pronouns and time
expressions where necessary.

1. She said, "I am reading."

she w as rea
→ She said that 
2. They said, "We are busy."
→ They said that 
3. He said, "I know a better restaurant."
→ He said that 
4. She said, "I woke up early."
→ She said that 
5. He said, "I will ring her."
→ He said that 
6. They said, "We have just arrived."
→ They said that 
7. He said, "I will clean the car."
→ He said that 
8. She said, "I did not say that."
→ She said that 
9. She said, "I don't know where my shoes are."
→ She said that 
10. He said: "I won't tell anyone."
→ He said that 

Definition

Reported speech tells what a person said or thought or told another person.

Example

Dave speaks to Bob. Dave says, "I am hungry."

Later, Bob speaks to Mary about Dave. Bob says, "Dave said that he was
hungry."

Explanation
Reported speech --

 uses reporting verbs (say, tell, ask) to explain what a person said at an
earlier time.
 has the structure: reporting verb + that (can be omitted) + statement.
 changes the verb in the reported sentence to "more past" when the
speaker is reporting something from the past (see Examples).
o (Yesterday) Dave: "I am tired."
o (Today) Bob: "Dave said that he was tired yesterday."
 does not change verb tense if the reported sentence is connected to
thepresent.
o Dave: "Vancouver is a pretty city."
o Bob: "Dave says that Vancouver is a pretty city."
 uses pronouns to refer to the original speaker.
o Dave: "I am tired."
o Bob: "Dave said that he was tired."
 uses the reporting verb "ask" to report a yes / no question: ask + if +
statement. NOTE: Use "if" in yes / no questions.
o Dave: "Bob, can I use your car?"
o Bob: "Dave asked if he could use my car."
 uses the reporting verb "ask" to report an information question: subject +
asked + wh- word + object + statement
o Dave: "Bob, where do you work?"
o Bob: "Dave asked where I work."

We use reported speech when we want to repeat what someone had

previously said.

Let's look at the difference between direct speech and reported speech:

Direct Tomie said = 'I am tired.'

Reported Speech = 'Tomie said (that) she was tired.'

In reported speech we need to use the past tense form of the verb. In direct
speech the present tense is used. As you can see, in the above sentence 'am'
changes to 'was' when we use reported speech.

changing to the past tense to make reported speech

Here are some of the important verb changes we use when making reported
speech:
am becomes was
Direct John: 'I am going.'
Reported: 'John said that he was going.'

is becomes was
Direct John: 'She is tall.'
Reported: 'John said that she was tall.'

do becomes did
Direct John: 'I always do my homework.'
Reported: 'John said that he always did his homework.'

does becomes did
Direct John: 'My mother does the cleaning.'
Reported: 'John said that his mother did the cleaning.'

have becomes had
Direct John: 'I have your number.'
Reported: 'John said that he had my number.'

has becomes had
Direct John: 'He has caught a cold.'
Reported: 'John said that he had caught a cold.'

go becomes went
Direct John: 'I go shopping on Sunday.'
Reported: 'John said that he went shopping on Sunday.'

will becomes would
Direct John: 'I will call Frank.'
Reported: 'John said that he would call Frank.'

can becomes could
Direct John: 'I can ride a horse.'
Reported: 'John said that he could ride a horse.'

want becomes wanted
Direct John: 'I want a girlfriend.'
Reported: 'John said that he wanted a girlfriend.'

When not to change the verb tense

When direct speech uses the past tense we do not need to make a change:

Direct John: 'I broke my arm.'

Reported: 'John said that he broke his arm.'
It is also OK to change the past tense to the past perfect:

Direct John: 'I broke my arm.'

Reported: 'John said that he had broken his arm.'

using reported speech for questions

So far we have looked at using 'said' in reported speech. When a question is
asked we do not use 'said'. Instead we use 'asked'. 
We also need to use an interrogative (wh- word) or if / whether.
Take a look at the examples:

questions using interrogatives
Direct John: 'What is your name?'
Reported: 'John asked me what my name was.'

Direct John: 'Where does she live?'

Reported: 'John asked me where she lived.'

questions using if / whether

Direct John: 'Does he play golf?'
Reported: 'John asked if he played golf.'
Reported: 'John asked whether he played golf.'

using reported speech for requests

As we have seen, 'said' is used for statements and 'asked' is used for
requests. We use 'told' for requests and 'to' before the clause:

Direct John: 'Go home'

Reported: 'John told me to go.'

Direct John: 'Stop crying'

Reported: 'John told me to stop crying.'

using suggestions in reported speech

When someone gives us advice in direct speech we use 'suggested' or
'recommended' in reported speech:

Direct John: 'You should take a holiday'

Reported: 'John suggested that I took a holiday.'

Direct John: 'You should take a holiday'

Reported: 'John recommended that I took a holiday.'

For stronger language we can use 'insist' or 'demand':

 Direct John: 'You must see a doctor.'
Reported: 'John insisted that I saw a doctor.'
Reported: 'John demanded that I saw a doctor.'

 'My brothers are taller than me.'

He told me that his brothers are tall than him.

He said that brothers are taller than him.

He said that his brothers were taller than him.

He said me his brothers were taller than him.

 'I will see you soon.'

He said I will see me soon.

He asked if he would see me soon.

He said he would see me soon.

He said would see me soon.

 'I have a cold.'

She asked if I had a cold.

She said that she had a cold.

She said has a cold.

She said had a cold.

 'I know the way.'

 He said that he knew the way.

He said he know the way.

He told me he know the way.

He asked me the way.

 'He lost his phone.'

He said that he had lost his phone.

He said he has loses his phone.

He said that lost his phone.

He said he losts his phone.

 'Do you want a coffee?'

He asked I wanted a coffee.

He asked if I wants a coffee.

He asked if I wanted a coffee.

He said if I wanted a coffee.

 'Are you Simon?'

She asked whether I Simon.

She asked whether I was Simon.

She asked whether if I was Simon.

She asked whether am simon.

 'Why do you like Jazz?'

 She asked if I like Jazz.

She asked why I likes Jazz.

She ask why I like Jazz.

She asked why I liked Jazz.

 'Bring your ball.'

He tells me to bring my ball.

He told me bring a ball.

He told me to bring my ball.

He asked me if I brought my ball.

 'You must come to my party.'

She insisted that I came to her party.

She said that I come to her party.

She recommended that I come to her party.

She asked me to come her party.

Completa las siguientes cuestiones y haz clic en el botón -Corregir Ejercicio-

para obtener la corrección de este ejercicio.
Q1 of 10: "I'm hungry," Tom said.

Q2 of 10: Sarah asked, "Are you busy tonight?

Q3 of 10: "I am working in a hospital," she said.

Q4 of 10: "We made a great dinner last night," he said.

Q5 of 10: "They were living in Chicago when their son was born," she said.

Q6 of 10: "I have been to India three times," Melissa said.

Q7 of 10: "We have been waiting for the tickets for three hours," they said.

Q8 of 10: He asked, "Had you ever been to New York before?"

Q9 of 10: "I am from Australia," Pam said.

Q10 of 10: "You must drive slowly here," the police officer said.

Completa las siguientes cuestiones y haz clic en el botón -Corregir Ejercicio-

para obtener la corrección de este ejercicio.
Q1 of 6: Construct Reported Speech: I am happy

Q2 of 6: Construct Reported Speech: I am sleeping

Q3 of 6: Construct Reported Speech: I was happy

Q4 of 6: Construct Reported Speech: I have been happy

Q5 of 6: Construct Reported Speech: I have been sleeping

Q6 of 6: Construct Reported Speech: I will have been happy