Direct Indirect Speech Rules - Final
Direct Indirect Speech Rules - Final
Direct speech is known as repeating the exact words spoken and Indirect
speech is known as reporting the words.
Can Could
May Might
Should Should
Might Might
Could Could
Would Would
Ought to Ought to
Modals that remain unchanged are: Should, might, could, would, ought to.
If the reporting verb is in the past tense, then the direct sentence is changed in
its past tense.
The tense of direct speech remains unchanged when the reporting verb is in
the present or future tense.
If the direct sentence contains the universal truth, then it remains unchanged
in the Indirect Speech.
Below, there are Direct and Indirect Speech examples using reporting verb
changes.
Now Then
Here There
This That
Ago Before
Thus So
Hither Thither
Come Go
Hence Thence
Next Following
Changes of Pronouns
While making the changes from Direct and Indirect speech, one should be
having knowledge of rules of changes in pronouns.
I He/she
You He/she/they
We They
They They
He He
She She
It It
Us Them
Our Their
His His
Her Her
Its Its
Indirect speech: reporting the message of the speaker in our own words
Indirect speech example: Maya said that she was busy then.
Let us understand the direct and indirect rules with examples and for all tenses so that
you can apply them correctly, without making any mistakes in the exams.
To change a sentence of direct speech into indirect speech there are various factors that
are considered, such as reporting verbs, modals, time, place, pronouns, tenses, etc. We
will discuss each of these factors one by one.
1. In indirect speech, tenses do not change if the words used within the quotes (‘’) talk of a
habitual action or universal truth.
1. The tenses of direct speech do not change if the reporting verb is in the future
tense or present tense.
Direct to indirect speech example:
Indirect: She said that she would be in Scotland the next day.
Indirect: He said that he would be disposing of the old computer the following
Tuesday.
If a direct speech sentence begins with an auxiliary verb/helping verb, the joining clause
should be if or whether.
Reporting verbs such as ‘said/ said to’ changes to enquired, asked, or demanded.
There are modals that do not change – Could, Would, Should, Might, Ought to
1. The second person of direct speech changes as per the object of reporting speech.
Indirect: She tells them that they have done their work.
1. In Exclamatory sentences that express grief, sorrow, happiness, applaud, Interjections are
removed and the sentence is changed to an assertive sentence.
1. Full stop, comma, exclamation or question mark, are placed inside the closing inverted
commas.
1. If direct speech comes after the information about who is speaking, a comma is
used to introduce the speech, placed before the first inverted comma.
1. Use the reporting verb such as (say, said to) in its correct tense.
2. Put a comma before the statement and the first letter of the statement should be in capital
letter.
3. Insert question mark, quotation marks, exclamation mark and full stop, based on the mood of
the sentence.
4. Remove the conjunctions like (that, to, if or whether) wherever necessary.
5. Where the reporting verb is in past tense in indirect, change it to present tense in the direct
speech.
6. Change the past perfect tense either into present perfect tense or past tense, as necessary.
Exercises:
Phonemes:
In linguistics it is a smallest unit of speech, distinguishing one word from another.
I.e. tap, tab, tag, tan.
Consonants:
Consonant sound represents closure of vocal track.
Vowels:
Vowel sound represents the opening of vocal tracks.