Reported Speech
Tell what others said with the tense shifting one step back, plus say vs tell and reported questions with if/whether. B1 grammar with 20 questions.
Reported speech (or indirect speech) is how we tell someone what another person said, without using their exact words. Direct: James said, “I am tired.” Reported: James said (that) he was tired.
The main rule: the tense moves back
When the reporting verb is in the past (said, told), the tense usually shifts one step into the past.
| Direct speech | Reported speech |
|---|---|
| present simple (am/work) | past simple (was/worked) |
| present continuous (am working) | past continuous (was working) |
| past simple (worked) | past perfect (had worked) |
| will | would |
| can | could |
Pronouns and time words change too
| Direct | Reported |
|---|---|
| I / my | he/she / his/her |
| today | that day |
| tomorrow | the next day |
| yesterday | the day before |
say vs tell
Use tell + a person (tell me, tell her). Use say without a person, or with “to”.
- She told me (that) she was busy.
- She said (that) she was busy. (no person after “said”)
Reported questions
In reported questions, use normal word order (no inversion) and no question mark. Use if/whether for yes/no questions.
- “Where do you live?” → She asked where I lived.
- “Are you ready?” → He asked if I was ready.
- He said me that… → He told me that… / He said that…
- She asked where did I live. → She asked where I lived.
- He said he will come. → He said he would come.
Practise reported speech with the 20 questions below.
Check your understanding
Answer the questions below. You will see instantly if you are right.
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