Reported Speech
Direct Speech | Reported Speech |
SIMPLE PRESENT | SIMPLE PAST |
| Cindy asked: "Do you like watching TV?" | Cindy asked Giles if he liked watching TV |
PRESENT BE-ING | PAST BE-ING |
| Frank declared: " I am thinking about moving" | Frank declared he was thinking about moving |
PAST BE-ING | PAST PERFECT BE-ING |
He told them: "I wasn't expecting your visit" | He told them he hadn't been expecting their visit |
PRESENT PERFECT | PAST PERFECT |
She said: " I have just seen an old friend of mine" | She said she had just seen an old friend of hers. |
PRESENT PERFECT BE-ING | PAST PERFECT BE-ING |
| He asked: "Paul, how long have you been studying English?" | He asked Paul how long he had been studying English |
PAST PERFECT | PAST PERFECT |
They said: "If we had arrived two minutes later, there would have been no cake left" | They said that if they had arrived two minutes later, there would have been no cake left. |
PAST PERFECT BE-ING | PAST PERFECT BE-ING |
He declared: " You had been telling me you wanted to see her" | He declared they had been telling him they wanted to see her. |
FUTURE (WILL) | CONDITIONAL (WOULD) |
I asked: “Where will you spend your holiday?" | I asked where they would spend their holiday. |
WILL + BE-ING | WOULD + BE-ING |
Anna declared:" I will be announcing my engagement next month" | Anna declared she would be announcing her engagement the following month |
WOULD | WOULD |
Tony said: "I would like something to eat. I wouldn't mind a drink either." | Tony said he would like something to drink |
Adverbs (time and place) and demonstrative pronouns
Direct Speech | Reported Speech |
| now | at that moment / then |
| today | that day |
| yesterday | the day before / the previous day |
| tomorrow | the day after / the following day |
| LAST (week, month, year...) | THE (week, month, year...) BEFORE |
| THE PREVIOUS (week, month, year...) | NEXT (week, month, year...) |
| THE (week, month, year...) AFTER | THE FOLLOWING (week, month, year...) |
| THIS (week, month, year...) | THAT (week, month, year...) |
| THESE (days, weeks, months, years...) | THOSE (days, weeks, months, years...) |
| here | there |
| ago | before |
