INGLES III

Reported Speech
When reporting speech, the tense usually changes. This is
because when we use reported speech, we are usually talking
about a time in the past.
The verbs, therefore, usually have to be in the past too.
The tenses of the reported clause are usually moved back. This
moving back of tenses is called BACKSHIFT

Al informar sobre el discurso, el tiempo suele cambiar. Esto se debe a que cuando usamos el
estilo indirecto, generalmente estamos hablando de un tiempo en el pasado.
Los verbos, por lo tanto, normalmente también tienen que estar en pasado.
Los tiempos de la cláusula informada generalmente se retroceden. Este movimiento hacia atrás
de los tiempos verbales se llama RETROCESO
 Changing verb tenses:
Direct speech Reported speech
Present Simple ➙ Past Simple
Present Continuous ➙ Past Continuous
Present Perfect Simple ➙ Past Perfect Simple
Present Perfect Continuous Past Perfect Continuous
➙
Have – has + been + verb ing Had + been +verb ing
Past Simple ➙ Past Perfect Simple
Future ➙ Conditional
Imperative ➙ Infinitive
Note that the Past Perfect Simple and the Past Perfect
Continuous do not change since no backshift is possible. .
DIRECT SPEECH INDIRECT SPEECH

• Can could

• May might

• Must had to

• Shall should

• Will would
 Examples:
Direct speech Indirect speech

Present simple Past simple

She said, “My mother is She said her mother was
here.“ there.

Present continuous Past continuous

She said, "I'm teaching She said she was
English online." teaching English online.

Present perfect Past perfect

She said, "I've been on She said she had been on
the web since 1999." the web since 1999.
 Direct speech Indirect speech
Past simple Past perfect
She said, "I taught online She said she had taught online
yesterday.“ yesterday.

Past continuous Past perfect continuous

She said, "I was teaching earlier." She said she had been teaching
earlier.
Past perfect
She said, "The lesson had Past perfect
already started when he arrived.“ NO CHANGE
She said: The lesson had already
Modals started when he arrived
“I can/will/ see you later”, he
said. Modals
He said he could/would/ see me
later.
Changing pronouns, personal and possessive.
Pronouns change (or not) depending on the view of the
reporter

Direct speech Reported speech

him / his /
I me my ➙ he / she
her her
We us ours ➙ they them their
Direct Speech
John said, “I am coming.”

Indirect Speech
John said that he was coming.
me (mí) - me, mi
you (iú) - te, ti
him (jím) - le, lo, él
her (jér) - le, la, ella
it (it) - le, lo, él, ella, ello
us (as) - nos, nosotros, nosotras
you (iú) - les, los, os, vosotros,
vosotras, ustedes
them (dém) - les, los, las, ellos-as
• I love Lucy and she loves me.
Amo a Lucy y ella me ama.
• Can you show me the city?
¿Puedes mostrarme la ciudad?
• You love Alice and she loves you.
Tú amas a Alice y ella te ama a ti.
• Billy, your mother wants to see you.
Billy, tu madre quiere verte.
ACCUSATIVE PRONOUNS
my (mái) - mi, mis
your (iór) - tu, tus / su, sus (de usted)
his (jis) - su, sus (de él)
her (jer) - su, sus (de ella)
its (its) - su, sus (de algo)
our (áuar) - nuestro/a/os/as
your (iór) - su, sus (de ustedes/vosotros)
their (dér) - su, sus (de ellos/as)
I am a teacher. I like my job.
Soy profesor. Me gusta mi trabajo.
What is your name?
¿Cuál es tu nombre?
Bill washes his car every day.
Bill lava su auto todos los días.
Mary went to her English class yesterday.
Mary fue a su clase de inglés ayer.
The Earth is our planet.
La Tierra es nuestro planeta.
Our neighbors are painting their house.
Nuestros vecinos están pintando su casa.
POSSESIVE PRONOUNS
 TIME AND PLACE CHANGES
It is often necessary to make time and place changes in
relation to tense changes:

Time expressions
Direct speech Reported speech
Now ➙ then
Today ➙ that day
Tonight ➙ that night
Yesterday ➙ the day before
the following day / the
Tomorrow ➙
next day
next day / week / month the following day / week
➙
/ year / month / year
Place expressions:

Direct speech Reported speech

Here ➙ there
This ➙ that
These ➙ those

Direct Speech
John said, “I did this exercise last night.”

Indirect Speech
John said that: he had done that exercise the
previous night.
 Yes/No question
When the question is preceded by auxiliary that needs
yes/No answer it will be used the conjunction if or
whether in the indirect speech

The steps how to make indirect speech:

The question sentence of the indirect speech is firstly

changed to be statement
It then follows the rules before.
actual spoken questions Indirect questions

Be: 'Are you ready?’ He asked (me) if I was ready

Have: 'Have you finished? He asked (me) if I had finished

Do 'Do you play chess? He asked (me) if I played chess

Modals: 'Can I have it? He asked (me) if he could have it

 Indirect question-word questions

• In the question using Question Word (QW)

• QW: what, when, where, which, why, who, whom,

etc. are used as conjunction
 Actual spoken questions Iindirect questions

Be: Where are you going? He asked (me) where I was going.

Have: 'Why haven't you finished? He wanted to know why I

hadn't finished.

Do: What do you think of it? He wanted to know what I

thought of it.
Modals: 'When must I be there9 He asked (me) when he must
to be there
 INDIRECT SUBJECT-QUESTIONS

Actual spoken questions Indirect questions

Be: 'Who is in charge here?' He asked (me) who was in

charge here.
Present: 'Which firm makes these parts'? He asked (me) which firm
made those parts

Past: 'What caused the accident? He asked (me) what had

caused the accident

Modals: 'Whose novel will win the prize?' He asked (me) whose
novel would win the prize.
 reported speech
Look at the girl on the right. We would turn the statement into the reported speech by
changing:
➙ the verb from the present simple to the past
simple
➙ the personal pronoun I to she
➙ the possessive pronoun my to her
I love my
new dress.

The sentence would then be:

The girl said she loved her new dress.

 reported speech
Time to practice!

Look at the images that will appear and change what the characters say into the reported speech. Take in
consideration all the changes that must occur in the verbs, the pronouns and the expressions of time and
place.
 My mother
gives me new
dolls regularly.
The girl said (that): her mother gave her
new dolls regularly.

My mother
gives me new
dolls regularly.
 My book
is being very
interesting!
The woman said her book was being very
interesting.

My book
is being very
interesting!
 It has been
years since I’ve
had this much
fun!
The woman said it had been years since she
had had that much fun.
It has been
years since I’ve
had this much
fun!
Change the sentences with the words
in bold below from direct speech to reported
speech. The first question is done as an example.
Bob: I won't put salt on my food anymore.

Aiko: That's a good idea. Salt isn't good for you

________________________________________

Aiko: Bob said he………………. salt on his food

anymore.

Yuta: Good for him.

Jean: I'm pretty sure Anna likes old Batman comic
books

Luca: Thanks, I'll try and find one for her birthday.

_______________________________________

Anna: Wow! Batman! How did you know I liked

these comic books?

Luca: Jean _____me he _____ pretty sure you

_____Batman comics.
Pilar: Chris, can you do the budget planning? Tio,
you will lead the sales team. Okay?

Chris: No problem

Tio: Sure, but, I'll need a few days to put the

team together.

________________________________

Kim: Who did Pilar choose for her project team?

Shun: She ______ ____ Chris _____ the budget

planning. And, she _____ Tio _____ ____the sales
team.
Tio ____ he _____ _____ a few days to ____ the team
together.
Rene: The meeting will be in room 117 tomorrow.

Phil: Okay. I'll remember.

_______________________________________

Phil: The meeting will be in 170

Rene: No, I ____ you the meeting _____ be in room

117 not 170.

(Note: if someone misunderstands something you

said, put an accent on the correct information).
 FUENTE BIBLIOGRÁFICA

Reported Speech:

https://www.perfect-english-grammar.com/reported-
speech.html

https://www.ego4u.com/en/cram-up/grammar/reported-
speech