Direct and

Indirect speech
Prepared by Akash Parmar
 When you repeat the actual words spoken
It may be repeating something that’s being said now or
Direct Speech repeating it to someone later

There is no change in the words

When writing direct speech, the words quoted are written

within quotation marks (“ ”) and separated from the
reporting verb by a comma (,).

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 Rohan said,
“My father is
preparing
dinner for us.”

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 When you report the words spoken
There is change in the tense of the reporting verb
Indirect Speech

The conjunction ‘that’ is often used before the part expressing

what the other person said

Commas (,) and quotation mark (“ ”) are not used

Question mark (?) and Exclamation mark (!) is not used

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 Rohan said that
his father was
preparing dinner
for them.

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 Change in Tense
Simple Present Simple Past
Present Continuous Past Continuous

Present Perfect Past Perfect

Present Perfect Continuous Past Perfect Continuous

Simple Past Past Perfect

Past Continuous Past Perfect Continuous
For changing Direct
Simple Future: Shall/Will Should/Would
Speech into Indirect Future Continuous: Shall/ Will Should be, Would be
be
Speech
Future Perfect: Shall/Will have Should have, Would have

Future Perfect Continuous: Should have been, Would have

Shall/Will have been been
May Might
Can Could
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 The Tense of the reporting verb in reported speech does
not change
When Tense
does not The reporting verb is in Present Tense
Example:
Change 1. Mohan says, “Sita got angry.”
2. Mohan says that Sita got angry

The reporting verb is in Future Tense

Example:
1. Rohan will say, “I am not at home.”
2. Rohan will say that he is not at home.

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 Here There

Now Then

This That

These Those

Today That day, the same day

Yesterday The previous day, the day before

Tomorrow The next day, the day after

Change in Time,
Ago Before
Distance,
Last night The night before
Demonstrative Next day, next week The following day, the following
Pronoun week

Last week, last month, last year The previous week, the previous
month, the previous year
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 I, you He, she

We, you They

Me, you Him, her

Us, you Them

Changes in My, your His, her

Pronoun Mine, yours His, hers, their

Our, your Their

Ours, yours Theirs

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 Direct Speech
1. Ramesh said, “I share a large pizza with my
friend.”
2. She said, “I always drink coffee.”

Indirect Speech
Simple Present
changes into 1. Ramesh said that he shared a large pizza with his
friend.
Simple Past 2. She said that she always drank coffee.

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 Direct Speech
1. Nisha said, “ I am baking a cake for my
daughter.”
2. He said, “ He is reading a book.”

Present Continuous Indirect Speech

changes into
1. Nishad said that she was baking a cake for her
Past Continuous daughter.
2. He said that he was reading a book.

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 Direct Speech
1. The professor said to the students, “ You have
completed your work on time.”
2. He said, “ I have eaten too much.”

Present Perfect Indirect Speech

changes into
1. The professor told the students that they had
Past Perfect completed their work on time.
2. He said that he had eaten too much.

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 Direct Speech
1. William said, “I finished the project.”
2. He said to me, “I enjoyed the ice cream.”

Simple Past Indirect Speech

changes into
1. William said that he had finished the project.
Past Perfect 2. He told me that he had enjoyed the ice cream.

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 Direct Speech
1. The captain told the batsman, “You were batting
well.”
2. Principal said to the teacher, “The students were
singing well.”

Indirect Speech
Past Continuous
changes into 1. The captain told the batsman that he had been
Past Perfect batting well.
2. Principal told the teacher that the students had
Continuous been singing well.

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 Direct Speech
1. Geeta said, “I may accompany my mother to the
get together.”
2. She said, “We may go out together.”

Indirect Speech
May
changes into 1. Geeta said that she might accompany her mother
Might to the get together.
2. She said that they might go out together.

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 Direct Speech
1. Helen said, “I can play the piano well.”
2. He said, “I can easily pass the test.”

Indirect Speech
Can
Changes into 1. Helen said that she could play the piano well.
Could 2. He said that he could easily pass the test.

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 Direct Speech
1. Garima said, “The carpenter shall come on
Sunday.”
2. The girl said to her sister, “I shall polish my shoes
in the morning.”

Indirect Speech
Shall
Changes into 1. Garima said that the carpenter should come on
Should Sunday.
2. The girl told her sister that she should polish her
shoes in the morning.

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 Direct Speech
1. Rohan said, “We will sleep early.”
2. The pilot announced, “The aircraft will remain
here.”

Indirect Speech
Will
Changes into 1. Rohan said that they would sleep early.
Would 2. The pilot announced that the aircraft would
remain there

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 If a sentence in direct speech Direct Speech
convey a universal truth or
habitual fact, the tense of the 1. She said, “It rains heavily during the rainy season.”
indirect speech is not changed 2. Mother said, “Rima is always helpful to other.”
to past tense but remain the 3. My mother said, “The Sun rises in the East.”
same 4. Monica said, “I go for a walk daily.”

Indirect Speech
1. She said that it rains heavily during the rainy season.
2. Mother said that Rima is always helpful to other.
3. My mother said that the Sun rises in the East.
4. Monica said that she goes for a walk daily.

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 Conversion of imperative sentences
Imperative An imperative sentence may convey a command, request,
suggestion, advice or instruction
Sentence

For requests request, ask, plead, beg

For advice suggest, advice, warn, forbid, tell

The verb of the reported speech is changed into

an infinitives
We don’t use a conjunction to introduce the reported
speech.
When imperatives let’s, let us, let him are changed
into suggest, proposed, should, to let, might
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 Direct Speech
1. The chef said to the helper, “Chop the Vegetables
quickly.”
2. The student said to the librarian, “Please allow me
to go to the library.”
3. He said, “Let’s go to the market.”
Indirect Speech
Imperative
Sentences 1. The chef ordered the helper to chop the
vegetables quickly.
2. The student requested the librarian to allow him
to go to the library.
3. He suggested that they should go to the market.

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 Conversion of interrogative sentences
The reporting verb is usually change into verb like ask,
Interrogative enquire, demand
sentence The inverted commas and interrogation mark omitted

When we have –wh interrogation words at the

beginning of a question, no conjunction is used after
the reporting verb

We use conjunction whether, or if to introduce the

reporting speech if the question begins with auxiliary
verbs such as is, am, are, was, were, do, does, did,
have, has, had, will, shall, can, may

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 Direct Speech
1. Sana said, “Mother, where have you kept my new
pair of Jeans?”
2. Monica asked Radhika, “Did you buy the magic
show tickets?”
3. Rekha said to him, “Will you play today?”
Indirect Speech
Interrogative
Sentences 1. Sana asked her mother where she had kept her
new pair of jeans.
2. Monica asked Radhika if she had bought the
magic show tickets.
3. Rekha said him whether he would play that day.

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 Conversion of Exclamatory sentences
The exclamatory sentences are changed into assertive
Exclamatory sentence
Sentence
The reporting verb is changed to exclaimed with
joy/sorrow/delight/surprise/anger/fear

The conjunction that is used to introduced the speech

All exclamation and interjections are left out. This

sense is conveyed by means of adverbs or adverbial
clause

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 Direct Speech
1. She said, “Oh! What a lovely dress.”
2. They said, “Alas! We have lost our way in the
forest.”
3. He said, “Oh! I have met you after a long time.”

Indirect Speech
Exclamatory
Sentences 1. She exclaimed with admiration that it was a
lovely dress.
2. They exclaimed with regret that they had lost
their way in the forest.
3. He exclaimed with surprise that he had met after
a long time
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