REPORTED SPEECH AND THE FORMAL TENSES

REPORTED SPEECH AND THE FORMAL SEQUENCE OF TENSES IN NOUN CLAUSES

 Reported speech refers to using a noun clause to report what someone has said. No quotation marks are used. 

Direct speech is the exact words of the speaker and is enclosed in quotation marks.

      Notice: the changes in the verb forms from quoted speech to reported speech in the following examples. Also notice how the pronouns change.

 

Note: The conjunction that is optional and is often omitted in conversations.

Exemples :

 

Quoted speech	present	She said, “I watch TV every day.”
Reported speech	Past	She said (that) she watched TV every day.
Quoted speech	pre. Prog.	She said, “I am watching TV.”
Reported speech	past prog.	She said (that) she was watching TV.
Quoted speech	present perf.	She said, “I have watched TV.”
Reported speech	past perf.	She said (that) she had watched TV.
Quoted speech	past tense	She said, “I watched TV.”
Reported speech	past perf.	She said (that) she had watched TV.
Quoted speech	past prog.	She said, “I was watching TV.”
Reported speech	past perf. Prog.	She said (that) she had been watching TV.
Quoted speech	present perf. Prog.	She said, “I have been watching TV.”
Reported speech	past perf. Prog.	She said (that) she had been watching TV
Quoted speech	past perf.	She said, “I had watched TV.”
Reported speech	no change	She said (that) she had watched TV.
Quoted speech	past perf. Pro.	She said, “I had been watching TV.”
Reported speech	no change	She said (that) she had been watchingTV

 

II)        MODALS IN THE DIRECT / INDIRECT SPEECH :

 

Modals in the direct speech	Modals in the indirect speech
May	Might
Might	Might
Can	Could
Must	Had to
Have to	Had to
Should	Should
Ought to	Ought to
Will	Would
Be going to	was going to

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Examples:

Quoted speech:  She said, “I may go outside this weekend.”

Reported speech:       She said (that) she might go out this weekend.

Quoted speech:  She said, “I can leave now.”

Reported speech:       She said (that) she could leave now.

Quoted speech:  She said, “I will be back next week.”

Reported speech:       She said (that) she would be back next week.

 

III)    YES / NO QUESTIONS REPORTED IN THE INDIRECT SPEECH / PAST TENSE MAIN VERB :

When yes-or-no questions are reported in indirect speech the conjunction whether or if are used to introduce the noun clause, the conjunctions are interchangeable, and they can't be omitted from the clause. The same tense harmony rules and modal changes apply when the direct quotation is reported in the past tense. The main verb of the sentence is an ask –type verb.

 

Example:

Quoted speech:     Tom: “Do you need some help?”

Reported speech:   Tom asked if / whether I needed some help.

Quoted speech:     Bob: “Is your brother leaving tonight?”

Reported speech:   Bob asked if/whether my brother was leaving tonight.

Quoted speech:     Mary: “Will the books arrive on Monday?”

Reported speech:   Mary asked if/whether the books would arrive on Monday.

 

QUESTION WORD QUESTIONS REPORTED IN THE INDIRECT SPEECH / PAST TENSE MAIN VERB:

 

When question word questions are reported in indirect speech, the answer clause is introduced by indefinite subordinators, indefinite relative pronouns, adverbs and adjectives. The question word in direct speech becomes the indefinite subordinators in reported speech; this subordinator introduces the noun clause.

 

Example:

Quoted speech:                Mike: “Where did he buy this car?”

Reported speech:     Mike asked me where he had bought that car.

Quoted speech:                Frank: “What has happened?”

Reported speech:     Frank asked me what had happened.

Quoted speech:        Linda: “When do they have to start in order to finish on time?”

Reported speech:  Linda asked when they had to start in order to finish on time.

 

IV)      IMPERATIVE SENTENCES (COMMANDS) REPORTED IN THE INDIRECT SPEECH:

 

a) When an imperative sentence is reported in indirect speech, the verb is changed to an infinitive. Tell or say is usually used. When tell it is followed by a noun clause or pronoun object.

Example:

Quoted speech:        Bill: “Turn to page 12.”

Reported speech:     Bill said to turn to page 12.

Quoted speech:        Mary: “Bob, take the letter to room 15.”

Reported speech:     Mary told Bob to take the letter to room 15.

Quoted speech:        Teacher: “Class, study for the test.”

Reported speech:     The teacher told the class to study for the test.

 

 

With the imperative the changed occurred always in the introductory verb:

- ‘’Don’t go out alone’’.

He warned me not to go out alone.

- ‘’Stop smoking’’.

He advised me to stop smoking.

- ‘’Please forgive me’’.

He begged me to forgive him.

 

* In reported speech, an imperative sentence is changed to an infinitive. Tell is used instead of say as the reporting verb. (See Chart 4-5 for other verbs followed by an infinitive that are used to report speech.) Also note that tell is immediately followed by a (pro) noun object, but say is not:

He told me he would be late.

He said he would be late.

Also possible: He said to me he would be late.

 

NOTE:

If the reporting verb is in the past, the verb in the noun clause will be in a past form following the formal rules called the « sequence of tenses ».