Let’s say you and your friend are eating dinner at a restaurant on Saturday night.  She tells you all about her boyfriend Joshua.  She tells you what Joshua told her on Friday.  She can say it in two ways. 

The first way is called “quoted speech.”  Quoted speech is EXACTLY what the person said.  For example:

Joshua said, “I need to take a taxi.”

According to the above, Joshua said EXACTLY those words. 

The other way of repeating what a person says is called “reported speech.”  Reported speech is NOT EXACTLY what the person said.  It is like a summary or paraphrase of what the speaker said.  For example:

Joshua said, “I love eating a big bowl of chocolate ice cream with sprinkles and fruit on top.”  This is EXACTLY what Joshua said.

Joshua said that he loved eating chocolate ice cream.  This is reported speech—it is NOT EXACTLY what Joshua said, but similar to a summary.

Grammar rule: To use reported speech correctly, put the verb that is used in quoted speech in the past tense. 

What if the verb in the quoted speech is already in the past tense?  Good question!  Take the quiz below, and click the hyperlink below to see the answers and full explanations. 

The following sentences use quoted speech.  Change the following sentences from quoted speech to reported speech.  Then see below to get the answers and the explanations.

1.) James said, “I am watching TV.”

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2.) Professor Jones said, “I worked all day!”

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3.) The president said, “I will be visiting Italy in December.”

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4.) The weatherman announced, “It may rain today.”

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5.) My father screamed, “I have to go to the airport, now!”

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6.) Then my mother said, “I must take your father.”

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7.) The psychologist said, “You should calm down.”

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8.) I responded, “I ought to leave the office.”

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9.) Mark said, “I love visiting China and Korea.”

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10.) George Bush said, “I can be a great president! Really!”

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As stated above, you change the verb to past tense when using reported speech. 

When a sentence has a modal (can, should, ought to, must, etc.), it is a little different.  The modal changes in the sentence and NOT the verb.  However, some modals don’t change at all, while others completely change.  Let’s look at the answers and explanations:

1.) James said, “I am watching TV.”

Answer: James said that he was watching TV.

Explanation: The only verb that changes here is the verb “am.”  The past tense of “am” is “was.”  Notice also that “I” becomes “he” which is the appropriate word referring to James.  Lastly, the “that” is always optional in reported speech.  You may use “that” if you want, but it is not necessary.

2.) Professor Jones said, “I worked all day!”

Answer: Professor Jones said he had worked all day.

Explanation: The word “worked” is already in the past.  Therefore, you must put the word in the “past past” which is called the past perfect (in English grammar, the word “perfect” means past).  The “past past” (or past perfect) of “worked” is “had worked.”

3.) The president said, “I will be visiting Italy in December.”

Answer: The president said that he would be visiting Italy in December.

Explanation: This sentence has a modal—the word “will.”  That is the word that changes.  The past tense of “will” is “would.”  Note: Some modals don’t change at all while other modals completely change.  See below.

4.) The weatherman announced, “It may rain today.”

Answer: The weatherman announced that it might rain. 

Explanation: Again, this sentence has a modal—“may.”  “May” is a modal that completely changes.  “May” becomes “might.”

5.) My father screamed, “I have to go to the airport, now!”

Answer: My father screamed that he had to go to the airport.

Explanation: The verb here is “have” which becomes “had.”  Notice that you can use words other than “said,” but NOT all words can be used with reported speech.

6.) Then my mother said, “I must take your father.”

Answer: Then my mother said she had to take my father.

Explanation: There is another modal in this sentence which is “must.”  Since “must” does NOT have a past tense, just change “must” to “had to.”  Notice how “your” appropriately changes to “my” to make the sentence logically correct.  It changes to “my” because the son or daughter is obviously talking about his or her father.

7.) The psychologist said, “You should calm down.”                                                                 

Answer: The psychologist said that I should calm down.

Explanation:  “Should” has no past tense and does NOT change. 

8.) I responded, “I ought to leave the office.”

Answer: I responded that I ought to leave the office.

Explanation:  “Ought to” means “should.”  “Ought to” does NOT change.

9.) Mark said, “I love visiting China and Korea.”

Answer: Mark said he loved visiting China and Korea.

Explanation: The verb “love” simply is put in the simple past tense which is “loved.”

10.) George Bush said, “I can be a great president! Really!”

Answer: George Bush said that he could be a great president.

Explanation: “Can” is a modal, but this one is easy.  The past tense of “can” is “could.”  Use the word “could.”  Notice, that the quoted speech has the word “really” at the end.  In the reported speech it is not there.  Reported speech is NOT exactly what the speaker says, but rather a summary or paraphrase.

Rules to Remember!