WELCOME

DAMIAN MARTIN

DIRECT AND INDIRECT SPEECH

DAMIAN MARTIN

DIRECT SPEECH
Saying exactly what someone has said is

called Direct speech. Here what a person says appears within quotation marks ("...") and should be word for word.
Example
She said, "Today's lesson is on

presentations."
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Indirect speech (sometimes called

INDIRECT SPEECH

reported speech), doesn't use quotation marks to enclose what the person said and it doesn't have to be word for word.
EXAMPLE

She said that day's lesson was on

presentations.
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INDIRECT 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 (because obviously the person who spoke originally spoke in the past). The verbs therefore usually have to be in the past too.
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INDIRECT SPEECH
EXAMPLE

DIRECT SPEECH

INDIRECT SPEECH

"I'm going to the cinema", he said.

He said he was going to the cinema

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TENSE CHANGE
SIMPLE PRESENT TENSE

DIRECT SPEECH She said, "It's cold."

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INDIRECT SPEECH She said it was cold.

TENSE CHANGE
PRESENT CONTINUOUS

DIRECT SPEEECH She said, "I'm teaching English online."

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INDIRECT SPEECH She said she was teaching English online

TENSE CHANGE
PRESENT PERFECT
DIRECT SPEECH INDIRECT SPEECH She said, "I've She said she had been on the web been on the web since 1999." since 1999.
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TENSE CHANGE
PRESENT PERFECT CONTINUOUS

DIRECT SPEECH She said, "I've been teaching English for seven years."
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INDIRECT SPEECH She said she had been teaching English for seven years.

TENSE CHANGE
SIMPLE PAST
DIRECT SPEECH INDIRECT SPEECH She said, "I taught online yesterday."
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She said she had taught online the previous day.

TENSE CHANGE
PAST CONTINUOUS

DIRECT SPEECH She said, "I was teaching earlier."

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INDIRECT SPEECH She said she had been teaching earlier.

TENSE CHANGE
PAST PERFECT
DIRECT SPEECH INDIRECT SPEECH She said, "The NO CHANGE lesson had She said the already started lesson had when he arrived." already started when he arrived.
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TENSE CHANGE
PAST PERFECT CONTINUOUS

DIRECT SPEECH INDIRECT SPEECH She said, "I'd NO CHANGE already been She said she'd teaching for five already been minutes." teaching for five minutes.
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MODAL VERBS
Modal verb forms

also sometimes change:

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MODAL VERBS
DIRECT SPEECH INDIRECT - WILL SPEECH WOULD She said, "I'll She said she teach English would teach online English online tomorrow." tomorrow.
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MODAL VERBS
CAN

COULD

DIRECT SPEECH She said, "I can teach English online."

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INDIRECT SPEECH She said she could teach English online.

MUST HAD TO DIRECT SPEECH INDIRECT SPEECH

She said, "I must have a computer to teach English online."
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MODAL VERBS

She said she had to have a computer to teach English online.

MODAL VERBS
SHALL

SHOULD

DIRECT SPEECH She said, "What shall we learn today?"

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INDIRECT SPEECH She asked what we should learn today

MODAL VERBS
MAY

MIGHT

DIRECT SPEECH She said, "May I open a new browser?"

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INDIRECT SPEECH She asked if she might open a new browser.

MODAL VERBS
Note - There is no

change to; could, would, should, might and ought to.

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Expressions of time if reported on a different day this (evening) that (evening) today yesterday ... these (days) those (days) now then (a week) ago (a week) before last weekend the weekend before last / the previous weekend here there next (week) the following (week) tomorrow the next/following day
DAMIAN MARTIN

THE END
DAMIAN MARTIN