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132 Direct speech and reported speech
B Reported speech
In reported speech we give the meaning of what was said rather than the exact words.
Trevor says he's tired.
Wasn't it Greta Garbo who said that she wanted to be alone?
Claire replied that she didn't love Henry.
In reported speech we often change the actual words, e.g. 'I'm tired' —> he's tired. Sometimes the verb tense changes, e.g. / want —> she wanted (see Unit 134).
In reporting we use verbs such as announce, answer, explain, mention, promise, reply, say, suggest, tell. warn. The most common of these are say and tell (see C). We can also report thoughts. We think the meal was expensive. Nick knew Rita wanted to be with someone else.
When we report statements, we often use that, but we can sometimes leave it out. You promised (that) you wouldn't be late. Sarah was saying (that) there's a problem.
C Tell or say?
TELL We use tell if we want to mention the hearer (the person spoken to). Sarah's boss told her she could leave early. NOT -Sarah's boss told she-could leave-early. Daniel tells me he's ready. We use tell without an indirect object (e.g. her, me) only in the expressions tell a story, tell the truth and tell a lie.
SAY When we do not mention the hearer, we use say.
Sarah's boss said she could leave early. NOT Sarah's boss-said her she could leave early. Daniel says he's ready. We sometimes use to after say, especially when the words are not reported. The boss wanted to say something to Sarah. What did Matthew say to you?
Direct speech
Look at these examples of direct speech.
Trevor: I'm tired.
Wasn't it Greta Garbo who said, 7 want to be alone'?
'But I don't love you, Henry,' replied Claire.
We can show that words are direct speech by putting them in quotation marks (''). See page 373. Sometimes the words are put after the speaker's name, in the script of a play or film, for example. In a picture we can put the words in a speech bubble.
The actress Melissa Livingstone and supermarket owner Ron Mason have announced that they are getting married next month. Melissa is sure they will be happy together, she told reporters.
► She says she gets pains in her leg. 1 She says...................................................................... 3 ………………………………… 2 He says ...................................................................... 4 ....................................................
Reported speech (B)
Who said what? Match the words to the people and report what they said. If you can't match them, look at the answers at the bottom of the page. ► Mrs Thatcher a) 'All the world's a stage.' 1 Stokeley Carmichael b) 'Black is beautiful' 2 Galileo c) 'Big Brother is watching you.' 3 Shakespeare d) 'There is no such thing as society.' 4 George Orwell e) 'The earth moves round the sun.'
► Mrs Thatcher said that there is no such thing as society. 1 2 3 4
Tell or say? (C) Put in tell or say. ? All the experts say the earth is getting warmer. ? Did you tell Mark and Sarah how to find our house? 1 The Sales Manager is going to .................. everyone about the meeting. 2 Vicky, why don't you just…………… what the matter is? 3 They……………. they're going to build a new Disney World here. 4 What did Natasha…………….about her holiday plans? 5 Could you………….. me the way to the train station, please? 6 The company should……………. its employees what's going on. 7 You shouldn't……………..lies, you know, Matthew. 8 Did you …………… anything to Melanie about the barbecue?
132 Exercises
1 Reported speech (B)
Why are these people at the doctor's? What do they say is wrong with them?
133Exercises
1 Changes in reported speech (A-B)
Read what each person says and then complete the sentences. ► Vicky: Daniel told me on Friday that he'd had a job interview the previous day. Daniel had a job interview on Thursday. 1 Trevor: Laura tells me I need a haircut. ………………………………….. needs a haircut. 2 Claire: My brother told me in 1997 that he expected to become Manager the following year. Claire's brother expected that he would become Manager in ................................... 3 Alice: I wanted to see Mark in April, but he said he was very busy that month. Mark was very busy in ………………………………………………………… 4 Harriet: I saw Nick last week. He said he'd given up smoking the week before. Nick gave up smoking ................................ ago.
2 Changes of person (A-B)
Put in the missing words.
3 Changes of place and time (A-B)
Put in here, that day, the day before, the next day, the week before. ► Rachel (a week ago): I'm taking my driving test tomorrow. You (today): When I saw Rachel, she said she was taking her driving test the next day 1 Emma (two days ago): I've only had this new computer since yesterday. You (today): Emma said she'd only had the new computer since 2 Matthew (a week ago): I'm meeting a friend at the station later today. You (today): Matthew said he was meeting a friend at the station later 3 Mark (in the street): I'll see you in the office. You (in the office): Mark said he would see me 4 Sarah (a month ago): The conference was last week. You (today): Sarah told me the conference had taken place
134 Reported speech: the tense change
A When do we change the tense?
After a past-tense verb (e.g. said), there is often a tense change. 'It really is cold today.' —> Vicky said it was cold.
If the statement is still up to date when we report it, then we have a choice. We can either leave the tense the same, or we can change it. You said you like/liked chocolate. Claire told me her father owns/owned a racehorse. Sarah said she's going/she was going to Rome in April. We can say that Sarah is going to Rome because it is still true that she will go there.
If the statement is no longer up to date, then we change the tense. Claire once told me that her father owned a racehorse. (He may no longer own one.) Sarah said she was going to Rome in April (Now it is May.) Now Sarah's trip is over, so it is no longer true that she is going to Rome.
We usually change the tense if we think the statement is untrue or may be untrue. You said you liked chocolate, but you aren't eating any. The Prime Minister claimed that the government had made the right decision.
B Is -> was, like -> liked, etc
Look at these examples of the tense change.
DIRECT SPEECH REPORTED SPEECH Andrew is working.' Jessica said Andrew was working. 'The windows aren't locked.' Mark told me the windows weren't locked. 'I've fixed the shelves.' Trevor said he'd fixed the shelves. 'Ifs been raining.' We noticed it had been raining. 'We've got plenty of time.' Rachel insisted they had plenty of time. 'We like the flat.' T he'couple said they liked the flat. If the verb phrase is more than one word (e.g. is working), then the first word changes, e.g. is workings* was working, have fixed had fixed, don't know ~* didn't know. If the verb is already in the past tense, then it can stay the same or change to the past perfect. 'We came by car.' They said they came/they had come by car. 'Sorry. I wasn't listening! / admitted I wasn't listening/hadn't been listening. If the verb is past perfect, it stays the same. 'My money had run out' Daniel said his money had run out.
C Modal verbs: can -► could, etc
Can, may and will change to could, might and would. 'You can sit over there.' The steward said we could sit here. 'I may go to Bali again.' Claire said she might go to Bali again. 'I'll help if you like.' Tom said he would help. Could, might, ought to, should and would stay the same. But must can change to have to. 'Sarah would love a holiday.' Mark thought Sarah would love a holiday. 'I must finish this report.' Sarah said she must finish/had to finish the report.
135 Reported questions
A Wh-questions
We can report questions with verbs like ask, wonder or want to know. Look first at these wh-questions. DIRECT QUESTION 'When did you start acting, Melissa?' 'What's the time?' 'Which way is the post office?' How can we find out?' 'Where can we eat?'
REPORTED QUESTION Guy asked Melissa when she started acting. I just asked what the time is. Someone wants to know which way the post office is. I was wondering how we can find out. They're asking where they can eat.
Wh-questions have a word like when, what, which or how both in direct speech and in reported speech.
B Yes/no questions
DIRECT QUESTION 'Has the taxi arrived yet?' ~ 'No, not yet' 'Can we take photos?' ~ 'Yes, of course.' 'Is there a cafe nearby?' ~ 'No.'
Reported yes/no questions have if or whether.
REPORTED QUESTION Someone was wondering if/whether the taxi has arrived yet. The visitors want to know if/whether they can take photos. Daniel asked if/whether there was a cafe nearby.
Word order
In a reported question the subject comes before the verb, as in a statement. Guy asked Melissa when she started acting. NOT Guy asked-Melissa-when did she start acting. Someone was wondering if the taxi has arrived yet. NOT Someone was wondering if has the taxi arrived yet.
Asking for information
To ask politely for information, we sometimes use a reported question after a phrase like Could you tell me ...? or Do you know ...? Could you tell me what time the concert starts? Do you know if there's a public phone in the building? Have you any idea how much a taxi would cost? Note the word order a taxi would cost (see C).
The tense change: is —► was, etc
In reported speech there are often changes to the tense, to pronouns and so on. This depends on changes to the situation since the words were spoken. For details see Units 133 and 134. Here are some examples of the tense change. 'Whafs the problem?' 'How much money have you got, Vicky?' 'Does Nick need a lift?' 'Can you type?'
We asked what the problem was. I was wondering how much money Vicky had.
Tom asked if Nick needed a lift. They asked me if I could type.
135 Exercises
Reported questions (A-C)
These people are at the tourist information centre. What do they want to know?
? She wants to know what the most interesting sights are. ? He wants to know if the centre has got a town plan. 1 ……………………………………………………….…. 2 ……………………………………………………………. 3 …………………………………………………………... 4 ............................................................................................
Asking for information (D)
You need information. Ask for it using Could you tell me ...? or Do you know...? ► Where are the toilets? (tell) Could you tell me where the toilets are? 1 Can I park here? (know) 2 How long does the film last? (tell) 3 How often do the buses run? (know) 4 Are we allowed to smoke? (know) 5 What time is the flight? (tell) 6 How much does a ticket cost? (tell)
The tense change (E)
Barry Douglas, Zedco Chief Executive, is talking to a reporter about his business career. He can still remember his first job interview after leaving school. Barry: The interviewer asked me where I lived. She asked me if I had worked before. She wanted to know I remember she asked She wondered Then she asked me She wanted to know And she asked me She also asked And finally she asked
Interviewer: ? 'Where do you live?' ? 'Have you worked before?' 1 'Why do you want the job?' 2 'How did you hear about it?' 3 'Are you fit?' 4 'Can you work on Saturdays?' 5 'How will you travel to work?' 6 'Have you got a bicycle?' 7 'How much do you hope to earn?' 8 'When can you start?'
136 Exercises
1 Tell/ask someone to do something (A)
Trevor isn't feeling very happy. Everyone has been telling him what to do. Report the orders and requests. ► His mother: Can you dig my garden, please, Trevor? His mother asked him to dig her garden. 1 The doctor: You must take more exercise.
2 His boss: Would you mind not playing computer games in the office?
3 A traffic warden: You can't park your car in the High Street.
4 Laura: Could you put some shelves up, please, Trevor?
2 Reported offers, suggestions, etc (B)
Complete the sentences. Report what was said.
? Sarah invited Claire to stay for lunch. ? Tom agreed not to talk about football. 1 Matthew advised ................................................................................ 2 Mike apologized .............................................................................. 3 Tom suggested ……………………………………………………… 4 Rachel reminded................................................................................. 5 Mr Atkins admitted ........................................................................ 6 Trevor warned....................................................................................
Admit that, insist that, etc (C)
Combine each pair of sentences using that. ► The roads were dangerous. The police warned us. The police warned us that the roads were dangerous.
1 Everything will be ready on time. The builders have promised.
2 We have to check the figures carefully. The boss insists.
3 Tom's story wasn't completely true. He's admitted it.
i Emma's train was about to leave. Matthew reminded her.
TEST 23 Reported speech (Units 132-136)
Test 23A
Some of these sentences are correct, and some have a word which should not be there. If the sentence is correct, put a tick (/). If it is incorrect, cross the unnecessary word out of the sentence and write it in the space. ? You promised you wouldn't be late. / ? Susan thought 'That I can't understand what's happening.' that 1 Do you know me what time the coach leaves? 2 Robert wanted to know if did the price included breakfast. 3 Anna insisted on showing us her photos. 4 Someone asked us whether that we had eaten lunch. 5 Nancy told me she had started the job the week before. 6 Nigel said me he wanted to come with us. 7 My friend said she did liked her new flat. 8 Martin asked us for not to wake the baby.
Test 23 B
Decide which word is correct. ► What did that man say to you? a) at you b) for you c) to you d) you 1 I rang my friend in Australia yesterday, and she said it………………….. raining there. a) is b) should be c) to be d) was 2 The last time I saw Jonathan, he looked very relaxed. He explained that he'd been on holiday the…………. .......... week. a) earlier b) following c) next d) previous 3 I wonder…………………. the tickets are on sale yet. a) what b) when c) where d) whether 4 I told you…………………. switch off the computer, didn't I? a) don't b) not c) not to d) to not 5 Someone………………......me there's been an accident on the motorway. a) asked b) said c) spoke d) told 6 When I rang Tessa some time last week, she said she was busy…………………… day. a) that b) the c) then d) this 7 When he was at Oliver's flat yesterday, Martin asked if he………………….. use the phone. a) can b) could c) may d) must 8 Judy ........................ going for a walk, but no one else wanted to. a) admitted b) offered c) promised d) suggested
Test 23C
Read the news report and write the missing words. Use one word only in each space. Sometimes there is more than one possible answer.
Police have warned people (►) to watch out for two men who have tricked their way into an old woman's home and stolen money. The men called on Mrs Iris Raine and said (1)…………………….. ... were from the water company and wanted to check (2) ...........…………… ... her water was OK. They asked if (3) ……………………… would mind letting them into her house. The woman didn't ask (4) ...............................see their identity cards. She said she (5) ……………………... know about any problem with the water.
