AMITY INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL, SEC- 46, GURUGRAM

CLASS – VIII ENGLISH – DIRECT AND INDIRECT SPEECH

If we report what another person has said, we usually do not use the speaker’s exact words
(direct speech), but reported (indirect) speech. Therefore, you need to learn how to transform
direct speech into reported speech. The structure is a little different depending on whether you
want to transform a statement, question or exclamation.

Indirect speech of statements

When transforming statements, you have to change:

 pronouns
 present tense verbs (3rd person singular)
 place and time expressions
 tenses (backshift)
Direct speech: John said, “I will give you a pen.”
Indirect Speech: John said that he would give me a pen.

Changes in pronoun in Indirect Speech:

The pronoun (subject) of the reported speech is changed according to the pronoun of reporting
verb or object (person) of reporting verb (first part of sentence). Sometimes the pronoun may not
change.

1. First person pronoun in reported speech i.e. I, we, me, us, mine, or our, is changed
according to the pronoun of reporting verb if pronoun in reporting verb is third person
pronoun i.e. he, she, it, they, him, his, her, them or their.

Examples.
Direct speech: He said, “I live in New York”
Indirect speech: He said that he lived in New York.
Direct speech: They said, “We love our country”
Indirect speech: They said that they loved their country

2. First person pronoun in reported speech i.e. I, we, me, us, mine, or our, is not changed if the
pronoun (Subject) of reporting is also first person pronoun i.e. I or we.

Examples.
Direct speech: I said, “I write a letter”
Indirect speech: I said that I wrote a letter.
Direct speech: We said, “We completed our work”
Indirect speech: We said that we had completed our work.

3. Second person pronoun in reported speech i.e. you, yours is changed according to the
person of object of reporting verb.
Examples.
Direct speech: She said to him, “You are intelligent”
Indirect speech: She told him that he was intelligent.
Direct speech: He said to me, “You are late for the party”
Indirect speech: He told me that I was late for the party.

4. Third person pronoun in reported speech i.e. he, she, it, they, him, his, her, them or their, is
not changed in indirect speech.

Examples.
Direct speech: They said, “He will come”
Indirect speech: They said that he would come.
Direct speech: You said, “They are waiting for the bus”
Indirect speech: You said that they were waiting for the bus.

Indirect speech of interrogative sentences:

If you put a question into Reported speech there are some steps which are the same like in
statements: (changing of the person, backshift of tenses, changing of expressions of time).

In Reported speech there is no question anymore, the sentence becomes a statement.

That's why the word order is: subject - verb

Questions without question words (yes/no questions):

Peter: "Do you play football?" - Peter asked me whether (if) I played football.

Questions with question words:

Peter: "When do you play football?" - Peter asked me when I played football

Indirect speech of imperative sentences:

A sentence which expresses command, request, advice or suggestion is called imperative
sentence.
To change such sentences into indirect speech, the word “ordered” or “requested” or “advised” or
“suggested” or “forbade” or “not to do” is added to reporting verb depending upon nature of
imperative sentence in reported speech.
Direct speech: Doctor said to me, “Do not eat junk food”
Indirect Speech: Doctor advised me not to eat junk food.

Direct speech: The teacher said to him, “Get out”

Indirect Speech: The teacher instructed him to get out.

Indirect speech of exclamatory sentences:

Sentence which expresses state of joy or sorrow or wonder is called exclamatory sentence.

To change such sentences, the words “exclaimed with joy” or “exclaimed with sorrow” or
“exclaimed with wonder” is added in the reporting verb depending upon the nature of
exclamatory sentence in indirect speech.
 Direct speech: He said, “Hurrah! I won a prize”
Indirect Speech: He exclaimed with joy that he had won a prize.
Direct speech: She said, “Alas! I failed in exam”
Indirect Speech: She exclaimed with sorrow that she had failed in the exam.

Indirect speech of Optative Sentences

Those sentences, which express hope, prayer, or wish, are called optative sentences. Usually,
there is a mark of exclamation at the end of optative sentence. For example:

 May you succeed in the test!

 May you get well soon!
 Would that I were rich!
To change optative sentences into indirect speech, follow the following rules along with the
above-mentioned rules:

 In case, the Reported Speech starts with the word may, then the Reporting Verb said is
replaced with the word prayed.
 In case, the Reported Speech starts with the word would, then the Reporting Verb said is
replaced with the word wished.
 May is changed in might.
 Mark of exclamation is omitted.
 In Indirect Speech, the optative sentences become assertive sentences.
 Examples
Direct Speech Indirect Speech
He said to me, “May you live long!” He prayed that I might live long.
My mother said to me, “May you My mother prayed that I might succeed
succeed in the test!” in the test.


In the following table, you will find ways of changing the tense of the verb:

Direct Speech Reported Speech

Simple Present Simple Past

Present Progressive Past Progressive

 Direct Speech Reported Speech

Simple Past

Present Perfect Simple Past Perfect Simple

Past Perfect Simple

Past Progressive

Present Perfect Progressive Past Perfect Progressive

Past Perfect Progressive

Future I (going to) was / were going to

Future I (will) (would)

The verbs could, would, might, must, needn’t, ought to, used to do not normally change.

Example:
He said, “She might be right.” – He said that she might be right.

In the following table, you will find ways of transforming place and time expressions into
reported speech.

Direct Speech Reported Speech

Today that day

Now Then

Yesterday the day before

… days ago … days before

 Direct Speech Reported Speech

last week the week before

next year the following year

Tomorrow the next day / the following day

Here There

This That

These Those

EXERCISES

I. Rewrite the sentences into Indirect Speech:

a) Ram says, “I am going to school.”
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b) Ram said, “I went to school yesterday.”
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c) Seema said, “Hari, I shall go to Mumbai tomorrow.”
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d) He said to his children, “Don’t go out.”
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e) He said, “What a beautiful building this is.”
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f) The policeman said to him, “What are you doing here?”
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g) I said to Mary, “Will you lend me a pencil?”
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h) “Have you anything to say?” he said to me.
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i) Mahesh said to me, “Leave the room and do not return.”
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j) The doctor said to him, “Don’t eat junk food.”
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k) The girl said, “It gives me great pleasure to be here this evening.”
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l) The man said, “I must go as soon as possible.”
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m) She said, “I don’t want to see any of you.”
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 n) The teacher says, “If you work hard, you will pass.”
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o) .He said, “I have won.”
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p) He said, “Let’s wait for her return.”

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q) Alice said, “How clever I am!”
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r)“Which way did she go?” asked the young man.
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r) He said to me, “Where are you going?”
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s) “Please wait here till I return,” she told him.
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II. Rewrite Indirect Speech into Direct Speech:
a) The poor man exclaimed whether none of them would help him.
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b) Bani asked us why we were all sitting about there doing nothing.
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c) Anuj asked how my father was.
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d) The teacher remarked that they had all done it very well in the exam.
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e) The prince asked whether I really came from China.
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f) I asked whether he did not know the way home.
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g) Amir and Sachin exclaimed that it was a nuisance.
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h) The teacher advised him not to read fast.
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i) The officer shouted to his men to halt.
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j) Madhur and Manoj asked who he was and what he wanted.
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