Direct and Indirect Speech

What is Direct & Indirect Speech?

Direct Speech: the message of the speaker is conveyed or reported in his own

actual words without any change.

Indirect Speech: the message of the speaker is conveyed or reported in our own

words.

Example on Process of Conversion from Direct to Indirect Speech

a) Direct: Radha said, “I am very busy now.”

b) Indirect: Radha said that she was very busy then.

1. All inverted commas or quotation marks are omitted and the sentence ends with

a full stop.

2. Conjunction ‘that’ is added before the indirect statement.

3. The pronoun ‘I’ is changed to ‘she’. (The Pronoun is changed in Person)

4. The verb ‘am’ is changed to ‘was’. (Present Tense is changed to Past)

5. The adverb ‘now’ is changed to ‘then’.

Tips on Direct and Indirect Speech:

Tip 1: Conversion Rules as per the Reporting Verb

When the reporting or principal verb is in the Past Tense, all Present tenses of the

direct are changed into the corresponding Past Tenses.

a) Direct: He said, “I am unwell.”

b) Indirect: He said (that) he was unwell.

If the reporting verb is in the Present or Future Tense, the tenses of the Direct

Speech do not change.

a) Direct: He says/will say, “I am unwell.”

b) Indirect: He says/will say he is unwell.

The Tense in Indirect Speech is NOT CHANGED if the words within the quotation

marks talk of a universal truth or habitual action.

a) Direct: They said, “We cannot live without water.”

b) Indirect: They said that we cannot live without water.

Simple Present Changes to Simple Past

a) Direct: "I am happy", she said.

b) Indirect: She said that she was happy.

Present Continuous Changes to Past Continuous

a) Direct: "I am reading a book", he explained.

b) Indirect: He explained that he was reading a book.

Present Perfect Changes to Past Perfect

a) Direct: She said, "He has finished his food“.

b) Indirect: She said that he had finished his food.

Present Perfect Changes to Past Perfect

a) Direct: "I have been to Gujarat", he told me.

b) Indirect: He told me that he had been to Gujarat.

Tip 3: Conversion Rules of Past & Future Tense

Simple Past Changes to Past Perfect

a) Direct: He said, “Ira arrived on Monday."

b) Indirect: He said that Ira had arrived on Monday.

Past Continuous Changes to Past Perfect Continuous

a) Direct: "We were living in Goa", they told me.

b) Indirect: They told me that they had been living in Goa.

Future Changes to Present Conditional

a) Direct: He said, "I will be in Kolkata tomorrow."

b) Indirect: He said that he would be in Kolkata the next day.

Future Continuous Changes to Conditional Continuous

a) Direct: She said, "I'll be using the car next Friday.”

b) Indirect: She said that she would be using the car next Friday.

Tip 4: Changes in Modals

CAN changes into COULD

a) Direct: He said, "I can swim."

MAY changes into MIGHT

a) Direct: He said, "I may buy a house.”

b) Indirect: He said that he might buy a house.

MUST changes into HAD TO/WOULD HAVE TO

a) Direct: He said, "I must work hard.”

b) Indirect: He said that he had to work hard.

Modals that DO NOT Change: Would, Could, Might, Should, Ought to.

a) Direct: He said, "I should face the challenge.”

b) Indirect: He said that he should face the challenge.

Tip 5: Conversion of Interrogative

Reporting Verb like ‘said/ said to’ changes to asked, enquired or demanded

a) Direct: He said to me, “What are you doing?”

b) Indirect: He asked me what I was doing.

If sentence begins with auxiliary verb, the joining clause should be if or whether.

a) Direct: He said, “Will you come for the meeting?”

b) Indirect: He asked them whether they would come for the meeting.

If sentence begins with ‘wh’ questions then no conjunction is used as the "question-

word" itself act as joining clause.

a) Direct: “Where do you live?” asked the girl.

b) Indirect: The girl enquired where I lived.

Tip 6: Command, Request, Exclamation, Wish

Commands and Requests

Indirect Speech is introduced by some verbs like ordered, requested, advised and

suggested. Forbid(s)/ forbade is used for the negative sentences. The imperative

mood is changed into the Infinitive.

a) Direct: Rafique said to Ahmed, “Go away.”

b) Indirect: Rafique ordered Ahmed to go away.

c) Direct: He said to her, “Please wait.”

Exclamations and Wishes

Indirect Speech is introduced by some words like grief, sorrow, happiness, applaud.

Exclamatory sentence changes into assertive sentence and Interjections are

removed.

a) Direct: He said, “Alas! I am undone.”

b) Indirect: He exclaimed sadly that he was undone.

Tip 7: Change of Pronouns

The first person of the reported speech changes according to the subject of reporting

speech.

a) Direct: She said, “I am in ninth class.”

b) Indirect: She says that she was in ninth class.

The second person of reported speech changes according to the object of reporting

speech.

a) Direct: He says to them, "You have completed your job.”

b) Indirect: He tells them that they have completed their job.

The third person of the reported speech doesn't change.

a) Direct: He says, "She is in tenth class.”

b) Indirect: He says that she is in tenth class.

Tip 8: Change of Place and Time

Words expressing nearness in time or place in Direct Speech are generally changed

into words expressing distance in Indirect Speech.

Now -- then

Here -- there

Ago -- before

Thus -- so

Today -- that day

Tomorrow -- the next day

This -- that
Yesterday -- the day before

These -- those

Hither-- thither

Come -- go

Hence -- thence

Next week/month -- following week/month

a) Direct: She said, “My father came yesterday.”

b) Indirect: She said that her father had come the day before.

c) Direct: She says/will say, “My father came yesterday.”

Indirect: She says/will say that her father had come yesterday. (Here the reporting

verb ‘says’ is in the present tense OR ‘will say’ is in future tense; hence the time

expression ‘yesterday’ won’t change.)

Tip 9: Punctuation

The words that are actually spoken should be enclosed in quotes and begin with a

capital letter

Example: He said, “You are right.”

Comma, full stop, question mark, or exclamation mark must be present at the end of

reported sentences and are placed inside the closing inverted comma or commas.

Example: He asked, “Can I come with you?”

If direct speech comes after the information about who is speaking, comma is used

to introduce the piece of speech, placed before the first inverted comma.

Example: She shouted, “Stop talking!”

Example: “Thinking back,” she said, “he didn't expect to win.” (Comma is used

to separate the two reported speech and no capital letter to begin the second

sentence).

Tip 10: Conversion of Indirect to Direct Speech

1. Use the reporting verb, "say" or "said to" in its correct tense.

2. Remove the conjunctions "that, to, if or whether etc" wherever necessary.

3. Insert quotation marks, question mark, exclamation and full stop, as per the
mood of the sentence.

4. Put a comma before the statement.

5. Write the first word of the statement with capital letter.

6. Change the past tense into present tense wherever the reporting verb is in the

past tense.

7. Convert the past perfect either into past tense or present perfect as found

necessary.

Example

a) Indirect: He asked whether he is coming.

b) Direct: He said to him, “Are you coming?”