اللغة الإنجليزية11 فصل ثاني

Reported speech

Direct Speech and Reported Speech

There are two ways to report what someone says or thinks:

Direct Speech

Direct speech shows a person's exact words. Quotation marks ("....") indicate that the words are exactly as the person used them.

Example:

Hassan asked, "Where are you going?"

Muna replied, "I'm going home."

Reported Speech

Reported speech puts the speaker's words or ideas into a sentence without quotation marks. In reported speech, the reader does not assume that the words are exactly as spoken; often, they are a paraphrase of the speaker’s words.

Example:

Hassan asked Muna where she was going.

Muna said she was going home.

Note:

The use of "that" is optional in reported speech.

 

Converting Statements in Reported Speech

1. Changing Verb Tenses in Reported Speech

When reporting speech, we usually shift the original verb one tense back, except for the past perfect, past perfect continuous, and modal verbs in their second form along with the verbs that follow them.

Example:

"I've found you a new phone."

He told me (that) he had found me a new phone.

Verb Tense Changes:

Direct Speech	Reported Speech
V1/V2 → had + V3
Play → played	had played
Win/s → won	had won
am/is → was	had been
are → were	had been
have/has → had	had had
don’t/doesn’t + V1 → didn’t + V1	hadn’t + V3

2. Changing Modal Verbs

Direct Speech	Reported Speech
Can	could
will/shall	would
May	might
Must	must or had to
have to/has to	had to

Example:

"We must go to Hong Kong tomorrow."

He said we had to go to Hong Kong the following day.

 

3. Changing Demonstratives

Direct Speech	Reported Speech
This	that
These	those

 

4. Changing Time and Place Expressions

Direct Speech	Reported Speech
now	then
right now	right then/at that time
ago	before
here	there
since Sunday	the Sunday before
tomorrow morning	the morning after
yesterday	the day before/the previous day
today	that day
tomorrow	the day after/the following/next day
last week	the week before/the previous week
this week	that week
next week	the week after/the following/next week
last night	the night before/the previous night
tonight	that night

5. Changing Pronouns

Direct Speech	Reported Speech
I	he/she
you (sub)	he/she/they
we/they	they
my	his/her
your	his/her/their
me	him/her
you (obj)	him/her/them
us	them

Note:

"I am" changes to "he was" if the speaker is male and "she was" if the speaker is female.

"myself" changes to "himself" if the speaker is male and "herself" if the speaker is female.

Verbs Used to Report Statements:

Suggested, Recommended, Explained, Stated, Told, Complained, Apologized, Boasted, Emphasized, Denied, Assured.

Example:

"I am the richest man in town."

Ali boasted that he was the richest man in town.

When NOT to Change the Verb Tense in Reported Speech

1. When the reporting verb is in the present simple or present perfect:

Direct Speech: "I like ice cream."

Reported Speech: Doa'a says (that) she likes ice cream.

2. When the statement is reported soon after it was said and the situation is still relevant:

Direct Speech: "I am going to the store."

Reported Speech: He said he is going to the store.

3. When the reported information is still true (general facts and universal truths):

Direct Speech: "The Earth revolves around the Sun."

Reported Speech: He said that the Earth revolves around the Sun.

Direct Speech: "Water freezes at 0 degrees Celsius."

Reported Speech: She said that water freezes at 0 degrees Celsius.

4. When the action in direct speech is still happening or is going to happen:

Direct Speech: "I’m going to go to the one next week as well."

Reported Speech: She said she’s going to go to the one next week as well.

 

Questions in Reported Speech

Word Order

The word order in a reported question is the same as in a statement (the subject comes before the verb).

Direct question: "Are you ready?"
Question in reported speech: She wanted to know if I was ready. → (.....if + S + V......)

 

Yes or No Questions

Structure: if / whether + S + V + C

Use ask + (object) + if/whether for yes/no questions.

Replace the question mark with a period.

Direct question: "Can you write?"
Question in reported speech: He asked (me) if/whether I could write.

1. "Is supper ready or not?" → Ali wanted to know whether supper was ready.
2. "Have you ever been to Ajloun?" → Muna asked me if/whether I had ever been to Ajloun.
3. "Are you living here?" → He asked me if I was living there.

With "Do/Does/Did" in Direct Speech

Do/does → Remove and change the following verb to the past simple.

Did → Remove and change the following verb to the past perfect.

Direct speech: "Do you like chocolate?"
Reported speech: She asked me if/whether I liked chocolate.

Direct speech: "Did you turn off the coffee pot?"
Reported speech: I asked Hiba if she had turned off the coffee pot.

 

Wh- Questions

Structure: wh-word + S + V + C

Direct speech: "Where is the mosque, please?"
Reported speech: She asked me where the mosque was.

1. "Where will you be?" → Dina wanted to know where I would be.
2. "What are you doing here?" → Mother asked me what I was doing here.
3. "Where do they live?" → Abdullah wanted to know where they lived.
4. "Why did you say that?" → Hassan asked me why I had said that.
5. "Why can't you listen to what we are saying?" → He asked her why she couldn’t listen to what they were saying.

 

Commands and Order

Use tell/order/demand + object + (not) + infinitive to report commands.

Direct speech: "Sit down."
Reported speech: She told me to sit down.

Direct speech: "Don't worry!"
Reported speech: He told her not to worry.

1. "Call me when you get home." → Mom ordered/told me to call her when I got home.

Mom said I should call her when I got home.

2. "Meet me here tonight." → Hassan told me to meet him there that night.
3. "Don't block the doors of the building!" → We ordered them not to block the doors of the building.

 

Requests 

Use ask/request + object + (not) + infinitive to report requests.

Direct speech:

"Close the window, please."

"Could you close the window, please?"

"Would you mind closing the window, please?"

Reported speech: She asked me to close the window.

1. "Please, take the fish finger out of the soup." → He asked me to take the fish finger out of the soup.
2. "Will you carry the box for me, please?" → She asked me to carry the box for her.
3. "Please help me." → She asked me to help her.
4. "Please don't smoke." → She asked me not to smoke.
5. "Could you bring my book tonight?" → She asked me to bring her book that night.
6. "Would you mind coming early tomorrow?" → She asked me to come early the next day.