Reported Speech: Statements, Questions & Commands

In this lesson, you will learn how to report
statements, questions, commands, and requests.
You will also learn tense changes, pronoun changes, time expression changes,
reporting verbs, common mistakes, and useful examples.
At the end, you can practice with exercises and a short grammar quiz.

What Is Reported Speech?

There are two main ways to report what someone says:
Direct Speech and Reported Speech.

Direct Speech

Direct Speech gives the speaker’s exact words.

Sarah said, “I am tired.”

Reported Speech

Reported Speech communicates the same information without using
the speaker’s exact words.

Sarah said that she was tired.

Compare:

• Direct: Tom said, “I like coffee.”
• Reported: Tom said that he liked coffee.

Reported Speech Basic Structure

A common structure is:

Subject + reporting verb + that + reported clause

Example:

She said that she was busy.

The word that is often optional in everyday English.

She said that she was busy.

She said she was busy.

Both sentences are correct.

Say vs Tell

Say and tell are two of the most common
reporting verbs, but they are used differently.

Say

We normally use:

say + something

• She said that she was tired.
• Tom said he was busy.
• They said they would come later.

If we mention the listener after say,
we normally use to.

She said to me that she was tired.

Tell

We normally use:

tell + person + something

• She told me that she was tired.
• Tom told us that he was busy.
• They told Sarah that they would come later.

❌ She told that she was tired.

✅ She told me that she was tired.

✅ She said that she was tired.

Reported Statements

When reporting statements, we normally use
said or told.

Direct:

John said, “I am hungry.”

Reported:

John said that he was hungry.

Another example:

Sarah said, “I work in London.”

Sarah said that she worked in London.

Tense Changes in Reported Speech

When the reporting verb is in the past,
the tense in the original sentence often moves one step back.
This process is sometimes called backshifting.

Present Simple → Past Simple

Direct: “I live in London.”

Reported: She said that she lived in London.

Present Continuous → Past Continuous

Direct: “I am studying.”

Reported: He said that he was studying.

Present Perfect → Past Perfect

Direct: “I have finished my homework.”

Reported: She said that she had finished her homework.

Past Simple → Past Perfect

Direct: “I saw Sarah yesterday.”

Reported: He said that he had seen Sarah the day before.

Will → Would

Direct: “I will call you.”

Reported: She said that she would call me.

Can → Could

Direct: “I can swim.”

Reported: He said that he could swim.

May → Might

Direct: “I may come later.”

Reported: She said that she might come later.

Reported Speech Tense Change Table

When Do Tenses Not Need to Change?

Backshifting is not always necessary.
If the information is still true, the original tense can sometimes remain unchanged.

Direct:

The teacher said, “The Earth goes around the Sun.”

Reported:

The teacher said that the Earth goes around the Sun.

Because the statement is still true, the Present Simple is natural.

Pronoun Changes in Reported Speech

Pronouns often change depending on who is speaking and who is being discussed.

Direct:

Sarah said, “I love my job.”

Reported:

Sarah said that she loved her job.

Another example:

Tom said to me, “I will help you.”

Tom told me that he would help me.

Time Expression Changes

Words referring to time often change when we report a sentence later.

Reported Speech with Yesterday

Direct:

She said, “I saw Tom yesterday.”

Reported:

She said that she had seen Tom the day before.

Reported Speech with Tomorrow

Direct:

He said, “I will finish the work tomorrow.”

Reported:

He said that he would finish the work
the following day.

Reported Yes/No Questions

When reporting a yes/no question, we normally use
if or whether.

Structure:

asked + if / whether + subject + verb

Direct:

She asked, “Do you like coffee?”

Reported:

She asked if I liked coffee.

Another example:

Direct: “Are you busy?”

Reported: He asked whether I was busy.

Word Order in Reported Questions

Reported questions use normal statement word order.
We do not use question word order after the reporting verb.

❌ She asked where did I live.

✅ She asked where I lived.

❌ He asked if was I tired.

✅ He asked if I was tired.

Reported WH- Questions

For questions beginning with words such as
what, where, when, why, who, or how,
we keep the question word.

Direct:

“Where do you live?”

Reported:

She asked me where I lived.

More examples:

• “What are you doing?” → He asked me what I was doing.
• “Where is Sarah?” → She asked where Sarah was.
• “Why did you leave?” → He asked why I had left.
• “When will you arrive?” → She asked when I would arrive.
• “How did you solve it?” → He asked how I had solved it.

Do, Does, and Did in Reported Questions

The auxiliary verbs do, does, and did
usually disappear when a direct question becomes a reported question.

Direct:

“Where do you work?”

Reported:

She asked me where I worked.

Not:

❌ She asked me where did I work.

Reported Commands

Commands are normally reported using:

tell + person + to + base verb

Direct:

The teacher said, “Open your books.”

Reported:

The teacher told the students to open their books.

More examples:

• “Sit down.” → She told me to sit down.
• “Wait here.” → He told us to wait there.
• “Call me later.” → She told him to call her later.

Reported Negative Commands

For negative commands, use:

tell + person + not to + base verb

Direct:

“Don’t touch that.”

Reported:

She told me not to touch that.

More examples:

• “Don’t be late.” → He told me not to be late.
• “Don’t open the door.” → She told us not to open the door.
• “Don’t use your phone.” → The teacher told us not to use our phones.

Reported Requests

Requests are commonly reported with
ask + person + to + base verb.

Direct:

“Please help me.”

Reported:

She asked me to help her.

Direct:

“Please don’t make any noise.”

Reported:

He asked us not to make any noise.

Tell vs Ask in Commands and Requests

Use tell for instructions or commands.

The manager told us to finish the work.

Use ask for requests.

She asked me to help her.

Common Reporting Verbs

English has many reporting verbs that allow us to describe
the speaker’s intention more accurately.

• say
• tell
• ask
• advise
• warn
• suggest
• promise
• offer
• admit
• deny
• explain
• recommend
• remind

Advise

advise + person + to + verb

The doctor said, “You should rest.”

The doctor advised me to rest.

Warn

warn + person + not to + verb

“Don’t touch the wire.”

He warned us not to touch the wire.

Promise

promise + to + verb

“I will help you.”

She promised to help me.

Offer

offer + to + verb

“I’ll carry your bag.”

He offered to carry my bag.

Suggest

Suggest has different structures.

suggest + verb-ing

“Let’s go by train.”

She suggested going by train.

We can also use:

suggest that + subject + verb

She suggested that we go by train.

Avoid:

❌ She suggested me to go by train.

Admit

admit + verb-ing

“I broke the window.”

He admitted breaking the window.

Deny

deny + verb-ing

“I didn’t take the money.”

She denied taking the money.

Reported Speech with Modal Verbs

Some modal verbs change when reported.

• will → would
• can → could
• may → might

Other modal verbs often remain unchanged.

• could → could
• would → would
• should → should
• might → might

Example

Direct: “I can help you.”

Reported: She said that she could help me.

Direct: “You should study more.”

Reported: He said that I should study more.

Reported Speech with Must

Must may remain must
or change to had to depending on meaning and context.

Direct:

“I must finish the report today.”

Reported:

She said that she had to finish the report that day.

Reported Speech: Direct vs Indirect Examples

Example 1

Direct: “I am tired,” Sarah said.

Reported: Sarah said that she was tired.

Example 2

Direct: “I have finished my homework,” Tom said.

Reported: Tom said that he had finished his homework.

Example 3

Direct: “Will you come tomorrow?” she asked.

Reported: She asked if I would come the following day.

Example 4

Direct: “Where do you live?” he asked.

Reported: He asked me where I lived.

Example 5

Direct: “Close the window,” she said.

Reported: She told me to close the window.

Example 6

Direct: “Don’t be late,” he said.

Reported: He told me not to be late.

Common Reported Speech Mistakes

Mistake 1: Confusing Say and Tell

❌ She told that she was tired.

✅ She said that she was tired.

✅ She told me that she was tired.

Mistake 2: Keeping Question Word Order

❌ He asked where did I live.

✅ He asked where I lived.

Mistake 3: Using “Do” in Reported Questions

❌ She asked where do I work.

✅ She asked where I worked.

Mistake 4: Forgetting “To” in Reported Commands

❌ The teacher told us open the book.

✅ The teacher told us to open the book.

Mistake 5: Incorrect Negative Command

❌ She told me to not touch it.

The more standard structure is:

✅ She told me not to touch it.

Mistake 6: Forgetting Pronoun Changes

Direct: Sarah said, “I love my job.”

❌ Sarah said that I loved my job.

✅ Sarah said that she loved her job.

Mistake 7: Forgetting Time Expression Changes

Direct: He said, “I will call you tomorrow.”

✅ He said that he would call me the following day.

Reported Speech Quick Comparison

• Statement: said / told + clause
• Yes/No Question: asked + if / whether
• WH- Question: asked + question word + statement word order
• Command: told + person + to + verb
• Negative Command: told + person + not to + verb
• Request: asked + person + to + verb

Reported Speech Worksheet

Change the following sentences into Reported Speech.

1. Sarah said, “I am tired.”
2. Tom said, “I have finished the report.”
3. Emma said, “I will call you tomorrow.”
4. He asked me, “Do you like coffee?”
5. She asked, “Where do you live?”
6. The teacher said, “Open your books.”
7. My mother said, “Don’t stay up late.”
8. John said, “I saw Peter yesterday.”
9. She asked me, “Can you help me?”
10. The doctor said, “You should drink more water.”

Reported Speech Mini Quiz

1. “I am tired.” → She said that she _____ tired.

A) is
B) was
C) has

2. “I will call you.” → He said that he _____ call me.

A) would
B) will
C) can

3. “Do you like coffee?” → She asked _____ I liked coffee.

A) that
B) if
C) what

4. “Where do you live?” → He asked me where I _____.

A) did live
B) lived
C) do live

5. “Close the door.” → She told me _____ the door.

A) close
B) to close
C) closing

6. “Don’t touch it.” → He told me _____ it.

A) don’t touch
B) not touch
C) not to touch

7. Which sentence is correct?

A) She told that she was busy.
B) She said me that she was busy.
C) She told me that she was busy.

8. Tomorrow often changes to:

A) yesterday
B) the following day
C) that morning

9. Yesterday often changes to:

A) the day before
B) tomorrow
C) next week

10. Which sentence has correct reported-question word order?

A) She asked where was I going.
B) She asked where I was going.
C) She asked where did I go.

Reported Speech Summary

Reported Speech allows us to report what another person
said without repeating their exact words.

• Statements: She said that she was tired.
• Yes/No Questions: She asked if I was tired.
• WH- Questions: She asked where I lived.
• Commands: She told me to sit down.
• Negative Commands: She told me not to leave.
• Requests: She asked me to help her.

When the reporting verb is in the past, remember to check
verb tense, pronouns, time expressions, and word order.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is Reported Speech?

Reported Speech is used to communicate what another person said
without quoting their exact words.

What is the difference between Direct and Reported Speech?

Direct Speech uses the speaker’s exact words.
Reported Speech communicates the meaning of those words using
a new grammatical structure.

What is the difference between say and tell?

Say normally does not require a person immediately after it,
while tell normally does.

✅ She said that she was tired.

✅ She told me that she was tired.

Do all tenses change in Reported Speech?

Not always. Tense backshifting is common when the reporting verb is in the past,
but a tense may remain unchanged when the information is still true
or when the context does not require a change.

How do we report questions?

Use normal statement word order.
For yes/no questions, use if or whether.
For WH- questions, keep the original question word.

How do we report commands?

Use:
tell + person + to + base verb.

For negative commands, use:
tell + person + not to + base verb.

How do we report requests?

Requests commonly use:
ask + person + to + base verb.

Continue Practicing English Grammar

Improve your Reported Speech skills with these related
English Test Center grammar tests:

• 
  B1 Reported Speech Statements – Grammar Test
  
• 
  Advanced Reported Speech – B2 Grammar Test
  
• 
  B2 Reported Speech Advanced – Grammar Test 1
  
• 
  B2 Reported Speech Advanced – Grammar Test 2
  
• 
  B2 Reported Speech Advanced – Grammar Test 3
  
• 
  Browse All English Grammar Worksheets
  
• 
  English Grammar Exercises
  

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