Reported speech in English
Sign up for free to get all information about private lessons and our available group courses (A1, A2, B2, B2, C1, C2)
Sign up for free Course informationsSign up for free to get all information about private lessons and our available group courses (A1, A2, B2, B2, C1, C2)
Sign up for free Course informationsWe offer both private lessons and organized group courses
Sign up for free to get all available courses or contact one of our teachers yourself!
Our offer
In this chapter the reported speech is explained. There are two different ways to report someone's words: you can use direct speech with quotation marks or you can use reported (indirect) speech.
Reported speech is used to report ideas expressed by another person in order to tell in our own words what someon has said. You can report someone's words in two ways:
Take online language lessons with a professional teacher
The direct speech repeats the exact words someone said. These repeated quotations or phrases are placed between quatation marks and the verb tense is not modified.
Examples:
The indirect speech is used to talk about what someone said in the past. This implies a modification of the verb tenses in comparison to direct speech. The verbs: 'to say', 'to tell', 'to advise', 'to promise' or 'to ask' are used, usually followed by the word 'that', to present the speech that has been said.
Examples:
The verbal tense of a sentence changes when we go from direct speech to indirect speech. The table below show the changes that have to be made when the direct speech is converted to indirect speech.
Direcht speech | Indirect speech | ||
---|---|---|---|
Present simple | "He is a teacher", she said. | Past simple | She said that he was a teacher. |
Present continuous | He said, "I am making dinner". | Past continuous | He said that he was making dinner. |
Present perfect | They asked, "Have you been to Australia?" | Passt perfect | They asked me if I had been to Australia. |
Present perfect continuous | “I’ve been studying Italian for four years,” he said. | Past perfect continuous | He said he’d been studying Italian for four years. |
Past simple | Mary said: “I didn’t go to school yesterday". | Past perfect | Mary said that she hadn’t gone to school the day before. |
Past continuous | He said, "I was having a shower when you called". | Past perfect continuous | He said that he had been having a shower when I called. |
Past perfect | "I had prepared something special for you", he said. | Past perfect (does not change) | He said that he had prepared something special for me. |
Past perfect continuous | She said, “I had been repairing the car before we went.” | Past perfect continuous (does not change) | She said that she had been repairing the car before they went. |
Future simple | He said, "I will go tomorrow" | Auxiliary would | He said that he would go tomorrow. |
It is not always necessary to modify the verb tense. If the quotation or speech is still true now, the present simple can be used:
Some modal verbs are also modified when used in the reported speech.
Direct speech | Indirect speech | ||
---|---|---|---|
Can | “Can you open the door, please?”, he asked. | Could | He asked me if I could open the door. |
Must | “You must wear your seat belt,” the police said. | Had to | The police said that I had to wear my seat belt. |
Shall | "Shall we go to the beach today?” Mom asked. | Should | Mom asked if we should go to the beach that day. |
May | "May I help you?", he asked. | Might/ could | He asked me if he could help me. |
The modal verbs do not change if they already have the follwing forms in direct speech:
Some expressions of time or place also undergo modifications when changing form direct ot indirect speech:
Direct speech | Indirect speech |
---|---|
Here | There |
Now | Then |
Today | That day |
Tomorrow | The following day |
A week ago/ last week | A week before/ the previous week |
Last month | The month before/the previous month |
Next year | The following year |
In four years | Four years from then |
This | That |
These | Those |
Test yourself with the free exercises about reported speech below.
Unlike in other platforms, all our teachers are manually verified by our professional team. Trust in the experiences of our students.
-About Me
Hi! My name is Daniel. I'm 26 years old and I currently live in Seville, Spain. I have been teaching Spanish for 4 years now because I love to teach my language and culture to others. I'm interested in movies, especially french cinema of Nouvelle Vague, literature and music of all genres.
-Me as a Teacher
I graduated in Hispanic Philology with a master’s degree in Teaching Spanish as a Second Language at University of Sevilla with more than 3 years of experience teaching Spanish to students from different nationalities, countries, ages and levels (from absolutely begginer to C2).
I have worked with USA and Erasmus university students, refugees with any knowledge of Spanish, British, Chinese or Koreans students, among others. For doing that I have prepared personalized lessons based on the needs and interests of the students.
Also, I’m an official DELE Examiner certified by Instituto Cervantes who has helped a lot of students to get their Spanish level certificated in different levels.
-My Lessons & Teaching Style
-Very communicative lessons adapted to the needs and interests of my students.
-Personalised lessons based on each student and their goals.
-Lessons about conversation, gramar, culture…
-My main goal is to help you to speak Spanish with confidence and fluently.
-Access to all the material used.
Reviews
Teaching methodology
Communication
Punctuality
Internet connection
Learning materials
Daniel has over 4 years of teaching experience. He has experience in teaching online, offline and to people from all different cultural backgrounds. He teaches all levels from A1 to C2. Furthermore, he has a broad variety of learning materials available for each level. You will surely learn a lot from him!
This review was written by a coLanguage team member during a manual screening of this teacher profile.
Review
Teaching methodology
Communication
Punctuality
Internet connection
Learning materials
English teacher with 13 years teaching experience in Italy. Speaks English and Italian.
Hi, I'm Jason, I'm English and live in Central Italy where I teach English to students of all levels, all ages and all abilities. English for school, for exams or tests, for work or for business.
My methods are based on building your confidence to speak English, developing your listening skills so you can understand English and helping you understand the grammar rules of the English language.
Why in this way? Because my students have the best results when they are able to speak in English as soon as possible. Then, when you can converse in English and understand simple conversation you can develop all your language skills very quickly.
Of course, for some students, grammar and written English is a priority and I can help you develop these skills first if that is what you need.
For others they need to learn specific vocabulary for their work, I have given courses in business, medicine and tourism that can be adapted for all types of work situations.
I am teaching students from 3 to 70 years old and my lessons are adapted for every individual so they have the best opportunity to realize their goals.
If you are interested then please contact me for a chat and a free trial lesson.
Reviews
Teaching methodology
Communication
Punctuality
Internet connection
Learning materials
I met Jason about a year ago and immediately I really liked his teaching method, his patience, his ability to carry out lessons that are always different and never monotonous and, above all, his suggestions and continuous encouragement to improve. He is truly a great teacher!
Review
Teaching methodology
Communication
Punctuality
Internet connection
Learning materials
I've been living and working as a Turkish teacher in London for 5 years. I studied Turkish language and literature. I graduated from Kocaeli University in 2009. I have pedagogical proficiency and a Teaching Turkish for Foreigners certificate from Istanbul University.
I have experience at high schools and secondary schools in İstanbul/Turkey for 5 years.
All the collateral will be provided by me. I will give you homework after every lesson and we will check it together.
I use a theory book and an excercise book for my lessons, versions vary according to your level (A1, A2, B1, B2, C1). They're all published by Istanbul University and are called `Turkish For Foreigners`
I also use powerpoint presentations during my lessons. It makes it easier to understand the grammar rules.
My lessons are about grammar, listening, speaking and writing.
Lessons are interactive and fun as I believe a playful approach to learning a new language helps retaining information. Games and other devices such as cards will be be used during the lessons.
For more information please do not hesitate to ask me any questions. Thank you very much. Have a great day! :)
Reviews
Teaching methodology
Communication
Punctuality
Internet connection
Learning materials
Samet has a lot of teaching experience. He is patient and enthusiastic to learn you a new language. Furthermore, he has lots of different teaching materials that make his lessons fun and interactive.
This review was written by a coLanguage team member during a manual screening of this teacher profile.
Review
Teaching methodology
Communication
Punctuality
Internet connection
Learning materials
Dear Sir/ Mam
My name is Monesh Nankoo. I am an I.T specialist/ Teacher. I am writing to show my keen interest for the position at your organization. I have completed my Bachelor's degree in Computer Science as well as my TEFL/ TESOL English master course. I do have several other qualifications in the field of I.T and logistics with are stated on my Resume.
I am a capable person along with excellent communication skills. I assure you that I will prove myself to be a valuable employee. I possess the necessary qualities needed to persevere such as adaptability, integrity and I am self-motivated.
I am really good at learning quickly and efficiently. I want to work at your company because I feel I could definitely add quality to the work that you do. I would love to work with you to achieve a greater reputation for your organization.
My future plans are to gain more experience in the field of Education or Information Technology to enhance my career.
Thank you for taking your time to review my application. Please contact me if you have any questions.
Yours sincerely,
Monesh Nankoo
Contact details:
Skype: moneshnankoo
Line: moneshnankoo
WeChat: Monesh_Nankoo
Email: Moneshnankoo@gmail.com
Alternative email: Moneshnankoo@hotmail.com
Mobile number: 0813307660/ 068 099 0519
Country: South Africa
Reviews
Teaching methodology
Communication
Punctuality
Internet connection
Learning materials
Monesh is a very enthusiastic and patient teacher. He is very well-organized and a native English speaker from South Africa.
This review was written by a coLanguage team member during a manual screening of this teacher profile.
Review
Teaching methodology
Communication
Punctuality
Internet connection
Learning materials
I am a certified TEFL teacher and have taught ESL for the past three years. I can help you become more confident in speaking the English language which I believe is one of the most important parts of learning a language. If you want to pass exams I can also help you prepare for them and create lessons focused on listening, writing, oral and reading. I love traveling and if you are interested we can talk about the difference in cultures or any known sites in that country. We can speak about any categories you choose from politics to nature, I can build a class on that. I will help you in any way you can from beginners to advance I want to help you learn English!
Reviews
Teaching methodology
Communication
Punctuality
Internet connection
Learning materials
I liked the conversion we had - teacher changed topic few time topic in the right direction and it help very much for speaking.
Review
Teaching methodology
Communication
Punctuality
Internet connection
Learning materials
Hello everyone! My name is Maryna, and I am passionate about teaching my native language (Ukrainian).
For those of you who find it boring to learn languages without context, I also explain the historical, cultural and ethnic background, which influenced the development of the Ukrainian language. I want you not only to understand and to be able to speak the language but also feel its beauty and melody.
I am a professional teacher of the Ukrainian language, and I would be glad to help you with learning.
I have 5 years of teaching experience.
If you are looking for a professional and cheerful teacher, do not hesitate to text me.
My teaching methods: the communicative approach, task-based method, engage-study-activate.
Reviews
Teaching methodology
Communication
Punctuality
Internet connection
Learning materials
she is a young professional teacher, she has a very high knowledge of grammar and rules and a nice way of teaching.
Review
Teaching methodology
Communication
Punctuality
Internet connection
Learning materials
Hello! I am a CELTA-qualified native English teacher offering lessons carefully tailored to your needs. Learn by dynamic conversation exchange, written pieces, songs lyrics, podcasts, and fun and challenging exercises. Try out a trial lesson and let’s work together to bring you closer to your English language goals!
- Intermediate Italian and Spanish speaker -
Reviews
Teaching methodology
Communication
Punctuality
Internet connection
Learning materials
Melissa is a teacher with great empathy. She clearly enjoys teaching English and does this in a very professional manner.
Review
Teaching methodology
Communication
Punctuality
Internet connection
Learning materials
Hey everyone!
My name is Ashlyn, and I am a native English speaker from New Zealand :) I love to create lessons for my students to help them make their English language journey as enjoyable as possible! I am an online university student studying history and social anthropology.
I have two years of teaching experience in private English language schools, and I also have a CELTA certificate. Therefore, I know how to teach English effectively and create lessons to practice speaking, reading, writing, and listening skills.
I love to use technology in the classroom, and I always create fun and colourful PowerPoint presentations to guide us through the lesson. I am always open to suggestions from my students. If you want to focus more on certain topics or activities, I am happy to make that possible for you.
Reviews
Teaching methodology
Communication
Punctuality
Internet connection
Learning materials
I would like to recommend Ashlyn P. as an English language teacher. She is a great English teacher : patient, reliable, professional and very motivated. Her classes are very interesting : I have possibility to practice speaking and grammar, I always receive feedback about my mistakes and we practice the problems that are most difficult for me. She is also a very friendly and easy - going person. I am very happy with my decision to study online and I would recommend her to any online student who wants to improve his language skills.
Review
Teaching methodology
Communication
Punctuality
Internet connection
Learning materials
Hello everyone,
I have a master degree in teaching with 10 years of experience. My lessons cover a wide range of topics from science to literature. I create the learning plan according to the learner's needs. If you are looking for both enjoyable and helpful experience in English and Turkish languages for all levels, schedule a meeting with me!
See you..
Merhaba,
10 yıllık öğretmenlik deneyimiyle birlikte, eğitim alanında yüksek lisans mezunuyum. Derslerim bilimden edebiyata kadar geniş yelpazede bir çok konuyu kapsamaktadır. Öğretim planını her öğrencinin ihtiyacına göre, bireysel olarak hazırlamaktayım. Türkçe ve İngilizce dillerinde keyifli ve öğretici bir deneyim yaşamak isteyen herkes derslerime davetlidir.
Görüşmek üzere..
Reviews
Teaching methodology
Communication
Punctuality
Internet connection
Learning materials
I took one hour class from Nora B. Teacher and I could say that it was professional and well organized. Teacher ask you first what your purpose is. Then she organizes the schedule. Also she sends lesson materials via email. I deeply recommend her.
Cagla B.Dear Selo, Thank you. I wish you the best of luck and success on your preparation of lELTS exam.
Review
Teaching methodology
Communication
Punctuality
Internet connection
Learning materials
Hello! I am a CELTA-qualified native English teacher offering lessons carefully tailored to your needs. Learn by dynamic conversation exchange, written pieces, songs lyrics, podcasts, and fun and challenging exercises. Try out a trial lesson and let’s work together to bring you closer to your English language goals!
- Intermediate Italian and Spanish speaker -
Reviews
Teaching methodology
Communication
Punctuality
Internet connection
Learning materials
she is a professional mother language teacher. She is strongly problem solving oriented. She offers a wide range of tools to learn the language. She has a nice way of teaching.
Review
Teaching methodology
Communication
Punctuality
Internet connection
Learning materials
Well done on making the first step to learning English! It is a fantastic addition to your professional or personal profile. I started my journey as an actress, I moved quickly into the world of Education finding my passion in early childhood development. I am a qualified teacher and have been working in international schools for many years. I recently acquired my TEFL certificate allowing me to expand my horizons and teach online. I grew up in Hong Kong before moving back to England. I have lived in Portugal for the last year teaching Portuguese and French children, I loved the diversity and felt I wanted to teach adults too. Since then I have been tutoring online which has given me the chance to meet people from all over the world and help them on their language journey in a comfortable and open environment. I am married to a Frenchman so I have basic understanding of French and I have a French tutor myself!
I usually test the level at the beginning and then plan with the students the goals they want to achieve. After that with every lesson I check progress and points to review with the help of a log to have a clear plan in every lesson. I believe it is VERY important for the teacher and student to share a positive connection and for both parties to feel comfortable. Drop me an email to make the booking!
Reviews
Teaching methodology
Communication
Punctuality
Internet connection
Learning materials
Samantha is a fantastic teacher, she clearly has lots of experience and I felt an instant connection with her. I have been looking for the right person to help me with my spoken English and I believe we will be a good fit when I am ready to book more lessons. Thanks Samantha I cant wait to start learning with you,
Review
Teaching methodology
Communication
Punctuality
Internet connection
Learning materials
Hi, welcome to my profile!
My name is Alessia and I currently live in Italy. I lived some years in America where I deepened my knowledge of English and American dialects. I am currently specializing in the Spanish and German. In all these years I have given private lessons of Italian, English, Spanish and Japanese, at the moment the most required language. Regarding Japanese, I had the opportunity to experience the teaching of the language in an American College with a native Japanese teacher, implementing the method that they themselves use to learn their language. I will help you in a simple way; conversation is really important to learn a language and even more a good method. No days spent on textbooks are needed, constancy and fun during lessons are the most important part for learning. You will see the results immediately! I am patient, flexible and I will adapt in all ways to your personal needs. I'll wait for you on my profile for the trial lesson and discover an easy and fun method to learn a language as soon as possible.
Reviews
Teaching methodology
Communication
Punctuality
Internet connection
Learning materials
The teacher is always on time and uses perfect learning materials to learn the language. Very prepared in what she teaches and in the way she does it; very useful lessons!
Alessia T.Thank you Hilary!
Review
Teaching methodology
Communication
Punctuality
Internet connection
Learning materials
I am a BA in Education graduate, with vast experience in primary, secondary and higher education levels, as well as in other activities related to education. I believe I have a diverse background which makes me a very adaptable teacher and with a lot to offer.
Most of my experience is in high school ,in adult education and university students. I have been able to develop a good relationship with my students, which has translated to better communication and an altogether more rounded experience for them and myself. My lesson planning has always aimed to reflect my students’ needs and interest applied into useful communicative language structures that they can actually use in their lives.
In my last years as a teacher, I have focused on preparing test-takers for the TOEFL. It has been a completely different experience from what I have had before, but I have helped my students accomplish the desired scores in the proposed time.
I believe in making the learning of a new language something exciting and not frightening at all, but challenging and gratifying instead. My material is dynamic and keeps my students engaged and continuesly developing their communiation skills.
I am flexible with my students' time and shcedule; naturally, it is open for deliberation if needed. I look forward to helping you get to the desired goals you set foryourself!
Reviews
Teaching methodology
Communication
Punctuality
Internet connection
Learning materials
Daniel is a wonderful teacher. He can deduce what the needs of each student are and make the class in an entertaining and enriching way. I definitely recommend this teacher!
Review
Teaching methodology
Communication
Punctuality
Internet connection
Learning materials
Hello!
Do you want to learn Italian from zero or improve your language level? Do you need to pass a language certification's exam?
My name is Alessio, and I am and experienced Italian instructor with passion for my job.
Contact me, and we can discuss together a customized plan of lessons.
Alessio
Reviews
Teaching methodology
Communication
Punctuality
Internet connection
Learning materials
I learn Italian with Alessio and I would say that it's a great experience. He is a very thoughtful teacher who puts a lot of thought into how he presents the material. He paces me just right so I feel myself challenged but not overwhelmed. His lessons are engaging, useful, and he is very patient. I would highly recommend him to anyone interested in learning Italian.
Review
Teaching methodology
Communication
Punctuality
Internet connection
Learning materials
Hello! My name is Lucille and I’m from South Africa. I’m a fun and adaptable tutor who is able to adjust my teaching method according to the focus and needs of every individual student. I have 120hr TEFL certification and 4 years of experience in teaching children of all ages as well as adults. I’m a former actress, dancer, musician and makeup artist. My lessons are a warm and friendly environment where students are able to freely express themselves and are able to ask me questions at any time.
Reviews
Teaching methodology
Communication
Punctuality
Internet connection
Learning materials
Lucille is an enthusiastic teacher. She has 4 years of teaching experience. She has taught to children and adults. Furthermore, she is eager to help you learn English!
This review was written by a coLanguage team member during a manual screening of this teacher profile.
Review
Teaching methodology
Communication
Punctuality
Internet connection
Learning materials