Reported speech in English

Reported speech I. Definition: Reported speech is used to report what other people have said. - Tom said, “I’m very tired.”→ Tom said (that) he was very tired. - The teacher said, “Close the window, please!” → The teacher told us to close the window. Reporting verbs are: say, tell, ask, advise, wonder… II. Changes in reported speech: 1. Pronoun changes: I → he/ she, you → I/ he/ she, we → they… me → him/ her…….. my → his/ her…….. mine → his/ hers………. this → that these → those 2. Adverbs of time: now → then today → that day tonight → that night to come → to go ago → before last → the previous yesterday → the day before / the previous day tomorrow → the day after / the following day / the next day next year → the year after / the following year 3. Adverbs of place: here → there 4. Tense changes: Simple present → Simple past → Past perfect Present perfect Present continuous → Past cont. → Past perfect cont. Present perfect con. Modal verbs: must → had to can → could may → might will / shall → would / should III. Types of reported speech: 1. Statements: S + said / told sb + (that) + S + V (said to sb) 2. Imperatives: a. Affirmative: S + asked / told / ordered + O + to V b. Negative: S + asked / told / ordered + O + not to V “Don’t play in the class”, the teacher said → The teacher asked us not to play in the class. 3. Questions: a. Wh - questions: asked (O) wondered S+ Wh…… + S + V wanted to know inquired My parents asked me, “Where do you go?” → My parents asked me where I went. b. Yes / No questions: asked (O) S + wondered if / whether + S + V wanted to know Peter asked, “Do you like playing football, Jack?” → Peter asked Jack if he liked playing football. (Remember: No conversion) 4. Reported speech with “to – infinitive?”: a. To report orders, requests, warnings, advice and invitation: S + V + O + (not) to - infinitive asked, told, ordered, advised, warned, invited, urged, requested “You should go”, she said. → She advised me to go. “Would you like to have dinner with us?”, they said. → They invited me to have dinner with them. b. To report offers, promises, threats, refusal and agreement: S + V + to - infinitive offered, promised, refused, agreed, threatened “Can I help you?”→ She offered to help me. “Ok, I’ll give you a lift”, he said.→ He agreed to give me a lift. “I’ll surely be home by 9”, she said.→ She promised to be home by 9. “I can’t help you do the exercises”, he said.→ He refused to help me do the exercises. “I will hit you.”→ She threatened to hit me. 5. Reported speech with gerund: admitted, denied, suggested + V-ing “Let’s go to Vung Tau beach,” said Peter.→ Peter suggested going to Vung Tau beach. S + V + prep. apologized for, complained about, insisted on, objected to, confessed to, dreamed of, thought of V-ing “I’m sorry, I’m late,” said Mary.→ Mary apologized for being late. accused…of, warned…against/about, congratulated…on, prevented…from, S+V+O+ prep. + Gerund blamed…for, criticized…for, praised…for, thanked…for “It was nice of you to help me. Thank you very much,” Tom said to me. → Tom thanked me for helping him. S + V +V-ing Exercises on reported speech I. Using “say” and “tell” to report statements 1. Giang: “I often watch TV.”→ Giang told me that… 2. Mai: “I’m cleaning the house now.” → Mai said that… 3. Giang and Mai: “We have finished our homework.” → Giang and Mai told me that… 4. Hoa: “My mother went to HCM city last year.” → Hoa said that… 5. Lieu: “My mother will be 60 years old tomorrow.” → Lieu told me that… 6. Giang: “You must do your homework at home.” → Giang said that… 7. Mai: “I wrote a letter yesterday.” → Mai told me that… 8. Hoa: “I’m going to learn French this week.” → Hoa told me that… 9. Lieu: “We didn’t eat fish two days ago.” → Lieu said to me that… 10. Mr. Ba: “My wife is cooking dinner at the moment.” → Mr. Ba said that… 11. Robert: “My father flew to Dallas last year.” → Robert said that… 12. Michael: “I’m going to read a book this week.” → Michael told me that… 13. Jason: “I’ll do my best in the exams tomorrow.” → Jason told me that… 14. Andrew: “We didn’t eat fish two days ago.” → Andrew said to me that… 15. Alice: “I spent all my pocket money last Monday.” → Alice complained that… 16. David: “John had already gone at six.” → David said that… 17. “I’m going away tomorrow, mother”, said John→ John said… 18. Teacher: “Do your homework.” → The teacher told me… 19. Andrew: “Clean the blue bike.” → Andrew told me… 20. Jessica: “Write a letter.” → Jessica told me… 21. Nelly: “Help Peter’s sister.” → Nelly told me… 22. Anna: “Open the window.” → Anna told me… 23. Ben: “Come home at 8.” → Ben told me… 24. Tom: “Dance with me.” → Tom told me… 25. Sabine: “Meet Sandy at the station.” → Sabine told me… 26. Karen: “Don’t play football in the garden.” → Karen told me… 27. Teacher: “Don’t forget your homework.” → The teacher told me… 28. Mark: “Don’t shout at Peter.” → Mark told me… 29. Yvonne: “Don’t talk to your neighbour.” → Yvonne told me… 30. Denise: “Don’t open this door.” → Denise told me… 31. Marcel: “Don’t sing that song.” → Marcel told me… 32. Jana: “Don’t go to the cinema.” → Jana told me… 33. Dominique: “Don’t ring Tommy on Sunday.” → Dominique told me… 34. John: “Mandy is at home.” → John said that… 35. Max: “I often read a book.” → Max told me that… 36. Susan: “I’m watching TV.” → Susan said that… 37. Simon: “David was ill.” → Simon said that… 38. Stephen and Claire: “We have cleaned the windows.” → Stephen and Claire told me that… 39. Charles: “I didn’t have time to do my homework.” → Charles remarked that… 40. Mr. Jones: “My mother will be 50 years old tomorrow.” → Mr. Jones told me that… 41. Jean: “The boss must sign the letter.” → Jean said that… 42. Emily: “My teacher will go to Leipzig tomorrow.” → Emily said that… 43. Helen: “I was writing a letter yesterday.” → Helen told me that… 44. Jessica: “Write a letter.” → Jessica told me… 45. Tom: “Dance with me.” → Tom told me… 46. Karen: “Don’t play football in the garden.” → Karen told me… 47. Teacher: “Don’t forget your homework.” → The teacher told me… 48. Loan: “Don’t talk to your neighbor.” → Loan told me… 49. “I’m sleepy”, Jim said 50. “I don’t like chocolate”, Sally said 51. Mary told me “I’m planning to take a trip” 52. Tom said “I’ve already taken lunch” 53. Kate told her brother “I called my doctor yesterday” 54. Jessica said, “I may go to the library this afternoon” 55. Ms Young said “I must talk to professor Reed now” 56. “I’ll buy some books when I go to the bookshop this afternoon,” Ann said. 57. “I have just come here, everything is strange to me,” Lan told Jack. 58. “I’m going to visit Mr. and Mrs. Green next Sunday”, Daisy said. II. Using “ask…if” to report yes/no questions 1. “Do you know my cousin?”, James asked me 2. “Can you speak French?”, he asked me 3. “Will you be at home tonight?”, she asked me 4. “Are you hungry?”, he wanted to know 5. “Did you move to a new department last month?”, my friend asked me 6. “Have you ever been to Mexico?”, Sam wanted to know 7. “Do you want to marry me?”, he asked me 8. “Are you waiting for me?” Mai asked him III. Report Wh - questions 1. “How old are you?”, my mother asked James 2. Bob asked me, “Where do you live?” 3. “What are you looking for?”, my brother asked me 4. “How do you go to school?”, he asked me 5. “What time do you want to leave for the airport?” she wanted to know 6. “What did you do last night?”, the policeman asked the man 7. “How long have you been here?”, they wanted to know 8. “Which car will you choose?”, he asked his girlfriend IV. Using ‘verb + to infinitive’ to report the following sentences 1. “Would you like to come on a picnic with us, Jane?”, Joe said (invite) 2. “You should take another English course”, my teacher told me (advise) 3. The doctor said, “Take a deep breath” (tell) 4. My mother said, “Don’t forget to come to the dentist tomorrow morning” (remind) 5. Bill said, “Don’t touch this hot pot” (warn) 6. “Would you like to go to a movie with me?”, Tom said (invite) 7. “Put your things away”, my father shouted angrily (order) 8. “Don’t cross the road when the light is red”, the policeman told me (warn) 9. Your friend said, “I think you should take a long vocation” (encourage) 10. “I’ll come back and marry you,” Jack said to Daisy (promise) V. Using ‘Gerund’ to report the following sentences 1. “I’m sorry, I broke the vase”, Nga said. (apologize) 2. “It was very nice of you to invite me to the party. Thank you,” Miss White said to Peter. (thank) 3. “Stop, you can’t go out now. It’s very dangerous,” Kate said to her husband. (prevent) 4. “Congratulation! You have passed the final exams,” Jim said to me. (congratulate) 5. “I’m sorry, I didn’t phone you earlier,” John said to his girlfriend. (apologize) 6. “You stole the bicycle,” the policeman said. (accuse) 7. “I didn’t take the bicycle,” the thief said. (deny) 8. “I used to want to be a pilot,” Paul said. (dream) 9. “Let’s go for a picnic on Saturday,” Lan said to her classmates. (suggest) VI. Complete these sentences by changing statements into reported speech 1. The doctor said to me “You should lose weight.” → The doctor advised me… 2. Mary said “Let’s go to a movie.” → Mary suggested… 3. “I didn’t break the windows” Bill said. → Bill denied… 4. “You told a lie, Tom” she said. → She accused Tom… 5. “I can’t go to your birthday party next Saturday evening, Jack” said Mary Mary apologized for… 6. “I won’t help you with your homework. Never!” Jane said to me. Jane refused… 7. Joe said “Please come to my party.” → Joe invited… 8. Mr. Gray said “Don’t play in the street.” → Mr. Gray warned the children not… 9. “Would you like to come on a picnic with us?” → They invited… VII. Report the following sentences 1. “We have found the missing girl,” said the police last night. 2. “I’ll drop you from the team if you don’t train harder,” said the captain. 3. “Here are the car keys. You’d better wait in the car,” he said to her. 4. “Why didn’t you tell me about that yesterday, Peter?” Jane asked. 5. “I’ll give you the book next week. I promise,” Tom said. 6. “Could you speak more slowly, please? I can’t understand,” he said to me. 7. “Don’t forget to send me a card when you arrive London,” Ha said to Lan. 8. “I’m sorry I couldn’t come to your birthday party. I was busy,” Jill said to me. 9. “If I were you, I would tell her the truth,” Larry said to Ann. 10. “I hope you have a good journey,” she said. 11. “It’s not true! I have never met him!” Bill said. 12. “You can come to see me next week,” the doctor said. VI. Change the following conditional sentences into reported speech 1. “If you meet Mr. Black, send my regards to him,” he said to me. 2. “If David were richer and more handsome, I would love him,” Barbara said. 3. “If I had taken the taxi, I wouldn’t have missed the flight,” the man said. 4. “If you don’t report it to your boss, he’ll be angry with you,” Huong told me. 5. “If I weren’t busy, I would go to the cinema with you,” Andrew said to his friend. Name: Class: 12 A TEST 15’ N2 I. Tick the appropriate column Words stress on first syllable stress on second syllable 1. office 2. across 3. promise 4. English 5. listen 6. enjoy II. Change into reported speech 1. Alice: “I spent all my pocket money last Monday.” → Alice complained that… 2. “I’m cleaning the house now.” → Mai said that… 3. Giang and Mai: “We have finished our homework.” → Giang and Mai told me that… 4. Joe said to me: “Please come to my party.” → Joe invited… 5. “Let’s go for a picnic on Saturday,” Lan said to her classmates. → Lan suggested………. 6. “How old are you?”, my mother asked John → My mother……. 7. “Why didn’t you tell me about that yesterday, Peter?” Jane asked. → Jane asked…………. Name: B Class: 12 TEST 15’ N2 I. Tick the appropriate column Words stress on first syllable stress on second syllable 1. number 2. river 3. student 4. polite 5. grammar 6. enjoy II. Change into reported speech 1. “You should take another English course this summer”, my teacher told me → My teacher advised………. 2. “What did you do last night?”, the policeman asked the man → The police asked……………………… 3. Nelly: “Help Peter’s sister.” → Nelly told me… 4. Emily: “My teacher will go to Leipzig tomorrow.” → Emily said that… 5. Bob asked me, “Where do you live?” → Bob asked………… 6. Mary said “Let’s go to a movie now.” → Mary suggested… 7. Tom said “I’ve already taken lunch” → Tom said………. Name: C Class: 12 TEST 15’ N2 I. Tick the appropriate column Words stress on first syllable stress on second syllable 1. visit 2. enjoy 3. again 4. story 5. famous 6. writer II. Change into reported speech 1. “You’d better wait in the car,” he said to her → He advised…………………………. 2. “I’ll give you the book next week. I promise,” Tom said. → Tom promised…………………………………………… 3. “I often watch TV in my free time.” → Giang told me … 4. Dominique: “Don’t ring Tommy this Sunday.” → Dominique told me… 5. John: “Mandy is at home now.” → John said that… 6. “Do you want to marry me?”, he asked me → He asked if……… 7. “It was very nice of you to invite me to the party. Thank you,” Miss White said to Peter. → Miss White thanked ……………… Name: Class: 12 TEST 15’ N2 I. Tick the appropriate column Words stress on first syllable 1. village 2. return 3. number 4. practice 5. famous 6. language 7. across II. Change into reported speech 1. Ms. Young said “I must talk to professor Reed” → Ms. Young said………….. 2. David: “John had already gone at six.” → David said that… 3. “Would you like to come on a picnic with us, Jane?”, Joe said → Joe invited…….. 4. “Don’t forget your homework.” → The teacher told me… 5. “Do you know my cousin?”, James asked me → James wanted to know……… 6. “How long have you been here?” → They asked ………………… 7. “I’ll come back and marry you,” Jack said to Daisy → Jack promised…………… D stress on second syllable  ... playing football, Jack?” → Peter asked Jack if he liked playing football (Remember: No conversion) Reported speech with “to – infinitive?”: a To report orders, requests, warnings, advice and invitation:... thanked me for helping him S + V +V-ing Exercises on reported speech I Using “say” and “tell” to report statements Giang: “I often watch TV.”→ Giang told me that… Mai: “I’m cleaning the house now.”... his girlfriend IV Using ‘verb + to infinitive’ to report the following sentences “Would you like to come on a picnic with us, Jane?”, Joe said (invite) “You should take another English course”,