1. “Say” and “tell”

Reported Speech is the exact meaning of what someone said but not the exact words. Note the difference between “say” and “tell” in Reported Speech: we say something and tell somebody:

e.g. “I can fix it,” he said. → He said that he could fix it.

e.g. “I can do it,” he said to me. → He told me that he could do it.

There are set expressions with “say” and “tell”:

Say	Tell
Say good morning/evening, say one’s prayers, say a few words, say so, say no more, say for certain	Tell the truth, tell a lie, tell smbd the time, tell smbd one’s name, tell a story, tell a secret, tell smbd the way, tell one from another, tell smbd’s fortune, tell smbd so, tell the difference

1.1 Use the correct form of “say” or “tell” in these sentences:

1. She ____ me she didn't agree.

2. 'I think I've met you before,' he ____.

3. I ­­­­____ them I wasn't happy with their work.

4. She ____ me a story about her parents.

5. He ____ , 'Are you feeling OK?'

6. She smiled, and ____ to me, 'I'm very pleased to meet you.'

7. I didn't hear: what did she ____ ?

8. Could you ____ me the time, please?

9. They ____ me they were going to a meeting.

10. I ____ the policeman my address.

11. I ____ I wanted to buy a magazine.

12. He ____ he wasn't interested in politics.

13. Could you ____ me your name again, please?

14. Do you think he's ____ the truth?

15. Would you ____ them to come early tomorrow?

1.2 Circle the correct verb, “say” or “tell”, in each sentence:

1. They (say / tell) that they're going to London to see Frank.

2. Mark (said / told) us all about his holiday in Jamaica.

3. Did you (say / tell) Sally is coming with us?

4. The teacher (said / told) the class a funny story.

5. 'Don't (say / tell) lies!' (said / told) James angrily.

6. How old were you when you learned to (say / tell) the time?

7. I can't understand what they're (saying / telling) to each other.

8. I hate speaking in public. I never know what to (say/tell).

9. Jane always (says / tells) me her secrets.

10. 'Do you think anyone saw us?' she (said / told) nervously.

2. Reported statements

We can report statements, questions and commands. Personal pronouns and possessive adjectives change according to the context:

e.g. “I will show you my new dress,” she said. → She said that she would show me her new dress.

2.1 Write these sentences in Reported Speech, using the words given. Remember to change the pronouns where necessary:

1. 'I haven't done my homework.' (she says) – She says she hasn't done her homework.

2. 'I haven't got any money.' (He'll tell you) – He'll tell you he hasn't got any money.

3. 'I've seen the film before.' (she says)

4. 'I want to go home.' (he's already told you)

5. 'I haven't seen my mother for years.' (he says)

6. 'I don't know how much it costs.' (she says)

7. 'I don't like going to parties.' (she's told me)

8. 'We've never been to Berlin.' (they say)

9. 'I need the money to visit my parents.' (he'll say)

10. We can't come on Tuesday.' (they've told me)

Certain words change as follows:

Direct Speech	Reported Speech
This These Here Come	That Those There Go

Time wordschange as follows:

Direct Speech	Reported Speech
Now Today Tonight This week / month / year Tomorrow Next week / month / year Yesterday Last week / month / year Two days ago	Then That day That night That week / month / year The day after The following week / month / year The day before The previous week / month / year Two days before

2.2 Imagine these sentences were reported in another place a month later. Change the time words:

1. 'I'll see you tomorrow.' She said she'd see me the next day.

2. 'I'll phone you this evening.' He said he'd phone ____.

3. 'Do you like it here?' She asked if I liked it ____.

4. 'My uncle died last week.' He told me his uncle had died ____.

5. 'This meat tastes funny.' She said ____ meat tasted funny.

6. 'I'm leaving now.' He told us he was leaving ____.

7. “I overslept this morning.” She told him she'd overslept ____.

8. 'The train leaves at 11.00 tonight.' I was told the train left at 11.00 ____.

9. 'Pete phoned me yesterday.' He said Pete had phoned him ____.

10. 'My brother's arriving here today.' She said her brother was arriving ____.

If the reporting verb (say, tell or ask) is in the present or future, the tenses that follow are usually the same as those used in the original spoken statement.

e.g. “The station is far from here,” he says. → He says (that) the station is far from here.

When the reporting verb is in the past, we should change the tenses into a past form:

Direct Speech	Reported Speech
Present Simple → “I work hard,” he said.	Past Simple He said (that) he worked hard.
Present Continuous → “I am working hard,” he said.	Past Continuous He said (that) he was working hard.
Present Perfect → “I have worked hard,” he said.	Past Perfect He said (that) he had worked hard.
Present Perfect Continuous → “I have been working hard,” he said.	Past Perfect Continuous He said (that) he had been working hard.
Past Simple → “I worked hard,” he said.	Past Perfect He said (that) he had worked hard.
Future → “I will work hard,” he said.	Would He said (that) he would work hard.

The Past Perfect, the Past Continuous and the Past Perfect Continuous remain the same:

e.g. “I was watching TV at six p.m. yesterday, ” he said. → He said (that) he was watching TV at six p.m. the day before.

If the speaker expresses something true, the tenses do not change, but if the information is false, they should be changed:

e.g. “Water boils at 100°C,” she said. (true) → She said (that) water boils at 100°C.

e.g. “Canada is a poor country,” he said. (false) → He said (that) Canada was a poor country.

2.3 Complete the reported sentences with the correct tenses:

1. 'I'm tired.' She said she ____ tired.

2. 'You play very well.' He told me I ____ very well.

3. 'We're leaving.' They told us they ____.

4. 'She hasn't brushed her hair.' I noticed that she ____ her hair.

5. 'John's had an accident.' Pam rang to say that John ____ an accident.

6. 'I left school at fifteen.' Her letter said that she ____ school at fifteen.

7. 'She won't say anything.' I knew she ____ anything.

8. 'Nobody will know.' I thought nobody ____.

9. 'This letter has been opened.' I could see that the letter ____.

2.4 * Change theses sentences into Reported Speech:

1. 'I see the children quite often,' he said.

2. 'I'm having a bath,' she said.

3. 'I've already met their parents,' he said.

4. 'I stayed in a hotel for a few weeks,' she said.

5. 'I must go home to make the dinner,' he said.

6. 'I haven't been waiting long,' she said.

7. 'I'm listening to the radio,' he said.

8. 'I'll tell them the news on Saturday,' she said.

9. 'I like swimming, dancing and playing tennis,' he said.

10. 'I can drive,' she said.

2.5 First state whether the following statements are true (T) or false (F), then turn them from Direct speech into Reported speech:

1. "Ostriches can fly," he said. – (false) – He said (that) ostriches could fly.

2. "The Amazon is the widest river in the world," she said.

3. "The Earth is the largest planet in the universe," he said.

4. "Penguins live in the desert," she said.

5. "It's hot at the South Pole," he said.

6. "Luxembourg has the best football team in the world," he said.

7. "Dolphins are mammals," he said.

8. 'The Sahara desert is the largest desert in the world," he said.

9. "British weather is always wonderful," she said.

10. "The Mediterranean is the deepest sea," he said.

Note: past tenses are changed to past perfect only if this is necessary in order to make the time relations clear. Compare:

e.g. I saw Penny a couple of days ago. – In his letter, he said he had seen Penny a couple of days before.

e.g. Dinosaurs were around for 250 million years. – This guy on TV said dinosaurs were around for 250 million years.

2.6 Change these to indirect speech:

1. I saw him once before in London. (I knew)

2. Shakespeare didn't speak French. (The professor said)

3. He died two years ago. (When I got there, I found out)

4. Three thousand years ago there were tigers in England. (It said on this TV programme)

5. Somebody threw a bomb at the Prime Minister. (It said on this morning's news)

6. The ancient Romans suffered from lead poisoning. (I read in a magazine)