Sentence Structure of Indirect Speech

The Grammar HELP!  Student Handbook - Online!

In today's Grammar HELP! Student Handbook - Online! lesson we continue our unit on Indirect Speech (also known as Reported Speech). 

Please keep in mind that all the examples you see below were contributed by ESL students in their writing and reading classes. We bring you only authentic writing.

Putting This All Together

 

Now we put this all together - changes in punctuation, pronoun reference, verb tense (back-shift), and even sentence structure - and see how quoted speech sentences are transformed into reported speech:

Declarative Statements
     
Joe said, "I love my car."
He said, "We are going out."
He said, "The restaurant just closed."
Sam said, "I was looking for a job."
She said, "I have seen this before."		 ⇒ Joe said that he loved his car.
He said that they were going out.
He said that the restaurant had just closed.
Sam said that he had been looking for a job.
She said that she had seen that before.
     
Modals
     
He said, "I will change the channel."
Sue said, "You cannot do this."
Sam said, "You might be right."
Sam said, "I must do my homework now."
Sam said, "I have to write my report."
She said, "You should write in a quiet place."
⇒		 He said that he would change the channe..
Sue told him that he could not do that.
He said that she might be right.
Sam said that he had to do his homework.
Sam said that he had to write his report.
She said that he should write in a quiet place.
     
Commands (Imperative Sentences)
     
Commands will use an infinitive phrase for the verb.
     
Sam's mother said, "Do your homework."
She also said, "Don't waste your time.		 ⇒ Sam's mother told him to do his homework.*
She also told him not to waste his time.*
     
Questions
     
Questions break down into twy types: Information questions and yes/no questions.
     
Yes/No questions:
Sam's mother asked, "Do you hear me?"		 ⇒
Sam's mother asked if he heard her.*
     
Information questions:
Sam's mother asked, "Where are you?"		 ⇒
Sam's mother asked him where he was.**
     
*    Notice the additional change in sentence structure in yes/no questions.
**  Notice the additional change in sentence structure in information questions.


Next... Sentence Structure of Indirect Speech

 

Join us or our next lesson, 'say' vs' tell in indirect speech"

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