How to Correctly Use Reported Speech

Unlock the true power of communication with a masterful grasp of reported speech. This isn’t merely a grammatical exercise; it’s a fundamental skill that allows you to accurately convey information, streamline narratives, and add nuance to your discussions. Imagine a world where every conversation is accurately recalled, every message perfectly relayed – that’s the world effective reported speech opens up. Whether you’re a student aiming for linguistic precision, a professional striving for clear communication in minutes, or simply someone who wants to tell a compelling story, understanding and applying reported speech correctly is paramount. This comprehensive guide will strip away the confusion, revealing the core principles and subtle intricacies that transform your spoken and written English.

The Foundation: What is Reported Speech?

At its core, reported speech (also known as indirect speech) is about relaying what someone else said without directly quoting them. Instead of using their exact words (direct speech), you rephrase their statement, question, or command, often making necessary grammatical adjustments. Think of yourself as a messenger, delivering information but perhaps rephpackaging it for clarity or conciseness.

Direct Speech vs. Reported Speech: A Crucial Distinction

Direct Speech: Uses the speaker’s exact words, enclosed in quotation marks.
- Example: She said, “I am going to the shop.”
Reported Speech: Paraphrases the original statement, typically without quotation marks, and often involves changes in tense, pronouns, and time/place expressions.
- Example: She said that she was going to the shop.

The transition from direct to reported speech isn’t just about removing quotation marks. It’s a systematic process involving several key transformations. Mastering these transformations is the bedrock of accurate reported speech.

The Art of Transformation: Key Rules and Their Application

The magic of reported speech lies in its ability to adapt. When you shift from direct to reported, you’re essentially shifting the perspective and timeline. This requires specific changes.

Rule 1: Backshift of Tenses – The Cornerstone Transformation

This is arguably the most significant change in reported speech. When the reporting verb (e.g., said, told, asked) is in the past tense, the tense of the original statement usually “moves back” one step in time.

Present Simple → Past Simple
- Direct: He said, “I work hard.”
- Reported: He said that he worked hard.
Present Continuous → Past Continuous
- Direct: She said, “I am studying.”
- Reported: She said that she was studying.
Present Perfect → Past Perfect
- Direct: They said, “We have finished the project.”
- Reported: They said that they had finished the project.
Present Perfect Continuous → Past Perfect Continuous
- Direct: He said, “I have been waiting for hours.”
- Reported: He said that he had been waiting for hours.
Past Simple → Past Perfect
- Direct: She said, “I saw him yesterday.”
- Reported: She said that she had seen him the day before.
Past Continuous → Past Perfect Continuous
- Direct: They said, “We were playing football.”
- Reported: They said that they had been playing football.
Future (will) → Conditional (would)
- Direct: He said, “I will come tomorrow.”
- Reported: He said that he would come the next day.
Future Continuous (will be + -ing) → Conditional Continuous (would be + -ing)
- Direct: She said, “I will be working late tonight.”
- Reported: She said that she would be working late that night.
Future Perfect (will have + past participle) → Conditional Perfect (would have + past participle)
- Direct: They said, “We will have completed the task by then.”
- Reported: They said that they would have completed the task by then.

Important Exception: No Backshift for Continually True Statements or General Truths

If the reported statement is still true, a universally accepted fact, or a habitual action, the tense often does not backshift.

Direct: She said, “The sun rises in the East.”
- Reported: She said that the sun rises in the East. (Still true)
Direct: He said, “I eat breakfast every day.”
- Reported: He said that he eats breakfast every day. (Still a habit)

Important Exception: No Backshift when Reporting Verb is Present

If the reporting verb is in the present tense (e.g., says, tells), no backshift occurs in the reported clause.

Direct: He says, “I am happy.”
- Reported: He says that he is happy.

Rule 2: Pronoun Shifts – Adjusting the Speaker’s Perspective

Pronouns refer to the people or things involved. When you report speech, the “I” of the original speaker becomes “he/she/they,” “my” becomes “his/her/their,” and so on. This is about adjusting the perspective from the original speaker to the person reporting.

Direct: He said, “I need my keys.”
- Reported: He said that he needed his keys.
Direct: She said, “We are going to the park with our friends.”
- Reported: She said that they were going to the park with their friends.
Direct: They told me, “You should visit us.”
- Reported: They told me that I should visit them.

This requires careful attention to who is speaking and who is being spoken about.

Rule 3: Time and Place Adverbial Changes – Contextualizing the Message

Expressions of time and place are anchored to the moment and location of the original statement. When reporting, these need to be shifted to reflect the new time and place of the reporting.

Time Expressions:
- now → then / at that moment
- today → that day
- yesterday → the day before / the previous day
- tomorrow → the next day / the following day
- tonight → that night
- last week/month/year → the week/month/year before / the previous week/month/year
- next week/month/year → the week/month/year after / the following week/month/year
- ago → before / earlier
Place Expressions:
- here → there
- this → that
- these → those
Direct: She said, “I will be here tomorrow.”
- Reported: She said that she would be there the next day.
Direct: He said, “I bought this car last week.”
- Reported: He said that he had bought that car the previous week.

Rule 4: Modals – Handling Auxiliary Verbs

Modal verbs also undergo specific changes when reported.

can → could
may → might
must → had to (for obligation) or must (for deduction/certainty, sometimes unchanged if the obligation still exists or is a general rule)
shall → should (for advice/suggestion) or would (for future intention)
will → would
could, would, might, should, ought to → generally remain unchanged.
Direct: He said, “I can swim.”
- Reported: He said that he could swim.
Direct: She said, “You must complete the form.”
- Reported: She said that I had to complete the form.
Direct: They said, “We might arrive late.”
- Reported: They said that they might arrive late. (No change)

Beyond Statements: Reporting Questions and Commands

Reported speech isn’t confined to declarative sentences. Questions and commands require their own dedicated structures.

Reporting Questions: The Interrogative Shift

When reporting questions, the structure changes significantly. You typically use reporting verbs like asked, wondered, inquired, wanted to know. The word order also shifts from interrogative to declarative.

1. Yes/No Questions: Use if or whether.

Direct: He asked, “Are you coming?”
- Reported: He asked if I was coming. / He asked whether I was coming. (Notice: Subject-verb inversion gone)
Direct: She asked, “Did you finish your homework?”
- Reported: She asked if I had finished my homework.

2. Wh- Questions (who, what, where, when, why, how): Retain the interrogative word as the conjunction.

Direct: He asked, “Where are you going?”
- Reported: He asked where I was going.
Direct: She asked, “What did you say?”
- Reported: She asked what I had said.

Key Points for Reported Questions:

No Question Mark: Reported questions are statements, so they end with a period, not a question mark.
No Inversion: The subject comes before the verb, not after (e.g., “where I was going,” not “where was I going”).

Reporting Commands and Requests: The Imperative to Infinitive

When reporting commands, orders, requests, or instructions, we typically use an infinitive phrase (to + verb). Common reporting verbs include told, asked, ordered, commanded, advised, suggested, begged, warned, invited.

Direct: He said, “Stop talking!”
- Reported: He told me to stop talking.
Direct: She said, “Please help me.”
- Reported: She asked me to help her.
Direct: The teacher said to the students, “Don’t open your books.”
- Reported: The teacher told the students not to open their books. (For negative commands, use not to + verb)

Subtlety with “Suggest” and “Advise”:

While you can use the infinitive structure, “suggest” and “advise” often use a that-clause followed by a gerund or a modal should.

Direct: He said, “Let’s go to the cinema.”
- Reported: He suggested going to the cinema. / He suggested that we should go to the cinema.
Direct: She said, “You should see a doctor.”
- Reported: She advised me to see a doctor. / She advised that I should see a doctor.

Choosing the Right Reporting Verb: Adding Nuance and Accuracy

Beyond the basic said and asked, a rich vocabulary of reporting verbs can significantly enhance the accuracy and tone of your reported speech. Each verb carries a subtly different meaning, conveying the speaker’s original intent, emotion, or manner.

Verb Category	Examples	Usage and Nuance
Neutral	said, told, stated, remarked, mentioned, commented, pointed out	For general reporting of facts or statements without specific emotion or intent. Told requires an object (told me).
Expressing Belief/Opinion	thought, believed, felt, considered, knew, understood, supposed	To convey the speaker’s internal state or conviction.
Requesting/Ordering	asked, requested, ordered, commanded, instructed, urged, begged, pleaded	For conveying requests, commands, or strong pleas.
Giving Information	informed, announced, explained, clarified, confirmed, revealed	To highlight the act of imparting knowledge or making something clear.
Suggesting/Advising	suggested, advised, recommended, proposed	When the original speaker offered a plan, idea, or counsel.
Expressing Emotion	complained, grumbled, boasted, whispered, yelled, screamed, exclaimed, cried, joked, laughed, promised, threatened, warned, admitted, denied	To convey the speaker’s feeling, tone, or specific manner of speaking.
Inquiring	inquired, wondered, questioned	Specifically for reporting questions, often implying curiosity or seeking information.

Examples of Nuance:

He said, “I’m tired.” (Neutral)
He groaned that he was tired. (Conveys his feeling)
She said, “You must finish this by Friday.” (Neutral)
She ordered me to finish that by Friday. (Conveys authority)
He said, “It’s a beautiful day, isn’t it?” (Neutral)
He remarked that it was a beautiful day. (Highlights his comment)

Choosing the verb wisely adds depth and precision, avoiding the monotonous repetition of “he said, she said.”

When to NOT Backshift Tenses: Avoiding Overcorrection

While backshifting is a primary rule, there are critical situations where it is either unnecessary or incorrect. Understanding these exceptions prevents awkward or inaccurate reported speech.

When the Original Statement is Still True at the Time of Reporting:
- Direct: She said, “I live in London.” (And she still lives in London)
- Reported: She said that she lives in London. (Correct)
- Reported: She said that she lived in London. (Implies she no longer lives there, so depending on context, this could be wrong.)
  This applies particularly to facts, habitual actions, and general truths.
When the Reporting Verb is in the Present Tense:
As mentioned earlier, if the introductory clause is in the present (e.g., says, tells, asks), no backshift occurs in the reported clause because there’s no shift in the time frame of the reporting.
- Direct: He says, “I am busy.”
- Reported: He says that he is busy.
Statements with Modal Verbs that Don’t Change:
Modals like could, would, should, might, ought to generally do not backshift.
- Direct: She said, “I could swim when I was five.”
- Reported: She said that she could swm when she was five.
- Direct: They said, “We would prefer to stay home.”
- Reported: They said that they would prefer to stay home.
Hypothetical Situations (Conditional Type 2 & 3):
The tenses in these conditional clauses typically remain unchanged.
- Direct: He said, “If I had money, I would buy a car.”
- Reported: He said that if he had money, he would buy a car.
- Direct: She said, “If I had known, I would have helped.”
- Reported: She said that if she had known, she would have helped.
Specific Time Reference that Remains Relevant:
If the time reference is precise and still valid at the moment of reporting, sometimes the past simple doesn’t change to past perfect, though this is a less strict rule and can depend on speaker preference for immediacy.
- Direct: He said, “I passed my exam in 2022.”
- Reported: He said that he passed his exam in 2022. (The year 2022 remains fixed.)
- Reported (also correct and common): He said that he had passed his exam in 2022. (Both are acceptable here.)

It’s crucial to evaluate each sentence contextually. Over-applying backshift can lead to unnatural or incorrect phrasing.

The Role of “That”: Optionality and Clarity

The word “that” can function as a conjunction introducing the reported clause (e.g., “He said that he was tired”). While grammatically correct, “that” is often optional, particularly in informal speech or writing, especially after common reporting verbs like said, told, thought, knew.

He said that he was leaving.
He said he was leaving. (Both perfectly acceptable)

However, “that” is often essential for clarity in more complex sentences, especially when there might be ambiguity without it or when the reported clause is long. It can also be more common in formal writing.

She confirmed [that] her flight was delayed. (Optional)
He announced to the entire gathering that he was retiring from his position at the end of the year and wished everyone well. (Here, “that” helps structure the long sentence.)

In reported questions and commands, “that” is typically not used. Instead, if/whether for yes/no questions, the wh-word for wh-questions, and the infinitive for commands serve as the connectors.

Common Pitfalls and How to Avoid Them

Even with a strong understanding, certain errors frequently trip up learners. Being aware of these can significantly improve your accuracy.

Forgetting Pronoun and Adverbial Shifts: This is perhaps the most common mistake. Don’t just backshift the tense; scrutinize every pronoun and time/place expression.
- Direct: She said, “I will meet you here tomorrow.”
- Incorrect Reported: She said that she would meet you here tomorrow.
- Correct Reported: She said that she would meet me there the next day.
Incorrect Backshift in Special Cases: Applying backshift to universal truths or already past perfect tenses.
- Direct: He said, “Water boils at 100°C.”
- Incorrect Reported: He said that water boiled at 100°C.
- Correct Reported: He said that water boils at 100°C.
Maintaining Question Order: Forgetting to convert the question word order to statement word order in reported questions.
- Direct: They asked, “Where is the train station?”
- Incorrect Reported: They asked where was the train station.
- Correct Reported: They asked where the train station was.
Misusing Reporting Verbs: Using said to instead of told, or using told without an object.
- Incorrect: He said to me that he was tired. (Use told me)
- Incorrect: He told that he was leaving. (Requires an object: told me/him/them etc.)
- Correct: He told me that he was tired. / He said that he was tired.
Overcomplicating Simplification: Sometimes, a simpler reporting structure is more natural. When the immediate context is clear, direct quotes can be seamlessly integrated.
- Instead of: “She expressed her delight by saying she was utterly thrilled with the outcome,” you might simply use: “She exclaimed that she was thrilled.”
Inconsistent Tense Usage: Once you’ve decided on a past tense reporting verb (e.g., said), ensure the tenses in the reported clause consistently follow the backshift rules (or exceptions). Don’t mix present and past where inappropriate.

Practical Application and Advanced Nuances

Reported speech is not just for academic exercises; it’s a cornerstone of effective communication in real life.

Summarizing Conversations: Quickly convey the gist of a long discussion without quoting every word.
- Instead of: “He said, ‘I think we should reconsider the budget.’ Then she said, ‘No, I believe the current budget is adequate.’ He then said, ‘But what about…'”.
- Use: “They discussed the budget, with him suggesting they reconsider it, but her contending it was adequate.”
Journalism and Reporting: Attributing statements accurately while maintaining a flowing narrative.
- “The spokesperson confirmed that the new policy would come into effect next month.”
Storytelling: Integrating dialogue seamlessly into narrative flow without cumbersome quotation marks, especially when the exact wording isn’t critical.
- “He recounted how he had escaped the burning building, explaining that he had simply kicked in a window.”
Formal Communication: Emails, reports, and presentations often require precise and objective reporting of information.
- “The client indicated that they required the report by Friday.”

Beyond Individual Sentences: Reporting Extended Discourse

When reporting a longer speech or conversation, you don’t backshift every single sentence as if it were an isolated unit. You establish the reporting context once, and then the following reported sentences generally follow suit.

Direct: “I’m so exhausted,” she confessed. “I’ve been working tirelessly for weeks. I think I need a break.”
Reported: She confessed that she was so exhausted. She explained that she had been working tirelessly for weeks and thought she needed a break.

The reporting verb can change to add variety and reflect changes in the original speaker’s tone or purpose, but the core backshift principle remains.

Conclusion: Mastering the Art of Conveyance

The journey to correctly using reported speech is one of precision, adaptability, and nuance. It moves beyond rote memorization of rules to an intuitive understanding of how language subtly shifts to convey meaning across time and perspective. By consistently applying the backshift principles, adjusting pronouns and adverbs, skillfully handling questions and commands, and meticulously choosing the most appropriate reporting verbs, you cease to be a mere transcriber of words. You become a sophisticated conveyer of information, capable of accurately and effectively relaying the essence of any communication. Embrace these guidelines, practice diligently, and watch your linguistic prowess transform. Your clarity, conciseness, and communicative power will undoubtedly flourish.