LECTURE 7

REPORTED/INDIRECT SPEECH and

SEQUENCE OF TENSES
CONTENTS
I. REPORTED SPEECH
1.1. Direct vs. Reported Speech
1.2. Reporting verbs
1.3. Report structures
1.4. Reported statements, questions,
orders and requests

II. SEQUENCE OF TENSES

2.1. Definition
2.2. Rules and exceptions

I. REPORTED SPEECH

1.1. DIRECT VS. REPORTED SPEECH

DIRECT SPEECH = the act of repeating/quoting the exact words spoken/placed between
quotation marks;

REPORTED/INDIRECT SPEECH = the act of reporting something that was said, but not
using exactly the same words;

DIRECT SPEECH REPORTED SPEECH

REPORTING CLAUSE REPORTED CLAUSE

Tom said, “I want to marry Jane”. Tom said/told me (that) he wanted to

marry Jane.

"There's a fly in my soup!" screamed Ann. Ann screamed (that)there was a fly in her
soup.

He said, “I’m going to come”. He said/told me (that) he was going to

come.

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  DIRECT SPEECH (quote structures)

• - the reporting verb (said, told, replied, warned, advised, complained, asked, etc.) can
go before, after, or in the middle of the direct speech:
•
Mary said, ‘John, we have a problem’. – before
‘John, we have a problem’, Mary said/said Mary. – after
‘John’, said Mary/Mary said, ‘we have a problem’. – in the middle

'The operation has been a resounding success, ' she said.

'The operation has been a resounding success,' said the surgeon.

REPORTED SPEECH (report structures)

- statements, questions, orders/commands, suggestions, and exclamations;

- 2 parts:
1. the reporting clause – reporting verb
I told him (that) nothing was going to happen to me.
I wanted to be alone.
She said (that) she liked ice cream.

2. the reported clause

She says (that) she wants to see you this afternoon.
I think (that) there's something wrong.
Paul says (that) he will see me later.

1.2. REPORTING VERBS

REPORTING VERBS PATTERN EXAMPLE

agree, apologize, refuse VERB only ‘I’m really sorry.’

He apologized.

admit, advise, declare,

complain, recommend,
comment, say, believe, VERB + THAT He admitted (that) he had hacked
suggest, exclaim, deny, CLAUSE into the company’s accounts
know, explain, insist, system.
mention, state, report,
promise, repeat, etc.

advise, assure, inform, VERB + OBJECT + ‘Don’t worry. You’ll arrive on time.’
reassure, remind, tell, THAT CLAUSE She reassured me that I would
warn arrive on time.

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 ask (somebody), VERB
She asked to use the car.
beg (somebody), (+ OBJECT) + TO
He begged us to let him stay
expect (somebody), INFINITIVE
overnight.
promise (somebody)

advise, command, tell,

encourage, persuade, VERB I advised him not to go there.
expect, forbid, implore, + OBJECT She forced the child to tell her the
instruct, invite, order, + TO INFINITIVE truth.
request, permit, remind,
force, urge, warn, etc.

acknowledge, believe,
claim, consider, think, VERB + He denied stealing the money.
suppose, declare, feel, – ING FORM He expected going home soon.
expect, find, presume

mention, apologize for,

decide on, deny, admit, VERB + He denied stealing the money.
recommend, regret, –ING FORM He regretted going to the party.
report, suggest

accuse (somebody) of, VERB They accused me of

blame (somebody) for, + OBJECT forging the checks.
congratulate (smb.) on, + PREPOSITION + My parents thanked me for calling
thank (somebody) for –ING FORM them.

agree, demand, offer, She offered to pick up my son

guarantee, propose, VERB + TO from school.
refuse, swear, threaten INFINITIVE They refused to sign a new
contract.

1.3. REPORT STRUCTURES

First Choose an appropriate reporting verb – depending on the type

of discourse

Then Change the tenses to their past form, unless what is said is
still true

Don't forget to Change personal pronouns, possessive adjectives or

pronouns – depending on the speaker(s)

and to Change time and place adverbs

Remember to Change the punctuation – depending on the type of discourse

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  Change to the TENSE

DIRECT SPEECH REPORTED SPEECH

Reporting verb in ‘I write poems.’ NO CHANGE to the tense

the PRESENT ‘I like to eat oranges.’ He says he writes poems.
(no backshift) She says she likes to eat oranges.’

Present Tense Past Tense

‘I’m leaving in ten minutes.’ She decided she was leaving in ten
minutes.

Present Perfect Tense Past Perfect Tense

‘I have lived here all my life.’ He said he had lived there all his life.
Reporting verb in
the PAST Past Tense Past Perfect Tense
(backshift) ‘It rained really heavily today.’ He mentioned it had rained really
heavily that day.

Future Tense Future-in-the-Past

‘I’ll send you a postcard.’ She promised she would send me a
postcard.

 Change to the Modal Verbs

MODAL DIRECT SPEECH REPORTED SPEECH

CAN ‘I can do it.’ He said he could do it.

MAY ‘May I go out?’ He wanted to know if he might go out.

He said that she must/had to apply for

MUST ‘She must apply for the job.’
the job.

WILL ‘They will call you.’ He told her that they would call her.

I decided I would tell them the truth. –

SHALL ‘I shall tell them the truth.’ future
‘Shall we tell the boss?’ She suggested they should tell the boss.
– suggestion

- the modal verbs could, should, would, might, needn't, ought to, used to do not normally
change:

He said, ‘She might be right.’ – He said that she might be right.

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  The tense does not change when:

SITUATION EXAMPLE

 the reporting verb is in a present He says that intelligent life in the universe
tense does not exist.

 the action in the indirect speech is Helen said I can share her flat.
still happening or going to happen

 the reported verb expresses a fact He explained that counseling is not the
or situation that cannot or is unlikely answer for everyone.
to change

 the verb comes after a time He replied that he had started the job after
conjunction: when, after, etc. he left school.

 the direct speech includes an ‘unreal Janice said that she wished she were
past’ younger.
‘I wish I were younger.’

 Change to the PRONOUNS, ADVERBS of TIME and PLACE

PRONOUNS

OBJECT PRONOUNS DEMONSTRATIVES

I → she/he this → that
we/you → they these → those

ADVERBS OF PLACE
here there

ADVERBS OF TIME

now → then/at that time next year → the following/the next year

today → that day … days ago → … days before/earlier

tomorrow → the next day, last month → the month before,

the following day the previous month

yesterday → the previous day, in two weeks → two weeks from then
the day before last Monday → the last/previous Monday

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 1.4. REPORTED STATEMENTS, QUESTIONS, ORDERS AND
REQUESTS

 Reported/Indirect Statements

• common introductory verbs: say, tell, add, continue, answer, reply, mention,
remark, often followed by that:

The minister replied that it was out of the question not to follow the procedures.
Alex said, ‘I’ll meet you here again tomorrow at 3.30’.
Alex said that he would meet us there again the next day at 3.30.
He told me that he was looking for his keys.

 Reported/Indirect Questions

• common reporting verbs: ask, want to know, enquire (formal questions), wonder
(= ask ourselves):

The assistant asked/wanted to know what type of printer we had.

The reception was boring and I wondered when I could leave.
I asked if I could stay with them.
He asked me where I was going.
She enquired how John was getting on.

* - no interrogative word order

- no question mark

1. Yes/No Questions (closed questions)

• reporting verbs: discover, remember, see, know, say, wonder, ask, enquire;
→ if-clause

D.S. ‘Is the work going well?’

I.S. Someone asked me if the work was going well.

D.S. ‘Has your hair always been this colour?’

I.S. He enquired if her hair had always been that colour.

→ whether-clause

D.S. ‘Do you want to stay at a hotel or at my home?’

I.S. I was asked whether I wanted to stay at a hotel or at his home.

D.S. ‘Are the servants still here?’

I.S. She asked whether the servants were still there.

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 2. WH-word Questions

- to ask for information:

D.S. ‘Where are you going?’

I.S. He asked me where I was going.

D.S. ‘Why are you so late?’

I.S. She enquired why I was so late.

D.S. ‘Who was that fantastic man?’

I.S. Ann asked me who that fantastic man had been.

D.S. ‘How do you like the film?’

I.S. I asked how they liked the film.

 Reported/Indirect Orders

• -common reporting verbs: tell, order, command and forbid;

• -a reporting verb + (not) to + infinitive

D.S. ‘Go to bed!’

I.S. He told the child to go to bed.

D.S. ‘Retreat!’
I.S. He commanded his men to retreat.

D.S. ‘Don’t smoke!’

I.S. He told us not to smoke.

 Reported/Indirect Requests

• ask – to report requests

• beg and urge – to report urgent requests

• a reporting verb + to + infinitive

D.S. ‘Would you mind coming back later?’

I.S. His secretary asked me to come back later.

D.S. ‘Give me a lift!’

I.S. He begged us to give him a lift.

D.S. ‘Could you pass the milk, please?’

I.S. She asked me to pass the milk.

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  Other ways of using Reported Clauses

 NOUNS

He referred to Copernicus' statement that the earth moves around the sun.
They expressed the opinion that I must be mentally retarded.
There was little hope that he would survive.
The decision to go had not been an easy one to make.
Barnaby's father had fulfilled his promise to buy his son a horse.

 ADJECTIVES

Everybody was sad that she had to return to America.

I was worried that she’d say no.
He was aware that he had drunk too much whisky.

 PREPOSITIONAL PHRASES

People are very worried about how to fill their increased leisure time.
They never complained of the ceaseless rain.
No one had warned us of the dangers.
He had already decided on his story.

II. SEQUENCE OF TENSES

2.1. DEFINITION
- dependence of the tense in the subordinate clause on the tense of the verb in the main
clause:

She goes for a walk in the park when the weather is good.
She has been teaching since she graduated from college.
I went to bed early because I was very tired.
By the time he returned, I had typed ten pages of my report.
She will visit them tomorrow if she has the time.

OBJECT SUBORDINATE CLAUSES:

 - answer the question what?;

 - are used after such verbs as: know, think, believe, understand, wonder, agree, say,
tell, ask, answer, remark, etc.;

 - are used after phrases like I'm sure (that), I'm afraid (that);

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 - are connected to the main clause by the conjunction that (which is often omitted) and by
other conjunctions, such as where, when, why, how, whether, if, because.

He will ask her about it when he sees her tomorrow.

The books that I bought yesterday are on my desk.
He didn't answer you because he doesn't speak English.

2.2. RULES AND EXCEPTIONS

MAIN OBJECT CLAUSE EXAMPLES

CLAUSE

We want to know what you did then.

PRESENT/ ANY TENSE
I have just learnt that she is in her
RULE 1 PRESENT (PRESENT/
office and will see you as soon as
PERFECT PAST/FUTURE)
she is free.

RULE 2 FUTURE ANY TENSE She will cry if you punish her.
(EXCEPT FUTURE) I will tell her what we have done/did.

PAST → I watched them as they were playing

SIMULTANEITY chess.

PAST PERFECT I thought you had advised her what

RULE 3 PAST
→ ANTERIORITY to do.

FUTURE-IN-THE- I wasn't sure that he would be at

PAST home.
→ POSTERIORITY I knew he would not pass.

EXCEPTIONS TO RULE 3

 a past tense in the main clause may be followed by a present or future tense in the
subordinate clause when the subordinate clause expresses some universal truth:

Galileo proved that the Earth revolves around the Sun.

We were told that the atomic energy used in science will change the face of the earth.
I knew that a friend in need is a friend indeed.

 when the tense in the subordinate clause is independent of the tense used in the
main clause, then it can be in the present or future:

I didn’t get on with her because she isn’t reliable.

I liked her so much that I will never forget her.
She told me her father always comes home late.

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• the verb in the relative clause is at any tense required by the meaning of the sentence:

I gave the school the dictionaries that had been left to me by my former teacher,
whom I loved so well and I will never forget as I am so grateful to her for the stimulus
I have always found in her example.

• in a comparative clause, introduced by as, than, as much as, as well as, the verb can
be at any tense required by the meaning of the sentence:

She loved her sister more than she loves or will ever love me.
She loved her sister as much as she loves or will ever love me.

• expressions such as as if, if only, it is time and wish that are usually followed by past
tenses:

I wish that I was a bit taller.

It is time we started working.
He talks as if he knew everything.

• when the if clause expresses a real situation, then both the verb in the main clause and the
verb in the if clause can be at any tense required by the meaning of the sentence:

If she isn’t here, she must be ill. (present+ present)

If he enjoys so much consideration, he earned it by hard work. (present + past)
If he didn’t receive my letter, how can he answer me? (past + present)
If you have seen him, you know how much better his health is. (present perfect + present)
If John didn’t have lunch before your arrival, he will probably join us in the dining room now.
(past + future)

PRESENT PAST

I tell you I will start training only when I told you I would start training only when
spring comes. spring came.

She says she won’t go on her holiday She said she wouldn’t go on her holiday
before she has seen you. before she had seen you.

He is sure that his picture, when it is He was sure that his picture, when it was
finished, will bring him the success he finished, would bring him the success he
has been looking forward to. had been looking forward to.

Whenever I call on her, she is working
and says I will be a great artist when I
get older. I will then reap my reward if I
have worked as hard as she does.
Whenever I called on her, she was
working and used to say I would be a
great artist when I got older. I would then
reap my reward if I had worked as hard
as she did.

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OTHER EXAMPLES TYPICAL OF THE SEQUENCE OF TENSES

‘I didn’t know you were here.’ ‘ Of course I was.’

He thought of the pleasures he would give up when he accepted the new job.
I understood the difficult role she would assume when she obtained the new
position in the company.
He realised how glad his parents would be when they found about his
promotion.

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