UNIT 9 (HISTORY’S MYSTERIES)

GRAMMAR ASPECT

QUICK REFRESHER

REPORTED SPEECH

DIRECT SPEECH refers to someone’s actual words, while REPORTED SPEECH is used to tell another person what someone else said.

The most common verbs used to report a speech are SAY and TELL.

 You SAY something to someone, but…

 You TELL someone something.

Examples:

He said (that) he was a movie star.

He told me (that) he was a movie star.

VERB CHANGES

When reporting a speech, the verb tenses change to the past because we suppose that what the person said is already in the past.

Present simple  past simple

Past simple  past perfect

Will  would

Present perfect  past perfect

Past perfect  past perfect

Present continuous  past continuous

Be going to  was/were going to

Examples:

The hotel is near the sea. (He said (that) the hotel was near the sea)

Everyone enjoyed the tour last year. (He said (that) everyone had enjoyed the tour last year / the year before / the previous year)

The weather will be lovely. (He said (that) the weather would be lovely)

TIME EXPRESSIONS USED IN REPORTED SPEECH (CHANGES)

Last year  the year before / the previous year

Yesterday  the day before

Now  then

Today  that day

Tomorrow  the next day / the following day

This week  that week

Last week  the week before / the previous week

Next week  the week after

Ago  before

Here  there

Come  go

Bring  take

*** Remember that reported speech is a matter of perspective. You’re telling someone else what another person already said, so it’s normal that you change
pronouns and time expressions like these. ***

REPORTED SPEECH WITH MODAL VERBS

MODAL VERBS  Auxiliary verbs that help us express specific ideas.

(MODAL VERB + INFINITIVE FORM OF THE MAIN VERB)

CHANGES IN REPORTED SPEECH

Will (predictions about the future)  would

Can (possibility)  could

May (uncertain possibility)  might

Must (obligation coming from the person who is speaking)  had to

Have to (obligation coming from external factors)  had to

Examples:

I will be there by six  He said that he would be there by six.

You have to pay in cash  She said that you had to pay in cash.

 There are some modal verbs that DO NOT CHANGE in reported speech, the reason being that they are already in their past form.

Would, could, might, should/ought to (recommendations/advice/suggestions)

Examples:

You should hurry  He said that you should hurry

She might be late  I said that she might be late

 PERFECT MODALS never change their form in reported speech.

Perfect modal = modal verb + have been

PERFECT MODALS IN THE PASSIVE VOICE

QUICK REFRESHER

PASSIVE VOICE

Generally, when referring to news and events on TV, the radio or the Internet, English speakers use the PASSIVE VOICE.
 This structure is mainly used when we want to change the focus of the action and give more importance to the event than to the person who did the action.

GENERAL USES

 When the person who does the action (doer) is not important (for the context) or is unknown (obvious from the context).
 When the action itself is more important than the doer of the action.
 Commonly used in news headlines, articles, newspapers, etc. as well as in formal written language.

BASIC STRUCTURE

It (object of the sentence) + verb to be (in the same tense of the main verb in the active sentence) + past participle of the main verb

*** When working with PERFECT MODALS, it is important to know that we do not need to transform any sentence from active to passive. We only have to take into
account the basic structure of a passive voice in order to properly identify it. ***

QUICK TIP  Whenever you see the verb “to be” followed by a past participle, you’re probably reading a sentence in its passive form.

MODAL VERBS are used in the PASSIVE VOICE to speculate with different degrees of certainty about the past.

BASIC STRUCTURE
MODAL VERB + HAVE BEEN + PAST PARTICIPLE (of the main verb)

DEGRESS OF CERTAINTY
NOT CERTAIN (might, may, could)

ALMOST CERTAIN (must)

VERY CERTAIN (had to, can, could)

Examples:
The dinosaurs might/may have been killed by a meteor.

The drawings must not have been discovered until later.

The crater had to have been caused by a meteorite.