reported speech he works in a bank

Reported Speech: Rules, Examples, Exceptions

👉 Quiz 1 / Quiz 2

Advanced Grammar Course

What is reported speech?

“Reported speech” is when we talk about what somebody else said – for example:

• Direct Speech: “I’ve been to London three times.”
• Reported Speech: She said she’d been to London three times.

There are a lot of tricky little details to remember, but don’t worry, I’ll explain them and we’ll see lots of examples. The lesson will have three parts – we’ll start by looking at statements in reported speech, and then we’ll learn about some exceptions to the rules, and finally we’ll cover reported questions, requests, and commands.

So much of English grammar – like this topic, reported speech – can be confusing, hard to understand, and even harder to use correctly. I can help you learn grammar easily and use it confidently inside my Advanced English Grammar Course.

In this course, I will make even the most difficult parts of English grammar clear to you – and there are lots of opportunities for you to practice!

Backshift of Verb Tenses in Reported Speech

When we use reported speech, we often change the verb tense backwards in time. This can be called “backshift.”

Here are some examples in different verb tenses:

Reported Speech (Part 1) Quiz

Exceptions to Backshift in Reported Speech

Now that you know some of the reported speech rules about backshift, let’s learn some exceptions.

There are two situations in which we do NOT need to change the verb tense.

No backshift needed when the situation is still true

For example, if someone says “I have three children” (direct speech) then we would say “He said he has three children” because the situation continues to be true.

If I tell you “I live in the United States” (direct speech) then you could tell someone else “She said she lives in the United States” (that’s reported speech) because it is still true.

When the situation is still true, then we don’t need to backshift the verb.

But when the situation is NOT still true, then we DO need to backshift the verb.

Imagine your friend says, “I have a headache.”

• If you immediately go and talk to another friend, you could say, “She said she has a headache,” because the situation is still true
• If you’re talking about that conversation a month after it happened, then you would say, “She said she had a headache,” because it’s no longer true.

No backshift needed when the situation is still in the future

We also don’t need to backshift to the verb when somebody said something about the future, and the event is still in the future.

Here’s an example:

• On Monday, my friend said, “I ‘ll call you on Friday .”
• “She said she ‘ll call me on Friday”, because Friday is still in the future from now.
• It is also possible to say, “She said she ‘d (she would) call me on Friday.”
• Both of them are correct, so the backshift in this case is optional.

Let’s look at a different situation:

• On Monday, my friend said, “I ‘ll call you on Tuesday .”
• “She said she ‘d  call me on Tuesday.” I must backshift because the event is NOT still in the future.

Review: Reported Speech, Backshift, & Exceptions

Quick review:

• Normally in reported speech we backshift the verb, we put it in a verb tense that’s a little bit further in the past.
• when the situation is still true
• when the situation is still in the future

Reported Requests, Orders, and Questions

Those were the rules for reported statements, just regular sentences.

What about reported speech for questions, requests, and orders?

For reported requests, we use “asked (someone) to do something”:

• “Please make a copy of this report.” (direct speech)
• She asked me to make a copy of the report. (reported speech)

For reported orders, we use “told (someone) to do something:”

• “Go to the bank.” (direct speech)
• “He told me to go to the bank.” (reported speech)

The main verb stays in the infinitive with “to”:

• She asked me to make a copy of the report. She asked me  make  a copy of the report.
• He told me to go to the bank. He told me  go  to the bank.

For yes/no questions, we use “asked if” and “wanted to know if” in reported speech.

• “Are you coming to the party?” (direct)
• He asked if I was coming to the party. (reported)
• “Did you turn off the TV?” (direct)
• She wanted to know if I had turned off the TV.” (reported)

The main verb changes and back shifts according to the rules and exceptions we learned earlier.

Notice that we don’t use do/does/did in the reported question:

• She wanted to know did I turn off the TV.
• She wanted to know if I had turned off the TV.

For other questions that are not yes/no questions, we use asked/wanted to know (without “if”):

• “When was the company founded?” (direct)
• She asked when the company was founded.” (reported)
• “What kind of car do you drive?” (direct)
• He wanted to know what kind of car I drive. (reported)

Again, notice that we don’t use do/does/did in reported questions:

• “Where does he work?”
• She wanted to know  where does he work.
• She wanted to know where he works.

Also, in questions with the verb “to be,” the word order changes in the reported question:

• “Where were you born?” ([to be] + subject)
• He asked where I was born. (subject + [to be])
• He asked where was I born.

Reported Speech (Part 2) Quiz

Learn more about reported speech:

• Reported speech: Perfect English Grammar
• Reported speech: BJYU’s

If you want to take your English grammar to the next level, then my Advanced English Grammar Course is for you! It will help you master the details of the English language, with clear explanations of essential grammar topics, and lots of practice. I hope to see you inside!

I’ve got one last little exercise for you, and that is to write sentences using reported speech. Think about a conversation you’ve had in the past, and write about it – let’s see you put this into practice right away.

Master the details of English grammar:

You might also like...

24 Examples of Adjective + Preposition Combinations

Relative Clauses + Exercises

Advanced English Prepositions Quiz

Hi, I’m Shayna. I create courses helping English as a Second Language learners become more fluent in just a few minutes a day – so they can speak English naturally and confidently in work and daily life.

What is Reported Speech and how to use it? with Examples

Published by

Olivia Drake

Reported speech and indirect speech are two terms that refer to the same concept, which is the act of expressing what someone else has said.

On this page:

Reported speech is different from direct speech because it does not use the speaker’s exact words. Instead, the reporting verb is used to introduce the reported speech, and the tense and pronouns are changed to reflect the shift in perspective. There are two main types of reported speech: statements and questions.

1. Reported Statements: In reported statements, the reporting verb is usually “said.” The tense in the reported speech changes from the present simple to the past simple, and any pronouns referring to the speaker or listener are changed to reflect the shift in perspective. For example, “I am going to the store,” becomes “He said that he was going to the store.”

2. Reported Questions: In reported questions, the reporting verb is usually “asked.” The tense in the reported speech changes from the present simple to the past simple, and the word order changes from a question to a statement. For example, “What time is it?” becomes “She asked what time it was.”

It’s important to note that the tense shift in reported speech depends on the context and the time of the reported speech. Here are a few more examples:

• Direct speech: “I will call you later.”Reported speech: He said that he would call me later.
• Direct speech: “Did you finish your homework?”Reported speech: She asked if I had finished my homework.
• Direct speech: “I love pizza.”Reported speech: They said that they loved pizza.

When do we use reported speech?

Reported speech is used to report what someone else has said, thought, or written. It is often used in situations where you want to relate what someone else has said without quoting them directly.

Reported speech can be used in a variety of contexts, such as in news reports, academic writing, and everyday conversation. Some common situations where reported speech is used include:

News reports:  Journalists often use reported speech to quote what someone said in an interview or press conference.

Business and professional communication:  In professional settings, reported speech can be used to summarize what was discussed in a meeting or to report feedback from a customer.

Conversational English:  In everyday conversations, reported speech is used to relate what someone else said. For example, “She told me that she was running late.”

Narration:  In written narratives or storytelling, reported speech can be used to convey what a character said or thought.

How to make reported speech?

1. Change the pronouns and adverbs of time and place: In reported speech, you need to change the pronouns, adverbs of time and place to reflect the new speaker or point of view. Here’s an example:

Direct speech: “I’m going to the store now,” she said. Reported speech: She said she was going to the store then.

In this example, the pronoun “I” is changed to “she” and the adverb “now” is changed to “then.”

2. Change the tense: In reported speech, you usually need to change the tense of the verb to reflect the change from direct to indirect speech. Here’s an example:

Direct speech: “I will meet you at the park tomorrow,” he said. Reported speech: He said he would meet me at the park the next day.

In this example, the present tense “will” is changed to the past tense “would.”

3. Change reporting verbs: In reported speech, you can use different reporting verbs such as “say,” “tell,” “ask,” or “inquire” depending on the context of the speech. Here’s an example:

Direct speech: “Did you finish your homework?” she asked. Reported speech: She asked if I had finished my homework.

In this example, the reporting verb “asked” is changed to “said” and “did” is changed to “had.”

Overall, when making reported speech, it’s important to pay attention to the verb tense and the changes in pronouns, adverbs, and reporting verbs to convey the original speaker’s message accurately.

How do I change the pronouns and adverbs in reported speech?

1. Changing Pronouns: In reported speech, the pronouns in the original statement must be changed to reflect the perspective of the new speaker. Generally, the first person pronouns (I, me, my, mine, we, us, our, ours) are changed according to the subject of the reporting verb, while the second and third person pronouns (you, your, yours, he, him, his, she, her, hers, it, its, they, them, their, theirs) are changed according to the object of the reporting verb. For example:

Direct speech: “I love chocolate.” Reported speech: She said she loved chocolate.

Direct speech: “You should study harder.” Reported speech: He advised me to study harder.

Direct speech: “She is reading a book.” Reported speech: They noticed that she was reading a book.

2. Changing Adverbs: In reported speech, the adverbs and adverbial phrases that indicate time or place may need to be changed to reflect the perspective of the new speaker. For example:

Direct speech: “I’m going to the cinema tonight.” Reported speech: She said she was going to the cinema that night.

Direct speech: “He is here.” Reported speech: She said he was there.

Note that the adverb “now” usually changes to “then” or is omitted altogether in reported speech, depending on the context.

It’s important to keep in mind that the changes made to pronouns and adverbs in reported speech depend on the context and the perspective of the new speaker. With practice, you can become more comfortable with making these changes in reported speech.

How do I change the tense in reported speech?

In reported speech, the tense of the reported verb usually changes to reflect the change from direct to indirect speech. Here are some guidelines on how to change the tense in reported speech:

Present simple in direct speech changes to past simple in reported speech. For example: Direct speech: “I like pizza.” Reported speech: She said she liked pizza.

Present continuous in direct speech changes to past continuous in reported speech. For example: Direct speech: “I am studying for my exam.” Reported speech: He said he was studying for his exam.

Present perfect in direct speech changes to past perfect in reported speech. For example: Direct speech: “I have finished my work.” Reported speech: She said she had finished her work.

Past simple in direct speech changes to past perfect in reported speech. For example: Direct speech: “I visited my grandparents last weekend.” Reported speech: She said she had visited her grandparents the previous weekend.

Will in direct speech changes to would in reported speech. For example: Direct speech: “I will help you with your project.” Reported speech: He said he would help me with my project.

Can in direct speech changes to could in reported speech. For example: Direct speech: “I can speak French.” Reported speech: She said she could speak French.

Remember that the tense changes in reported speech depend on the tense of the verb in the direct speech, and the tense you use in reported speech should match the time frame of the new speaker’s perspective. With practice, you can become more comfortable with changing the tense in reported speech.

Do I always need to use a reporting verb in reported speech?

No, you do not always need to use a reporting verb in reported speech. However, using a reporting verb can help to clarify who is speaking and add more context to the reported speech.

In some cases, the reported speech can be introduced by phrases such as “I heard that” or “It seems that” without using a reporting verb. For example:

Direct speech: “I’m going to the cinema tonight.” Reported speech with a reporting verb: She said she was going to the cinema tonight. Reported speech without a reporting verb: It seems that she’s going to the cinema tonight.

However, it’s important to note that using a reporting verb can help to make the reported speech more formal and accurate. When using reported speech in academic writing or journalism, it’s generally recommended to use a reporting verb to make the reporting more clear and credible.

Some common reporting verbs include say, tell, explain, ask, suggest, and advise. For example:

Direct speech: “I think we should invest in renewable energy.” Reported speech with a reporting verb: She suggested that they invest in renewable energy.

Overall, while using a reporting verb is not always required, it can be helpful to make the reported speech more clear and accurate

How to use reported speech to report questions and commands?

1. Reporting Questions: When reporting questions, you need to use an introductory phrase such as “asked” or “wondered” followed by the question word (if applicable), subject, and verb. You also need to change the word order to make it a statement. Here’s an example:

Direct speech: “What time is the meeting?” Reported speech: She asked what time the meeting was.

Note that the question mark is not used in reported speech.

2. Reporting Commands: When reporting commands, you need to use an introductory phrase such as “ordered” or “told” followed by the person, to + infinitive, and any additional information. Here’s an example:

Direct speech: “Clean your room!” Reported speech: She ordered me to clean my room.

Note that the exclamation mark is not used in reported speech.

In both cases, the tense of the reported verb should be changed accordingly. For example, present simple changes to past simple, and future changes to conditional. Here are some examples:

Direct speech: “Will you go to the party with me?”Reported speech: She asked if I would go to the party with her. Direct speech: “Please bring me a glass of water.”Reported speech: She requested that I bring her a glass of water.

Remember that when using reported speech to report questions and commands, the introductory phrases and verb tenses are important to convey the intended meaning accurately.

How to make questions in reported speech?

To make questions in reported speech, you need to use an introductory phrase such as “asked” or “wondered” followed by the question word (if applicable), subject, and verb. You also need to change the word order to make it a statement. Here are the steps to make questions in reported speech:

Identify the reporting verb: The first step is to identify the reporting verb in the sentence. Common reporting verbs used to report questions include “asked,” “inquired,” “wondered,” and “wanted to know.”

Change the tense and pronouns: Next, you need to change the tense and pronouns in the sentence to reflect the shift from direct to reported speech. The tense of the verb is usually shifted back one tense (e.g. from present simple to past simple) in reported speech. The pronouns should also be changed as necessary to reflect the shift in perspective from the original speaker to the reporting speaker.

Use an appropriate question word: If the original question contained a question word (e.g. who, what, where, when, why, how), you should use the same question word in the reported question. If the original question did not contain a question word, you can use “if” or “whether” to introduce the reported question.

Change the word order: In reported speech, the word order of the question changes from the inverted form to a normal statement form. The subject usually comes before the verb, unless the original question started with a question word.

Here are some examples of reported questions:

Direct speech: “Did you finish your homework?”Reported speech: He wanted to know if I had finished my homework. Direct speech: “Where are you going?”Reported speech: She wondered where I was going.

Remember that when making questions in reported speech, the introductory phrases and verb tenses are important to convey the intended meaning accurately.

Here you can find more examples of direct and indirect questions

What is the difference between reported speech an indirect speech?

In reported or indirect speech, you are retelling or reporting what someone said using your own words. The tense of the reported speech is usually shifted back one tense from the tense used in the original statement. For example, if someone said, “I am going to the store,” in reported speech you would say, “He/she said that he/she was going to the store.”

The main difference between reported speech and indirect speech is that reported speech usually refers to spoken language, while indirect speech can refer to both spoken and written language. Additionally, indirect speech is a broader term that includes reported speech as well as other ways of expressing what someone else has said, such as paraphrasing or summarizing.

Examples of direct speech to reported

• Direct speech: “I am hungry,” she said. Reported speech: She said she was hungry.
• Direct speech: “Can you pass the salt, please?” he asked. Reported speech: He asked her to pass the salt.
• Direct speech: “I will meet you at the cinema,” he said. Reported speech: He said he would meet her at the cinema.
• Direct speech: “I have been working on this project for hours,” she said. Reported speech: She said she had been working on the project for hours.
• Direct speech: “What time does the train leave?” he asked. Reported speech: He asked what time the train left.
• Direct speech: “I love playing the piano,” she said. Reported speech: She said she loved playing the piano.
• Direct speech: “I am going to the grocery store,” he said. Reported speech: He said he was going to the grocery store.
• Direct speech: “Did you finish your homework?” the teacher asked. Reported speech: The teacher asked if he had finished his homework.
• Direct speech: “I want to go to the beach,” she said. Reported speech: She said she wanted to go to the beach.
• Direct speech: “Do you need help with that?” he asked. Reported speech: He asked if she needed help with that.
• Direct speech: “I can’t come to the party,” he said. Reported speech: He said he couldn’t come to the party.
• Direct speech: “Please don’t leave me,” she said. Reported speech: She begged him not to leave her.
• Direct speech: “I have never been to London before,” he said. Reported speech: He said he had never been to London before.
• Direct speech: “Where did you put my phone?” she asked. Reported speech: She asked where she had put her phone.
• Direct speech: “I’m sorry for being late,” he said. Reported speech: He apologized for being late.
• Direct speech: “I need some help with this math problem,” she said. Reported speech: She said she needed some help with the math problem.
• Direct speech: “I am going to study abroad next year,” he said. Reported speech: He said he was going to study abroad the following year.
• Direct speech: “Can you give me a ride to the airport?” she asked. Reported speech: She asked him to give her a ride to the airport.
• Direct speech: “I don’t know how to fix this,” he said. Reported speech: He said he didn’t know how to fix it.
• Direct speech: “I hate it when it rains,” she said. Reported speech: She said she hated it when it rained.

If you've read this far, you likely found value in our content. We measure the quality of our articles in various ways, and one significant metric is the number of shares. If you appreciated this piece, please spread the word.

Leave a reply cancel reply, i’m olivia.

Welcome to my virtual classroom! Join me on a journey of language and learning, where we explore the wonders of English together. Let’s discover the joy of words and education!

Let’s connect

• [email protected]

Join the fun!

Stay updated with our latest tutorials and ideas by joining our newsletter.

Type your email…

Recent posts

Modal verbs in conditional sentences with examples, questions in future perfect continuous tense with examples, questions in future perfect tense with examples, questions in future continuous tense with examples, questions in future indefinite (simple) tense with examples, questions in past perfect continuous tense with examples, discover more from fluent english grammar.

Subscribe now to keep reading and get access to the full archive.

Continue reading

• Cambridge Dictionary +Plus

Reported speech: indirect speech

Indirect speech focuses more on the content of what someone said rather than their exact words. In indirect speech , the structure of the reported clause depends on whether the speaker is reporting a statement, a question or a command.

Indirect speech: reporting statements

Indirect reports of statements consist of a reporting clause and a that -clause. We often omit that , especially in informal situations:

The pilot commented that the weather had been extremely bad as the plane came in to land. (The pilot’s words were: ‘The weather was extremely bad as the plane came in to land.’ )

I told my wife I didn’t want a party on my 50th birthday. ( that -clause without that ) (or I told my wife that I didn’t want a party on my 50th birthday .)

Indirect speech: reporting questions

Reporting yes-no questions and alternative questions.

Indirect reports of yes-no questions and questions with or consist of a reporting clause and a reported clause introduced by if or whether . If is more common than whether . The reported clause is in statement form (subject + verb), not question form:

She asked if [S] [V] I was Scottish. (original yes-no question: ‘Are you Scottish?’ )

The waiter asked whether [S] we [V] wanted a table near the window. (original yes-no question: ‘Do you want a table near the window? )

He asked me if [S] [V] I had come by train or by bus. (original alternative question: ‘Did you come by train or by bus?’ )

Questions: yes-no questions ( Are you feeling cold? )

Reporting wh -questions

Indirect reports of wh -questions consist of a reporting clause, and a reported clause beginning with a wh -word ( who, what, when, where, why, how ). We don’t use a question mark:

He asked me what I wanted.

Not: He asked me what I wanted?

The reported clause is in statement form (subject + verb), not question form:

She wanted to know who [S] we [V] had invited to the party.

Not: … who had we invited …

Who , whom and what

In indirect questions with who, whom and what , the wh- word may be the subject or the object of the reported clause:

I asked them who came to meet them at the airport. ( who is the subject of came ; original question: ‘Who came to meet you at the airport?’ )

He wondered what the repairs would cost. ( what is the object of cost ; original question: ‘What will the repairs cost?’ )

She asked us what [S] we [V] were doing . (original question: ‘What are you doing?’ )

Not: She asked us what were we doing?

When , where , why and how

We also use statement word order (subject + verb) with when , where, why and how :

I asked her when [S] it [V] had happened (original question: ‘When did it happen?’ ).

Not: I asked her when had it happened?

I asked her where [S] the bus station [V] was . (original question: ‘Where is the bus station?’ )

Not: I asked her where was the bus station?

The teacher asked them how [S] they [V] wanted to do the activity . (original question: ‘How do you want to do the activity?’ )

Not: The teacher asked them how did they want to do the activity?

Questions: wh- questions

Indirect speech: reporting commands

Indirect reports of commands consist of a reporting clause, and a reported clause beginning with a to -infinitive:

The General ordered the troops to advance . (original command: ‘Advance!’ )

The chairperson told him to sit down and to stop interrupting . (original command: ‘Sit down and stop interrupting!’ )

We also use a to -infinitive clause in indirect reports with other verbs that mean wanting or getting people to do something, for example, advise, encourage, warn :

They advised me to wait till the following day. (original statement: ‘You should wait till the following day.’ )

The guard warned us not to enter the area. (original statement: ‘You must not enter the area.’ )

Verbs followed by a to -infinitive

Indirect speech: present simple reporting verb

We can use the reporting verb in the present simple in indirect speech if the original words are still true or relevant at the time of reporting, or if the report is of something someone often says or repeats:

Sheila says they’re closing the motorway tomorrow for repairs.

Henry tells me he’s thinking of getting married next year.

Rupert says dogs shouldn’t be allowed on the beach. (Rupert probably often repeats this statement.)

Newspaper headlines

We often use the present simple in newspaper headlines. It makes the reported speech more dramatic:

JUDGE TELLS REPORTER TO LEAVE COURTROOM

PRIME MINISTER SAYS FAMILIES ARE TOP PRIORITY IN TAX REFORM

Present simple ( I work )

Reported speech

Reported speech: direct speech

Indirect speech: past continuous reporting verb

In indirect speech, we can use the past continuous form of the reporting verb (usually say or tell ). This happens mostly in conversation, when the speaker wants to focus on the content of the report, usually because it is interesting news or important information, or because it is a new topic in the conversation:

Rory was telling me the big cinema in James Street is going to close down. Is that true?

Alex was saying that book sales have gone up a lot this year thanks to the Internet.

‘Backshift’ refers to the changes we make to the original verbs in indirect speech because time has passed between the moment of speaking and the time of the report.

In these examples, the present ( am ) has become the past ( was ), the future ( will ) has become the future-in-the-past ( would ) and the past ( happened ) has become the past perfect ( had happened ). The tenses have ‘shifted’ or ‘moved back’ in time.

The past perfect does not shift back; it stays the same:

Modal verbs

Some, but not all, modal verbs ‘shift back’ in time and change in indirect speech.

We can use a perfect form with have + - ed form after modal verbs, especially where the report looks back to a hypothetical event in the past:

He said the noise might have been the postman delivering letters. (original statement: ‘The noise might be the postman delivering letters.’ )

He said he would have helped us if we’d needed a volunteer. (original statement: ‘I’ll help you if you need a volunteer’ or ‘I’d help you if you needed a volunteer.’ )

Used to and ought to do not change in indirect speech:

She said she used to live in Oxford. (original statement: ‘I used to live in Oxford.’ )

The guard warned us that we ought to leave immediately. (original statement: ‘You ought to leave immediately.’ )

No backshift

We don’t need to change the tense in indirect speech if what a person said is still true or relevant or has not happened yet. This often happens when someone talks about the future, or when someone uses the present simple, present continuous or present perfect in their original words:

He told me his brother works for an Italian company. (It is still true that his brother works for an Italian company.)

She said she ’s getting married next year. (For the speakers, the time at the moment of speaking is ‘this year’.)

He said he ’s finished painting the door. (He probably said it just a short time ago.)

She promised she ’ll help us. (The promise applies to the future.)

Indirect speech: changes to pronouns

Changes to personal pronouns in indirect reports depend on whether the person reporting the speech and the person(s) who said the original words are the same or different.

Indirect speech: changes to adverbs and demonstratives

We often change demonstratives ( this, that ) and adverbs of time and place ( now, here, today , etc.) because indirect speech happens at a later time than the original speech, and perhaps in a different place.

Typical changes to demonstratives, adverbs and adverbial expressions

Indirect speech: typical errors

The word order in indirect reports of wh- questions is the same as statement word order (subject + verb), not question word order:

She always asks me where [S] [V] I am going .

Not: She always asks me where am I going .

We don’t use a question mark when reporting wh- questions:

I asked him what he was doing.

Not: I asked him what he was doing?

Word of the Day

shrinkflation

Your browser doesn't support HTML5 audio

the situation when the price of a product stays the same but its size gets smaller

Never say die! (Idioms and phrases in newspapers)

Learn more with +Plus

• Recent and Recommended {{#preferredDictionaries}} {{name}} {{/preferredDictionaries}}
• Definitions Clear explanations of natural written and spoken English English Learner’s Dictionary Essential British English Essential American English
• Grammar and thesaurus Usage explanations of natural written and spoken English Grammar Thesaurus
• Pronunciation British and American pronunciations with audio English Pronunciation
• English–Chinese (Simplified) Chinese (Simplified)–English
• English–Chinese (Traditional) Chinese (Traditional)–English
• English–Dutch Dutch–English
• English–French French–English
• English–German German–English
• English–Indonesian Indonesian–English
• English–Italian Italian–English
• English–Japanese Japanese–English
• English–Norwegian Norwegian–English
• English–Polish Polish–English
• English–Portuguese Portuguese–English
• English–Spanish Spanish–English
• English–Swedish Swedish–English
• Dictionary +Plus Word Lists

To add ${headword} to a word list please sign up or log in.

Add ${headword} to one of your lists below, or create a new one.

{{message}}

Something went wrong.

There was a problem sending your report.

Reported Speech

Perfect english grammar.

Reported Statements

Here's how it works:

We use a 'reporting verb' like 'say' or 'tell'. ( Click here for more about using 'say' and 'tell' .) If this verb is in the present tense, it's easy. We just put 'she says' and then the sentence:

• Direct speech: I like ice cream.
• Reported speech: She says (that) she likes ice cream.

We don't need to change the tense, though probably we do need to change the 'person' from 'I' to 'she', for example. We also may need to change words like 'my' and 'your'. (As I'm sure you know, often, we can choose if we want to use 'that' or not in English. I've put it in brackets () to show that it's optional. It's exactly the same if you use 'that' or if you don't use 'that'.)

But , if the reporting verb is in the past tense, then usually we change the tenses in the reported speech:

• Reported speech: She said (that) she liked ice cream.

* doesn't change.

• Direct speech: The sky is blue.
• Reported speech: She said (that) the sky is/was blue.

Click here for a mixed tense exercise about practise reported statements. Click here for a list of all the reported speech exercises.

Reported Questions

So now you have no problem with making reported speech from positive and negative sentences. But how about questions?

• Direct speech: Where do you live?
• Reported speech: She asked me where I lived.
• Direct speech: Where is Julie?
• Reported speech: She asked me where Julie was.

• Direct speech: Do you like chocolate?
• Reported speech: She asked me if I liked chocolate.

Click here to practise reported 'wh' questions. Click here to practise reported 'yes / no' questions. Reported Requests

There's more! What if someone asks you to do something (in a polite way)? For example:

• Direct speech: Close the window, please
• Or: Could you close the window please?
• Or: Would you mind closing the window please?
• Reported speech: She asked me to close the window.

• Direct speech: Please don't be late.
• Reported speech: She asked us not to be late.

Reported Orders

• Direct speech: Sit down!
• Reported speech: She told me to sit down.

• Click here for an exercise to practise reported requests and orders.

• Click here for an exercise about using 'say' and 'tell'.
• Click here for a list of all the reported speech exercises.

Hello! I'm Seonaid! I'm here to help you understand grammar and speak correct, fluent English.

Read more about our learning method

• Autocomplete

Ultimate B1 Grammar Course

•   Please leave all questions, comments, and feedback here. :)
•   B1 summary PDFs
•   Download the section 1 PDFs here
•   Lesson 1: Present simple with 'do' for emphasis (1:15)
•   Exercise - Present simple with 'do'
•   Lesson 2: The present continuous for habits in the present (2:39)
•   Exercise - The present continuous for habits in the present
•   Lesson 3: The past simple and would with 'wish' (2:13)
•   Exercise - The past simple and 'would' with 'wish'
•   Lesson 4: The past simple for past habits and states (2:30)
•   Exercise - Past simple for past habits and states
•   Lesson 5: The past simple for ordering actions (2:22)
•   Exercise - Past simple for ordering actions
•   Section 1 review quiz
•   Download the section 2 PDFs here
•   Lesson 1: Present perfect use to talk about 'how long' with 'for' and 'since' (1:10)
•   Exercise - Present perfect use for how long with 'for' and 'since'
•   Lesson 2: Present perfect use with 'just', 'yet' and 'already' (1:21)
•   Exercise - Present perfect with 'yet' and 'already'
•   Exercise - Present perfect with 'just'
•   Lesson 3: Present perfect or past simple? (1:50)
•   Exercise - Present perfect or past simple
•   Section 2 review quiz
•   Download the section 3 PDFs here
•   Lesson 1: Past continuous forms (1:53)
•   Exercise - Past continuous positive and negative
•   Exercise - Past continuous questions
•   Lesson 2: Past continuous use: things in progress at a point in time (0:59)
•   Exercise - Past continuous: events in progress at a certain time
•   Lesson 3: Past continuous use: interrupted actions with the past simple (0:59)
•   Exercise - Past continuous: actions with the past simple
•   Lesson 4: Past continuous use: habits in the past (1:16)
•   Exercise - Past continuous for habits in the past
•   Lesson 5: Future in the past with 'was / were going to' (and 'would') (3:21)
•   Exercise - Future in the past with 'was / were going to'
•   Section 3 review quiz
•   Download the section 4 PDFs here
•   Lesson 1: Future continuous forms (3:18)
•   Exercise - Future continuous forms 1 (positive and negative)
•   Exercise - Future continuous forms 2 (questions)
•   Exercise - Future continuous forms 3 (mixed)
•   Lesson 2: Future continuous for things in progress at a point (2:42)
•   Exercise - Future continuous for things in progress at a point
•   Lesson 3: Present perfect continuous forms (4:00)
•   Exercise - Present perfect continuous forms 1 (positive and negative)
•   Exercise - Present perfect continuous forms 2 (questions)
•   Exercise - Present perfect continuous 3 (mixed)
•   Lesson 4: Present perfect continuous for time up to now with for and since (2:10)
•   Exercise - Present perfect continuous for time up to now
•   Lesson 5: Past perfect forms (4:48)
•   Exercise - Past perfect forms 1 (positive and negative)
•   Exercise - Past perfect forms 2 (questions)
•   Exercise - Past perfect 3 (mixed)
•   Lesson 6: Past perfect for time up to then (2:47)
•   Exercise - Past perfect for time up to then
•   Section 4 review quiz
•   Download the section 5 PDFs here
•   Lesson 1: Subject and object questions (3:13)
•   Exercise - Subject and object questions
•   Lesson 2: Question tags (5:20)
•   Exercise - Question tags with the present simple 1
•   Exercise - Question tags with the present simple 2
•   Exercise - Question tags with the present continuous
•   Exercise - Question tags with the past simple 1
•   Exercise - Question tags with the past simple 2
•   Exercise - Question tags with 'will'
•   Exercise - Question tags with 'be going to'
•   Exercise - Question tags with the present perfect
•   Exercise - Question tags with the past perfect
•   Exercise - Question tags with the future continuous
•   Exercise - Question tags with the past continuous
•   Lesson 3: Short answers with 'so' and 'neither' (5:23)
•   Exercise - Short answers with 'so' and 'neither' in the present simple
•   Exercise - Short answers with 'so' and 'neither' in the present continuous
•   Exercise - Short answers with 'so' and 'neither' in the past simple
•   Exercise - Short answers with 'so' and 'neither' and 'will'
•   Exercise - Short answers with 'so' and 'neither' and 'be going to'
•   Exercise - Short answers with 'so' and 'neither' in the present perfect
•   Exercise - Short answers with 'so' and 'neither' in the past perfect
•   Exercise - Short answers with 'so' and 'neither' in the future continuous
•   Exercise - Short answers with 'so' and 'neither' in the past continuous
•   Section 5 review quiz
•   Download the section 6 PDFs here
•   Lesson 1: Verbs + infinitive without 'to' (make and let) (3:42)
•   Exercise - Make and let + infinitive
•   Lesson 2: Verbs with a direct object and 'to + infinitive' (3:32)
•   Exercise - Verbs with a direct object and 'to + infinitive'
•   Lesson 3: Verbs with two objects (1:25)
•   Exercise - Verbs with two objects
•   Section 6 review quiz
•   Download the section 7 PDFs here
•   Lesson 1: Nouns that are always plural (2:37)
•   Exercise - Nouns that are always plural
•   Lesson 2: Collective nouns with singular or plural verbs (2:07)
•   Exercise - Collective nouns with singular or plural verbs
•   Lesson 3: Other / the other / another (3:13)
•   Exercise - The other or other?
•   Exercise - Another or the other?
•   Lesson 4: The and no article with geographical names (1:24)
•   Exercise - The and no article with geographical names
•   Lesson 5: The with abstract nouns (3:28)
•   Exercise - The with abstract nouns
•   Section 7 review quiz
•   Download the Section 8 PDFs here
•   Lesson 1: 'Such' and 'such a' (0:54)
•   Exercise - 'Such' and 'such a'
•   Lesson 2: Either (0:43)
•   Exercise - Either
•   Lesson 3: Both ... and ... (0:34)
•   Exercise - Both ... and...
•   Section 8 quiz review
•   Download the section 9 PDFs here
•   Lesson 1: How to make the passive (7:06)
•   Exercise - The present simple passive
•   Exercise - The past simple passive
•   Exercise - The present continuous passive
•   Exercise - Mixed passive forms (present simple, present continuous, past simple)
•   Exercise - The past continuous passive
•   Exercise - The present perfect passive
•   Exercise - The past perfect passive
•   Exercise - The future with 'will' passive
•   Exercise - Mixed passive forms (will, past continuous, present perfect, past perfect)
•   Lesson 2: Passive infinitive introduction (with going to / have to / need to) (3:01)
•   Exercise - Passive infinitive introduction (with going to / have to / need to)
•   Section 9 quiz review
•   Download the Section 10 PDFs here
•   Lesson 1: How to make reported speech (9:13)
•   Exercise - Reported speech with the present simple
•   Exercise - Reported speech with the present continuous
•   Exercise - Reported speech with the past simple
•   Exercise - Reported speech with the present perfect
•   Exercise - Reported speech with the past continuous
•   Exercise - Reported speech with the future simple with 'will'
•   Exercise - Reported speech with 'be going to'
•   Exercise - Reported speech with the future continuous
•   Exercise - Reported speech with the past perfect
•   Lesson 2: Reported speech with modal verbs (1:35)
•   Exercise - Reported speech with modal verbs
•   Lesson 3: Reported questions with 'ask' (4:19)
•   Exercise - reported 'wh' questions with 'ask'
•   Exercise - reported 'yes / no' questions with 'ask'
•   Lesson 4: Reported requests with 'ask' (2:11)
•   Exercise - Reported requests with 'ask'
•   Lesson 5: Reported orders with 'tell' (0:58)
•   Exercise - Reported orders with 'tell'
•   Lesson 6: Time expressions in reported speech (2:01)
•   Exercise - Time expressions in reported speech
•   Section 10 review quiz
•   Download the Section 11 PDFs here
•   Lesson 1: 'Must' and 'can't' for logical necessity (making guesses) about the present (3:39)
•   Exercise - 'Must' and 'can't' for logical necessity
•   Lesson 2: Could / might / etc for logical necessity (making guesses) about the present (1:22)
•   Exercise - Could / might etc for logical necessity (making guesses) about the present
•   Exercise - Mixed logical necessity for the present
•   Lesson 3: 'Must' for recommendations and offers (1:12)
•   Exercise - Must for recommendations and offers
•   Lesson 4: 'Ought to' for advice (1:03)
•   Exercise - 'Ought to' for advice
•   Lesson 5: Be supposed to (2:52)
•   Exercise - Be supposed to
•   Lesson 6: Used to + infinitive (1:12)
•   Exercise - Used to + infinitive
•   Lesson 7: Be / get used to (2:58)
•   Exercise - be / get used to
•   Lesson 8: Modals for politeness (2:20)
•   Exercise - Modals for politeness
•   Section 11 review quiz
•   Download the section 12 PDFs here
•   Lesson 1: Relative clauses introduction (1:52)
•   Exercise - Where is the relative clause?
•   Lesson 2: Defining and non-defining relative clauses (3:15)
•   Exercise - Defining or non-defining?
•   Lesson 3: Defining relative clauses with the pronoun as subject or object (2:53)
•   Exercise - Is the relative pronoun the subject or the object?
•   Exercise - Make defining relative clauses with 'who / that' as subject
•   Exercise - Make defining relative clauses with 'that' as the object
•   Lesson 4: Dropping the relative pronoun (1:21)
•   Exercise - Dropping the relative pronoun
•   Lesson 5: 'Who' or 'whom' in a relative clause? (1:45)
•   Exercise - Who or whom?
•   Lesson 6: 'Whose' in relative clauses (1:31)
•   Exercise - Whose in relative clauses
•   Lesson 7: 'When' in relative clauses (0:43)
•   Exercise - 'When' in relative clauses
•   Lesson 8: 'Where' in relative clauses (2:25)
•   Exercise - 'Where' in relative clauses
•   Section 12 review quiz
•   Download the section 13 PDFs here
•   Lesson 1: Reflexive pronouns (4:05)
•   Exercise - Reflexive pronouns 1 (reflexive pronoun or object pronoun?)
•   Exercise - Reflexive pronouns 2 (reflexive pronouns with verbs like 'dress', 'wash' and 'concentrate')
•   Lesson 2: Each other (2:08)
•   Exercise - Each other
•   Lesson 3: By myself = alone (0:44)
•   Exercise - By myself
•   Section 13 review quiz
•   Download the section 14 PDFs
•   Lesson 1: Zero conditionals (present real conditionals) (1:23)
•   Exercise - Make zero conditionals
•   Lesson 2: First conditionals (future real conditionals) (0:59)
•   Exercise - Make first conditionals
•   Lesson 3: Unless (0:59)
•   Exercise - Unless
•   Exercise - If and unless
•   Lesson 4: Future real conditionals with modal verbs (might, can, must) (2:22)
•   Exercise - Make future real conditionals with modals
•   Lesson 5: Second conditionals (future unreal conditionals) (1:47)
•   Exercise - Make second conditionals
•   Lesson 6: 'Was' or 'were' with the second conditional? (1:55)
•   Exercise - 'Was' or 'were' with the second conditional
•   Lesson 7: If not and if so (1:21)
•   Exercise - If so and if not
•   Exercise - Make zero / first / second conditionals 1
•   Exercise - Make zero / first / second conditionals 2
•   Section 14 review quiz
•   Download the section 15 PDFs here
•   Lesson 1: Order of adjectives (2:48)
•   Exercise - Order of adjectives
•   Lesson 2: Comparatives: get better and better (1:12)
•   Exercise - Comparatives: get better and better
•   Lesson 3: Comparatives: using a clause after 'than' (2:47)
•   Exercise - Comparatives: using a clause after 'than'
•   Lesson 4: Comparatives: verb+ing after 'than' (0:56)
•   Exercise - Comparatives: verb+ing after 'than'
•   Lesson 5: Superlatives with the present perfect tense (1:01)
•   Exercise - Superlatives with the present perfect tense
•   Lesson 6: Adjectives that are only used predicatively (asleep / alone / alive / alright / afraid) (2:14)
•   Exercise - Adjectives that are only used predicatively
•   Lesson 7: Compound adjectives (2:20)
•   Exercise - Compound adjectives
•   Section 15 review quiz
•   Download the section 16 PDFs here
•   Lesson 1: Adverbs of focus: even (2:27)
•   Exercise - Even
•   Lesson 2: Adverbs of focus: particularly / especially (1:16)
•   Exercise - Particularly / especially
•   Lesson 3: Adverbs of time: still (1:23)
•   Exercise - Still
•   Lesson 4: Adverbs of time: any more / any longer (1:26)
•   Exercise - Any more / any longer
•   Lesson 5: Adverbs for linking: although / though / however (1:32)
•   Exercise - Although / though / however
•   Lesson 6: Adverbs for linking: so / therefore (1:22)
•   Exercise - So / therefore
•   Lesson 7: Adverbs for linking: Because / as / since / because of / as a result of / on account of (2:21)
•   Exercise - Because / as / since / because of / as a result of / on account of
•   Lesson 8: Rather than / would rather (1:31)
•   Exercise - Rather than / would rather
•   Section 16 review quiz
•   Download the section 17 PDFs here
•   Lesson 1: 'As' and 'like' (1:48)
•   Exercise - 'As' and 'like'
•   Lesson 2: 'By' and 'with' to explain how we do something (1:20)
•   Exercise - 'By' and 'with'
•   Lesson 3: 'For' to show purpose (0:41)
•   Exercise - 'For' to show purpose
•   Lesson 4: 'At' or 'in' with buildings (1:29)
•   Exercise - 'At' or 'in' with buildings
•   Lesson 5: 'On time' or 'in time' (2:28)
•   Exercise - 'On time' or 'in time'?
•   Lesson 6: 'At the end' or 'in the end' (1:34)
•   Exercise - 'At the end' or 'in the end'?
•   Lesson 7: Prepositions after adjectives (2:55)
•   Exercise - Prepositions after adjectives
•   Lesson 8: Prepositions after verbs (2:35)
•   Exercise - Prepositions after verbs
•   Lesson 9: Prepositions after nouns (2:14)
•   Exercise - Prepositions after nouns
•   Section 17 review quiz
•   Take the final quiz here. :)
•   Please do the survey- click here!

  Lesson 1: How to make reported speech

Here's how it works:

We use a reporting verb like 'say' or 'tell'. If this verb is in the present tense, it's easy. We just put 'she says' and then the sentence:

• Direct speech: "I love coffee."
• Reported speech: She says that she loves coffee.

We don't need to change the tense of the verb 'loves', though probably we do need to change the pronoun from 'I' to 'she', for example. We also may need to change words like 'my' and 'your'.

But, if the reporting verb is in the past tense, then usually we change the tenses in the reported speech.

• Reported speech: She said that she loved coffee.

The verb 'love' changes from the present simple to the past simple ('loved'). This change is called 'backshifting'. It's just a grammatical change – we use it even if the thing is still true in real life.

Here are some more examples.

Present simple positive with 'be' ('am / is' change to 'was' and 'are' changes to 'were').

• Direct speech: "The children are hungry."
• Reported speech: She said that the children were hungry.

Present simple negative with 'be' ('am not / isn't' change to 'wasn't' and 'aren't' changes to 'weren't').

• Direct speech: "Lucy isn't from Brazil."
• Reported speech: She said that Lucy wasn't from Brazil.

Present simple positive with verbs that are not 'be' (present simple changes to past simple)

• Direct speech: "I work in a bank."
• Reported speech: He said that he worked in a bank.

Present simple negative with verbs that are not 'be' ('doesn't / don't' change to 'didn't').

• Direct speech: "The class doesn't start at ten."
• Reported speech: You said that the class didn't start at ten.

Now let's look at the present continuous. It changes to the past continuous.

• Direct speech: "I am going to work."
• Reported speech: She said that she was going to work.
• Direct speech: "I'm not sleeping."
• Reported speech: She said that she wasn't sleeping.
• Direct speech: "Lucy is working."
• Reported speech: She said that Lucy was working.

• Direct speech: "James isn't coming."
• Reported speech: She said that James wasn't coming.

The past simple is a little different. You have a choice! You can keep the past simple as the past simple, with no change. Or you can change it to the past perfect.

• Direct speech: "I went home."
• Reported speech: She said that she went home / had gone home.
• Direct speech: "They didn't meet Lucy."
• Reported speech: She said that they didn't meet / hadn't met Lucy.
• Direct speech: "The laptop broke."
• Reported speech: She said that the laptop broke / had broken.
• Direct speech: "We called Julie."
• Reported speech: She said that they had called Julie.

With the past continuous, we use 'had been + verb-ing'.

• Direct speech: "I was watching TV."
• Reported speech: She said that she had been watching TV.
• Direct speech: "The children weren't sleeping."
• Reported speech: She said that the children hadn't been sleeping.
• Direct speech: "We were chatting."
• Reported speech: She said that they had been chatting.
• Direct speech: "James was studying."
• Reported speech: She said that James had been studying.

With the present perfect, we use 'had + past participle' (the past perfect).

• Direct speech: "I have been to Mexico."
• Reported speech: She said that she had been to Mexico.
• Direct speech: "The students haven't finished the exam."
• Reported speech: She said that the students hadn't finished the exam.
• Direct speech: "Maria has gone out."
• Reported speech: She said that Maria had gone out.
• Direct speech: "He has lost his keys."
• Reported speech: She said that he had lost his keys.

With the past perfect, we don't need to change anything.

• Direct speech: "I had been late."
• Reported speech: She said that she had been late.
• Direct speech: "They hadn't had lunch."
• Reported speech: She said that they hadn't had lunch.
• Direct speech: "The boys had done their homework."
• Reported speech: She said that the boys had done their homework.
• Direct speech: "We had paid for everything."
• Reported speech: She said that they had paid for everything.

With 'will', we change it to 'would'.

• Direct speech: "I will come to the party."
• Reported speech: She said that she would come to the party.
• Direct speech: "They won't help."
• Reported speech: She said that they wouldn't help.
• Direct speech: "It will rain later."
• Reported speech: She said that it would rain later.
• Direct speech: "The children will be tired."
• Reported speech: She said that the children would be tired.

This is the same for the future continuous. We just change 'will' to 'would'.

• Direct speech: "I will be waiting."
• Reported speech: She said that she would be waiting.
• Direct speech: "They won't be coming."
• Reported speech: She said that they wouldn't be coming.
• Direct speech: "It will be snowing."
• Reported speech: She said that it would be snowing.
• Direct speech: "We will be sleeping."
• Reported speech: She said that they would be sleeping.

With 'be going to', we use 'was / were going to'.

• Direct speech: "I'm going to meet David."
• Reported speech: She said that she was going to meet David.
• Direct speech: "They aren't going to travel."
• Reported speech: She said that they weren't going to travel.
• Direct speech: "The students are going to pass the test."
• Reported speech: She said that the students were going to pass the test.
• Direct speech: "We are going to go to bed early."
• Reported speech: She said that they were going to go to bed early.

Reported Speech in English Grammar

Direct speech, changing the tense (backshift), no change of tenses, question sentences, demands/requests, expressions with who/what/how + infinitive, typical changes of time and place.

• Lingolia Plus English

Introduction

In English grammar, we use reported speech to say what another person has said. We can use their exact words with quotation marks , this is known as direct speech , or we can use indirect speech . In indirect speech , we change the tense and pronouns to show that some time has passed. Indirect speech is often introduced by a reporting verb or phrase such as ones below.

Learn the rules for writing indirect speech in English with Lingolia’s simple explanation. In the exercises, you can test your grammar skills.

When turning direct speech into indirect speech, we need to pay attention to the following points:

• changing the pronouns Example: He said, “ I saw a famous TV presenter.” He said (that) he had seen a famous TV presenter.
• changing the information about time and place (see the table at the end of this page) Example: He said, “I saw a famous TV presenter here yesterday .” He said (that) he had seen a famous TV presenter there the day before .
• changing the tense (backshift) Example: He said, “She was eating an ice-cream at the table where you are sitting .” He said (that) she had been eating an ice-cream at the table where I was sitting .

If the introductory clause is in the simple past (e.g. He said ), the tense has to be set back by one degree (see the table). The term for this in English is backshift .

The verbs could, should, would, might, must, needn’t, ought to, used to normally do not change.

If the introductory clause is in the simple present , however (e.g. He says ), then the tense remains unchanged, because the introductory clause already indicates that the statement is being immediately repeated (and not at a later point in time).

In some cases, however, we have to change the verb form.

When turning questions into indirect speech, we have to pay attention to the following points:

• As in a declarative sentence, we have to change the pronouns, the time and place information, and set the tense back ( backshift ).
• Instead of that , we use a question word. If there is no question word, we use whether / if instead. Example: She asked him, “ How often do you work?” → She asked him how often he worked. He asked me, “Do you know any famous people?” → He asked me if/whether I knew any famous people.
• We put the subject before the verb in question sentences. (The subject goes after the auxiliary verb in normal questions.) Example: I asked him, “ Have you met any famous people before?” → I asked him if/whether he had met any famous people before.
• We don’t use the auxiliary verb do for questions in indirect speech. Therefore, we sometimes have to conjugate the main verb (for third person singular or in the simple past ). Example: I asked him, “What do you want to tell me?” → I asked him what he wanted to tell me.
• We put the verb directly after who or what in subject questions. Example: I asked him, “ Who is sitting here?” → I asked him who was sitting there.

We don’t just use indirect questions to report what another person has asked. We also use them to ask questions in a very polite manner.

When turning demands and requests into indirect speech, we only need to change the pronouns and the time and place information. We don’t have to pay attention to the tenses – we simply use an infinitive .

If it is a negative demand, then in indirect speech we use not + infinitive .

To express what someone should or can do in reported speech, we leave out the subject and the modal verb and instead we use the construction who/what/where/how + infinitive.

Say or Tell?

The words say and tell are not interchangeable. say = say something tell = say something to someone

How good is your English?

Find out with Lingolia’s free grammar test

Take the test!

Maybe later

Reported Speech (Indirect Speech) in English – Summary

How to use reported speech.

If you have a sentence in Direct Speech, try to follow our 5 steps to put the sentence into Reported Speech..

• Define the type of the sentence (statement, questions, command)
• What tense is used in the introductory sentence?
• Do you have to change the person (pronoun)?
• Do you have to backshift the tenses?
• Do you have to change expressions of time and place?

1. Statements, Questions, Commands

Mind the type of sentences when you use Reported Speech. There is more detailed information on the following pages.

• Commands, Requests

2. The introductory sentence

If you use Reported Speech there are mostly two main differences.

The introductory sentence in Reported Speech can be in the Present or in the Past .

If the introductory sentences is in the Simple Present, there is no backshift of tenses.

Direct Speech:

• Susan, “ Mary work s in an office.”

Reported Speech:

• Introductory sentence in the Simple Present → Susan says (that)* Mary work s in an office.
• Introductory sentence in the Simple Past → Susan said (that)* Mary work ed in an office.

3. Change of persons/pronouns

If there is a pronoun in Direct Speech, it has possibly to be changed in Reported Speech, depending on the siutation.

• Direct Speech → Susan, “I work in an office.”
• Reported Speech → Susan said (that)* she worked in an office.

Here I is changed to she .

4. Backshift of tenses

If there is backshift of tenses in Reported Speech, the tenses are shifted the following way.

• Direct Speech → Peter, “ I work in the garden.”
• Reported Speech → Peter said (that)* he work ed in the garden.

5. Conversion of expressions of time and place

If there is an expression of time/place in the sentence, it may be changed, depending on the situation.

• Direct Speech → Peter, “I worked in the garden yesterday .”
• Reported Speech → Peter said (that) he had worked in the garden the day before .

6. Additional information

In some cases backshift of tenses is not necessary, e.g. when statements are still true. Backshift of tenses is never wrong.

• John, “My brother is at Leipzig university.”
• John said (that) his brother was at Leipzig university. or
• John said (that) his brother is at Leipzig university.

when you use general statements.

• Mandy, “The sun rises in the east.”
• Mandy said (that) the sun rose in the east. or
• Mandy said (that) the sun rises in the east.

* The word that is optional, that is the reason why we put it in brackets.

• You are here:
• Grammar Explanations
• Reported Speech

You are using an outdated browser. Please upgrade your browser or activate Google Chrome Frame to improve your experience.

Reported Speech in English

“Reported speech” might sound fancy, but it isn’t that complicated.

It’s just how you talk about what someone said.

Luckily, it’s pretty simple to learn the basics in English, beginning with the two types of reported speech: direct (reporting the exact words someone said) and indirect (reporting what someone said without using their exact words ).

Read this post to learn how to report speech, with tips and tricks for each, plenty of examples and a resources section that tells you about real world resources you can use to practice reporting speech.

How to Report Direct Speech

How to report indirect speech, reporting questions in indirect speech, verb tenses in indirect reported speech, simple present, present continuous, present perfect, present perfect continuous, simple past, past continuous, past perfect, past perfect continuous, simple future, future continuous, future perfect, future perfect continuous, authentic resources for practicing reported speech, novels and short stories, native english videos, celebrity profiles.

Download: This blog post is available as a convenient and portable PDF that you can take anywhere. Click here to get a copy. (Download)

Direct speech refers to the exact words that a person says. You can “report” direct speech in a few different ways.

To see how this works, let’s pretend that I (Elisabeth) told some people that I liked green onions.

Here are some different ways that those people could explain what I said:

Direct speech: “I like green onions,” Elisabeth said.

• Thousands of learner friendly videos (especially beginners)
• Handpicked, organized, and annotated by FluentU's experts
• Integrated into courses for beginners

Direct speech: “I like green onions,” she told me. — In this sentence, we replace my name (Elisabeth) with the pronoun she.

In all of these examples, the part that was said is between quotation marks and is followed by a noun (“she” or “Elisabeth”) and a verb. Each of these verbs (“to say,” “to tell [someone],” “to explain”) are ways to describe someone talking. You can use any verb that refers to speech in this way.

You can also put the noun and verb before what was said.

Direct speech: Elisabeth said, “I like spaghetti.”

The example above would be much more likely to be said out loud than the first set of examples.

Here’s a conversation that might happen between two people:

• Interactive subtitles: click any word to see detailed examples and explanations
• Slow down or loop the tricky parts
• Show or hide subtitles
• Review words with our powerful learning engine

1: Did you ask her if she liked coffee?

2: Yeah, I asked her.

1: What did she say?

2. She said, “Yeah, I like coffee.” ( Direct speech )

Usually, reporting of direct speech is something you see in writing. It doesn’t happen as often when people are talking to each other. 

Direct reported speech often happens in the past. However, there are all kinds of stories, including journalism pieces, profiles and fiction, where you might see speech reported in the present as well.

This is sometimes done when the author of the piece wants you to feel that you’re experiencing events in the present moment.

• Learn words in the context of sentences
• Swipe left or right to see more examples from other videos
• Go beyond just a superficial understanding

For example, a profile of Kristen Stewart in Vanity Fair  has a funny moment that describes how the actress isn’t a very good swimmer:

Direct speech: “I don’t want to enter the water, ever,” she says. “If everyone’s going in the ocean, I’m like, no.”

Here, the speech is reported as though it’s in the present tense (“she says”) instead of in the past (“she said”).

In writing of all kinds, direct reported speech is often split into two or more parts, as it is above.

Here’s an example from Lewis Carroll’s “ Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland ,” where the speech is even more split up:

Direct speech: “I won’t indeed!” said Alice, in a great hurry to change the subject of conversation. “Are you—are you fond—of—of dogs?” The Mouse did not answer, so Alice went on eagerly: “There is such a nice little dog near our house I should like to show you!”

Reporting indirect speech is what happens when you explain what someone said without using their exact words.

• FluentU builds you up, so you can build sentences on your own
• Start with multiple-choice questions and advance through sentence building to producing your own output
• Go from understanding to speaking in a natural progression.

Let’s start with an example of direct reported speech like those used above.

Direct speech: Elisabeth said, “I like coffee.”

As indirect reported speech, it looks like this:

Indirect speech: Elisabeth said she liked coffee.

You can see that the subject (“I”) has been changed to “she,” to show who is being spoken about. If I’m reporting the direct speech of someone else, and this person says “I,” I’d repeat their sentence exactly as they said it. If I’m reporting this person’s speech indirectly to someone else, however, I’d speak about them in the third person—using “she,” “he” or “they.”

You may also notice that the tense changes here: If “I like coffee” is what she said, this can become “She liked coffee” in indirect speech.

• Images, examples, video examples, and tips
• Covering all the tricky edge cases, eg.: phrases, idioms, collocations, and separable verbs
• No reliance on volunteers or open source dictionaries
• 100,000+ hours spent by FluentU's team to create and maintain

However, you might just as often hear someone say something like, “She said she likes coffee.” Since people’s likes and preferences tend to change over time and not right away, it makes sense to keep them in the present tense.

Indirect speech often uses the word “that” before what was said:

Indirect speech: She said that she liked coffee.

There’s no real difference between “She said she liked coffee” and “She said that she liked coffee.” However, using “that” can help make the different parts of the sentence clearer.

Let’s look at a few other examples:

Indirect speech: I said I was going outside today.

Indirect speech: They told me that they wanted to order pizza.

Indirect speech: He mentioned it was raining.

Indirect speech: She said that her father was coming over for dinner.

You can see an example of reporting indirect speech in the funny video “ Cell Phone Crashing .” In this video, a traveler in an airport sits down next to another traveler talking on his cell phone. The first traveler pretends to be talking to someone on his phone, but he appears to be responding to the second traveler’s conversation, which leads to this exchange:

Woman: “Are you answering what I’m saying?”

Man “No, no… I’m on the phone with somebody, sorry. I don’t mean to be rude.” (Direct speech)

Woman: “What was that?”

Man: “I just said I was on the phone with somebody.” (Indirect speech)

When reporting questions in indirect speech, you can use words like “whether” or “if” with verbs that show questioning, such as “to ask” or “to wonder.”

Direct speech: She asked, “Is that a new restaurant?”

Indirect speech: She asked if that was a new restaurant. 

In any case where you’re reporting a question, you can say that someone was “wondering” or “wanted to know” something. Notice that these verbs don’t directly show that someone asked a question. They don’t describe an action that happened at a single point in time. But you can usually assume that someone was wondering or wanted to know what they asked.

Indirect speech: She was wondering if that was a new restaurant.

Indirect speech: She wanted to know whether that was a new restaurant.

It can be tricky to know how to use tenses when reporting indirect speech. Let’s break it down, tense by tense.

Sometimes, indirect speech “ backshifts ,” or moves one tense further back into the past. We already saw this in the example from above:

Direct speech: She said, “I like coffee.”

Indirect speech: She said she liked coffee.

Also as mentioned above, backshifting doesn’t always happen. This might seem confusing, but it isn’t that difficult to understand once you start using reported speech regularly.

What tense you use in indirect reported speech often just depends on when what you’re reporting happened or was true.

Let’s look at some examples of how direct speech in certain tenses commonly changes (or doesn’t) when it’s reported as indirect speech.

To learn about all the English tenses (or for a quick review), check out this post .

Direct speech: I said, “I play video games.”

Indirect speech: I said that I played video games (simple past) or I said that I play video games  (simple present).

Backshifting into the past or staying in the present here can change the meaning slightly. If you use the first example, it’s unclear whether or not you still play video games; all we know is that you said you played them in the past.

If you use the second example, though, you probably still play video games (unless you were lying for some reason).

However, the difference in meaning is so small, you can use either one and you won’t have a problem.

Direct speech: I said, “I’m playing video games.”

Indirect speech: I said that I was playing video games (past continuous) or I said that I’m playing video games (present continuous).

In this case, you’d likely use the first example if you were telling a story about something that happened in the past.

You could use the second example to repeat or stress what you just said. For example:

Hey, want to go for a walk?

Direct speech: No, I’m playing video games.

But it’s such a nice day!

Indirect speech: I said that I’m playing video games!

Direct speech: Marie said, “I have read that book.”

Indirect speech: Marie said that she had read that book (past perfect) or Marie said that she has read that book (present perfect).

The past perfect is used a lot in writing and other kinds of narration. This is because it helps point out an exact moment in time when something was true.

The past perfect isn’t quite as useful in conversation, where people are usually more interested in what’s true now. So, in a lot of cases, people would use the second example above when speaking.

Direct speech: She said, “I have been watching that show.”

Indirect speech: She said that she had been watching that show (past perfect continuous) or She said that she has been watching that show (present perfect continuous).

These examples are similar to the others above. You could use the first example whether or not this person was still watching the show, but if you used the second example, it’d probably seem like you either knew or guessed that she was still watching it.

Direct speech: You told me, “I charged my phone.”

Indirect speech: You told me that you had charged your phone (past perfect) or You told me that you charged your phone (simple past).

Here, most people would probably just use the second example, because it’s simpler, and gets across the same meaning.

Direct speech: You told me, “I was charging my phone.”

Indirect speech: You told me that you had been charging your phone (past perfect continuous) or You told me that you were charging your phone (past continuous).

Here, the difference is between whether you had been charging your phone before or were charging your phone at the time. However, a lot of people would still use the second example in either situation.

Direct speech: They explained, “We had bathed the cat on Wednesday.”

Indirect speech: They explained that they had bathed the cat on Wednesday. (past perfect)

Once we start reporting the past perfect tenses, we don’t backshift because there are no tenses to backshift to.

So in this case, it’s simple. The tense stays exactly as is. However, many people might simplify even more and use the simple past, saying, “They explained that they bathed the cat on Wednesday.”

Direct speech: They said, “The cat had been going outside and getting dirty for a long time!”

Indirect speech: They said that the cat had been going outside and getting dirty for a long time. (past perfect continuous)

Again, we don’t shift the tense back here; we leave it like it is. And again, a lot of people would report this speech as, “They said the cat was going outside and getting dirty for a long time.” It’s just a simpler way to say almost the same thing.

Direct speech: I told you, “I will be here no matter what.”

Indirect speech: I told you that I would be here no matter what. (present conditional)

At this point, we don’t just have to think about tenses, but grammatical mood, too. However, the idea is still pretty simple. We use the conditional (with “would”) to show that at the time the words were spoken, the future was uncertain.

In this case, you could also say, “I told you that I will be here no matter what,” but only if you “being here” is still something that you expect to happen in the future.

What matters here is what’s intended. Since this example shows a person reporting their own speech, it’s more likely that they’d want to stress the truth of their own intention, and so they might be more likely to use “will” than “would.”

But if you were reporting someone else’s words, you might be more likely to say something like, “She told me that she would be here no matter what.”

Direct speech: I said, “I’ll be waiting for your call.”

Indirect speech: I said that I would be waiting for your call. (conditional continuous)

These are similar to the above examples, but apply to a continuous or ongoing action.

Direct speech: She said, “I will have learned a lot about myself.”

Indirect speech: She said that she would have learned a lot about herself (conditional perfect) or She said that she will have learned a lot about herself (future perfect).

In this case, using the conditional (as in the first example) suggests that maybe a certain event didn’t happen, or something didn’t turn out as expected.

However, that might not always be the case, especially if this was a sentence that was written in an article or a work of fiction. The second example, however, suggests that the future that’s being talked about still hasn’t happened yet.

Direct speech: She said, “By next Tuesday, I will have been staying inside every day for the past month.”

Indirect speech: She said that by next Tuesday, she would have been staying inside every day for the past month (perfect continuous conditional) or She said that by next Tuesday, she will have been staying inside every day for the past month (past perfect continuous).

Again, in this case, the first example might suggest that the event didn’t happen. Maybe the person didn’t stay inside until next Tuesday! However, this could also just be a way of explaining that at the time she said this in the past, it was uncertain whether she really would stay inside for as long as she thought.

The second example, on the other hand, would only be used if next Tuesday hadn’t happened yet.

Let’s take a look at where you can find resources for practicing reporting speech in the real world.

One of the most common uses for reported speech is in fiction. You’ll find plenty of reported speech in novels and short stories . Look for books that have long sections of text with dialogue marked by quotation marks (“…”). Once you understand the different kinds of reported speech, you can look for it in your reading and use it in your own writing.

Writing your own stories is a great way to get even better at understanding reported speech.

One of the best ways to practice any aspect of English is to watch native English videos. By watching English speakers use the language, you can understand how reported speech is used in real world situations.

FluentU takes authentic videos—like music videos, movie trailers, news and inspiring talks—and turns them into personalized language learning lessons.

You can try FluentU for free for 2 weeks. Check out the website or download the iOS app or Android app.

P.S. Click here to take advantage of our current sale! (Expires at the end of this month.)

Try FluentU for FREE!

Celebrity profiles, which you can find in print magazines and online, can help you find and practice reported speech, too. Celebrity profiles are stories that focus on a famous person. They often include some kind of interview. The writer will usually spend some time describing the person and then mention things that they say; this is when they use reported speech.

Because many of these profiles are written in the present tense, they can help you get used to the basics of reported speech without having to worry too much about different verb tenses.

While the above may seem really complicated, it isn’t that difficult to start using reported speech.

Mastering it may be a little difficult, but the truth is that many, many people who speak English as a first language struggle with it, too!

Reported speech is flexible, and even if you make mistakes, there’s a good chance that no one will notice.

Enter your e-mail address to get your free PDF!

We hate SPAM and promise to keep your email address safe

Perfectyourenglish.com

English Grammar Lessons And Worksheets

Reported speech | Rules for changing tenses

by Manjusha Nambiar · June 17, 2016

If the reporting verb (the verb outside the quotation marks or inverted commas) is in the past tense , the reported speech must also be in the past tense.

Study the example given below.

Direct speech: He said, ‘I write a letter.’

Indirect speech: He said that he wrote a letter.

Rani said, ‘I work at a bank.’

Rani said that she worked at a bank.

Direct speech: She said, ‘I’m waiting for you.’

Indirect speech: She said that she was waiting for me.

Here are the basic rules.

When the reporting verb is in the past tense

Change simple present tense to simple past tense

Maya said, ‘I like oyster.’ Maya said that she liked oyster.

Suresh said, ‘I enjoy watching movies.’ Suresh said that he enjoyed watching movies.

Pooja said, ‘I don’t know the answer.’ Pooja said that she didn’t know the answer.

Change present continuous tense into past continuous tense

Rashmi said, ‘I am preparing for my test.’ Rashmi said that she was preparing for her test.

The boys said, ‘We are waiting for the bus.’ The boys said that they were waiting for the bus.

The teacher said to the boy, ‘What are you doing there?’ The teacher asked the boy what he was doing there.

Change present perfect tense into past perfect tense

Meera said, ‘I have watched this film.’ Meera said that she had watched that film.

The girl said, ‘I have finished my lunch.’ The girl said that she had finished her lunch.

Mother said, ‘I have laid the table.’ Mother said that she had laid the table.

Change present perfect continuous tense into past perfect continuous tense

He said to me, ‘I have been waiting for you since morning.’ He told me that he had been waiting for me since morning.

Ramesh said, ‘I have been looking for a job for two years.’ Ramesh said that he had been looking for a job for two years.

Change simple past into past perfect

Aliya said, ‘I received his letter yesterday.’ Aliya said that she had received his letter the previous day.

Pooja said, ‘I didn’t receive the notification.’ Pooja said that she had received the notification.

Change past continuous into past perfect continuous

The students said, ‘We were waiting outside the gate.’ The students said that they had been waiting outside the gate.

Rohan said, ‘I was working in the garage.’ Rohan said that he had been working in the garage.

Past perfect and past perfect continuous tenses do not undergo any change.

Mahesh said, ‘I had finished the job.’ Mahesh said that he had finished the job.

Rekha said, ‘I had been waiting to hear from them.’ Rekha said that she had been waiting to hear from them.

Change will into would, shall into should, can into could and may into might.

Supriya said, ‘I will come.’ Supriya said that she would come.

Father said, ‘I cannot come now.’ Father said that he could not go then .

Related posts:

• Direct And Indirect Speech Basic Rules
• Tenses worksheet for class 6
• Passive Verb Forms
• Sequence Of Verb Tenses
• Tenses exercise for CBSE Class 10
• Primary Auxiliaries
• Simple present, simple past and simple future tenses
• Active or passive | Grammar worksheets for class 6

Tags: reported speech

Manjusha Nambiar

Hi, I am Manjusha. This is my blog where I give English grammar lessons and worksheets.

• Next story  Phrasal verbs with take – exercise 1
• Previous story  Phrasal verbs beginning with L

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Explore perfectyourenglish.com

Useful links

• English Grammar
• A word a day
• B2 First (Cambridge English)
• Bank PO English
• CBSE Grammar Worksheets
• Class 10 worksheets
• Class 11 Worksheets
• Class 2 Worksheets
• Class 3 worksheets
• Class 4 worksheets
• Class 5 worksheets
• Class 6 worksheets
• Class 7 worksheets
• Class 8 worksheets
• Class 9 and 10 worksheets
• Class 9 worksheets
• Grammar exercises
• Karnataka Board English
• Kerala Syllabus English
• Maharashtra Syllabus English
• Phrasal verbs
• PSC Coaching
• Reading comprehension
• Sample Letters
• Tamil Nadu Board English
• Test Preparation
• Uncategorized
• Vocabulary exercises

Never Miss an Update!

Enter your email address to receive our lessons in your inbox:

Delivered by FeedBurner

Sites in our network

NCERT Guides

Learn Maths Online | Free NCERT Maths Solutions

Recent Posts

• Strategies for TOEFL Speaking Independent Task
• Tips for Integrated Tasks in the TOEFL Speaking Section
• New Technologies Have Changed the Way Children Their Free Time
• How to Improve your Pronunciation for TOEFL Speaking
• How to Increase Your TOEFL Speaking Score

• English Grammar
• Reported Speech

Reported Speech - Definition, Rules and Usage with Examples

Reported speech or indirect speech is the form of speech used to convey what was said by someone at some point of time. This article will help you with all that you need to know about reported speech, its meaning, definition, how and when to use them along with examples. Furthermore, try out the practice questions given to check how far you have understood the topic.

Table of Contents

Definition of reported speech, rules to be followed when using reported speech, table 1 – change of pronouns, table 2 – change of adverbs of place and adverbs of time, table 3 – change of tense, table 4 – change of modal verbs, tips to practise reported speech, examples of reported speech, check your understanding of reported speech, frequently asked questions on reported speech in english, what is reported speech.

Reported speech is the form in which one can convey a message said by oneself or someone else, mostly in the past. It can also be said to be the third person view of what someone has said. In this form of speech, you need not use quotation marks as you are not quoting the exact words spoken by the speaker, but just conveying the message.

Now, take a look at the following dictionary definitions for a clearer idea of what it is.

Reported speech, according to the Oxford Learner’s Dictionary, is defined as “a report of what somebody has said that does not use their exact words.” The Collins Dictionary defines reported speech as “speech which tells you what someone said, but does not use the person’s actual words.” According to the Cambridge Dictionary, reported speech is defined as “the act of reporting something that was said, but not using exactly the same words.” The Macmillan Dictionary defines reported speech as “the words that you use to report what someone else has said.”

Reported speech is a little different from direct speech . As it has been discussed already, reported speech is used to tell what someone said and does not use the exact words of the speaker. Take a look at the following rules so that you can make use of reported speech effectively.

• The first thing you have to keep in mind is that you need not use any quotation marks as you are not using the exact words of the speaker.
• You can use the following formula to construct a sentence in the reported speech.

• You can use verbs like said, asked, requested, ordered, complained, exclaimed, screamed, told, etc. If you are just reporting a declarative sentence , you can use verbs like told, said, etc. followed by ‘that’ and end the sentence with a full stop . When you are reporting interrogative sentences, you can use the verbs – enquired, inquired, asked, etc. and remove the question mark . In case you are reporting imperative sentences , you can use verbs like requested, commanded, pleaded, ordered, etc. If you are reporting exclamatory sentences , you can use the verb exclaimed and remove the exclamation mark . Remember that the structure of the sentences also changes accordingly.
• Furthermore, keep in mind that the sentence structure , tense , pronouns , modal verbs , some specific adverbs of place and adverbs of time change when a sentence is transformed into indirect/reported speech.

Transforming Direct Speech into Reported Speech

As discussed earlier, when transforming a sentence from direct speech into reported speech, you will have to change the pronouns, tense and adverbs of time and place used by the speaker. Let us look at the following tables to see how they work.

Here are some tips you can follow to become a pro in using reported speech.

• Select a play, a drama or a short story with dialogues and try transforming the sentences in direct speech into reported speech.
• Write about an incident or speak about a day in your life using reported speech.
• Develop a story by following prompts or on your own using reported speech.

Given below are a few examples to show you how reported speech can be written. Check them out.

• Santana said that she would be auditioning for the lead role in Funny Girl.
• Blaine requested us to help him with the algebraic equations.
• Karishma asked me if I knew where her car keys were.
• The judges announced that the Warblers were the winners of the annual acapella competition.
• Binsha assured that she would reach Bangalore by 8 p.m.
• Kumar said that he had gone to the doctor the previous day.
• Lakshmi asked Teena if she would accompany her to the railway station.
• Jibin told me that he would help me out after lunch.
• The police ordered everyone to leave from the bus stop immediately.
• Rahul said that he was drawing a caricature.

Transform the following sentences into reported speech by making the necessary changes.

1. Rachel said, “I have an interview tomorrow.”

2. Mahesh said, “What is he doing?”

3. Sherly said, “My daughter is playing the lead role in the skit.”

4. Dinesh said, “It is a wonderful movie!”

5. Suresh said, “My son is getting married next month.”

6. Preetha said, “Can you please help me with the invitations?”

7. Anna said, “I look forward to meeting you.”

8. The teacher said, “Make sure you complete the homework before tomorrow.”

9. Sylvester said, “I am not going to cry anymore.”

10. Jade said, “My sister is moving to Los Angeles.”

Now, find out if you have answered all of them correctly.

1. Rachel said that she had an interview the next day.

2. Mahesh asked what he was doing.

3. Sherly said that her daughter was playing the lead role in the skit.

4. Dinesh exclaimed that it was a wonderful movie.

5. Suresh said that his son was getting married the following month.

6. Preetha asked if I could help her with the invitations.

7. Anna said that she looked forward to meeting me.

8. The teacher told us to make sure we completed the homework before the next day.

9. Sylvester said that he was not going to cry anymore.

10. Jade said that his sister was moving to Los Angeles.

What is reported speech?

What is the definition of reported speech.

Reported speech, according to the Oxford Learner’s Dictionary, is defined as “a report of what somebody has said that does not use their exact words.” The Collins Dictionary defines reported speech as “speech which tells you what someone said, but does not use the person’s actual words.” According to the Cambridge Dictionary, reported speech is defined as “the act of reporting something that was said, but not using exactly the same words.” The Macmillan Dictionary defines reported speech as “the words that you use to report what someone else has said.”

What is the formula of reported speech?

You can use the following formula to construct a sentence in the reported speech. Subject said that (report whatever the speaker said)

Give some examples of reported speech.

Given below are a few examples to show you how reported speech can be written.

Leave a Comment Cancel reply

Your Mobile number and Email id will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Request OTP on Voice Call

Post My Comment

Register with BYJU'S & Download Free PDFs

Register with byju's & watch live videos.

Stack Exchange Network

Stack Exchange network consists of 183 Q&A communities including Stack Overflow , the largest, most trusted online community for developers to learn, share their knowledge, and build their careers.

Q&A for work

Connect and share knowledge within a single location that is structured and easy to search.

When I need to use "that" in Reported Speech

I have a question about Reported Speech: when do I need to use that ?

For example, why do I need to use that here?

Original sentence:

"We went out last night."

Sentence with reported speech:

She said that they had gone out last night.

Why in this example don’t I need to use that?

"He works in a bank."

She said he worked in a bank

• reported-speech

• You should use it in both. "She said that they had gone out last night." "She said that he works in a bank." –  BadZen Commented Sep 3, 2020 at 23:49
• There is no significant difference between the two sentences. BadZen is probably correct, but in informal speech we often leave "that" out. –  Old Brixtonian Commented Sep 3, 2020 at 23:55

2 Answers 2

There is no difference between your two examples. One can include the word "that", or one can exclude it. It is more likely to be included in writing than in speech. The more formal the context, the more likely the "that" is to be included.

She said they had gone out last night.

Both are correct, the latter less formal.

She said that he worked in a bank.

She said he worked in a bank.

Here are some other examples where "that" is omitted informally:

• She said (that) she knew.
• You said (that) I could.
• They said (that) they didn't want to leave.
• We said (that) we would be there.
• He said (that) he didn't like it.
• You said (that) you'd seen it.

It can also be omitted in contexts unrelated to reported speech.

• I told him (that) I liked it.
• She knew (that) we were there.
• I thought (that) I knew you.
• I'm glad (that) I found you.

To supplement @rjpond 's excellent answer, I will point out that journalism students, at least in the US, are explicitly taught to omit "that" in these constructions. Reuters, the British news agency, includes this remark in their General Style Guide:

Avoid the unnecessary use of that as in "He said that he was going to" etc. (page 420).

My point is that how we define formality when using this word depends on the context. Reuters is not known for generating tabloid-style articles.

You must log in to answer this question.

• Featured on Meta
• We've made changes to our Terms of Service & Privacy Policy - July 2024
• Announcing a change to the data-dump process

Hot Network Questions

• Was the idea of foxes with many tails invented in anime, or is it a Japanese folk religion thing?
• Movie identification 90s-ish on the Syfy channel sea creature
• Centrifugal force/ pseudo force in circular motion
• Inverse problem for geodesic
• Can I travel to Malaysia from Singapore?
• Why doesn't Oppenheimer like the word "bomb" being used to describe the bomb?
• What would the correct answer be for Mendelson Exercise 1.4 (g)
• Why don't neutrons and protons have variable spin?
• ORCA 6 slower than ORCA 5?
• Backshifting tenses in reported speech
• Is it correct to say: "To solve an addiction"?
• Blocking access to `*.php` in `.well-known`
• Plotting circle by center of circle and the radius in QGIS
• Can "the" mean "enough"? — E.g.: "She will bake a pie, if she has the ingredients."
• Possibly manipulated recommendation letter - inform alleged author?
• Borderlands 2 for PS3 has unbelievably low drop rates. Is something wrong?
• Automata reaching the same state when reading the same word long enough
• Is "Non-Trivial amount of work" a correct phrase?
• If energy can be converted into matter and interact with it, would this imply that matter and energy are the same "ontological substance"?
• Why would radio-capable transhumans still vocalise to each-other?
• Proper shift cable routing for SRAM Rival derailleur
• Is a hotter heat source always necessary for an object to be heated?
• Why is the E in 'collega' long?
• Stageplay adaptation of the Count of Monte Cristo

• Grammar Exercises
• Grammar Lessons
• Grammar Quizzes
• Mixed Tests
• PDF Worksheets
• Beginners Lessons
• Easy Worksheets
• Beginners Tests
• Reading Exercises
• Drag & Drop Grammar
• English For Kids
• Kids Word Games
• Picture Vocabulary
• Reading Tests
• Short Dialogues
• Short Sentences
• Closest in Meaning
• Irrelevant Sentence
• ESL Paragraphs
• GRE Reading
• Text Completion
• GRE Equivalence
• SAT Sentence
• Essay Writing
• Vocabulary Exercises
• Study Skills Tips
• Drag & Drop Vocab

Reported Speech Examples

See the video exercise.

He works in a bank.” she said

A. She said that he worked in a bank.

B. She said that he works in a bank.

C. She said that he work in a bar.

D. She say that he works in a bank.

Select your answer:          

Next Quiz >

Other quiz:

We……. wash our hands before and after meals.

B. must not

A: You should ask the neighbours what they saw.

B: I did, but Marc says he’s not ………….. sure because it was so dark.

B. slightly

How to use : Read the question carefully, then select one of the answers button.

GrammarQuiz.Net - Improve your knowledge of English grammar, the best way to kill your free time.

Confirm Password *

By registering, you agree to the Terms of Service and Privacy Policy . *

Username or email *

Forgot Password

Lost your password? Please enter your email address. You will receive a link and will create a new password via email.

Sorry, you do not have permission to ask a question, You must login to ask a question.

Please briefly explain why you feel this question should be reported.

Please briefly explain why you feel this answer should be reported.

Please briefly explain why you feel this user should be reported.

English Notes

English notes latest questions, she said, “he works in a bank.” change into indirect speech.

Indirect Speech: She said that he worked in a bank.

Explanation: When the reporting verb is in the past (said) and the direct speech is in the present indefinite tense (simple present tense), then the indirect (reported) speech will change into the past indefinite tense.

Present Indefinite Tense > Past Indefinite Tense.

Learn Narration

• Share on WhatsApp
• Share on Facebook
• Share on Twitter
• Share on LinkedIn
• Cancel the best answer

You must login to add an answer.

• Primary School

Change this direct speech into reported speech: 1. “He works in a bank” She said ___________________________________________________________ 2. “We went out last night” She told me ________________________________________________________ 3. “I’m coming!” She said ___________________________________________________________ 4. “I was waiting for the bus when he arrived” She told me ________________________________________________________ 5. “ I’d never been there before” She said ___________________________________________________________ 6. “I didn’t go to the party” She told me ________________________________________________________ 7. “Lucy’ll come later” She said ___________________________________________________________ 8. “He hasn’t eaten breakfast” She told me ________________________________________________________ 9. “I can help you tomorrow” She said ___________________________________________________________ 10. “You should go to bed early” She told me ________________________________________________________

1) She said that he worked in a bank.

2) She told me that they went out last night.

3) She said that she was coming.

4) She told me that she had been waiting for the bus when he arrived.

5)  She said that she'd never been there before.

6) She said that she didn't go to the party.

7) She said that Lucy would be coming later.

8) She told me that he had not eaten breakfast.

9) She said that she could help me the next day.

10) She told me that I should go to bed early.

Explanation:

The answers are as follows:

1. She said that he worked in a bank.

2. She told me that they had gone out the previous night.

3. She said that she was coming.

4. She told me that she had been waiting for the bus when he arrived.

5. She said that she'd never been there before.

6. She told me that she had not gone to the party.

7. She said that Lucy would come later.

8. She told me that he hadn't eaten breakfast.

9. She said that she could help me the next day.

10. She told me that I should go to bed early.

Transformation of Sentences

• The sentences are given in the direct speech. While transforming them into indirect speech, the quotation marks need to be removed . An indirect speech should always end with a full stop .
• The subordinate clause should be changed to the past tense of the given verb. If the tense is already in simple past, it should be changed to past perfect tense.

New questions in English

• Election 2024
• Entertainment
• Newsletters
• Photography
• AP Buyline Personal Finance
• AP Buyline Shopping
• Press Releases
• Israel-Hamas War
• Russia-Ukraine War
• Global elections
• Asia Pacific
• Latin America
• Middle East
• Delegate Tracker
• AP & Elections
• 2024 Paris Olympic Games
• Auto Racing
• Movie reviews
• Book reviews
• Financial Markets
• Business Highlights
• Financial wellness
• Artificial Intelligence
• Social Media

FACT FOCUS: A look at false claims around Kamala Harris and her campaign for the White House

Democrats are quickly rallying around Vice President Kamala Harris as their likely presidential nominee after President Joe Biden’s ground-shaking decision to bow out of the 2024 race.

Vice President Kamala Harris arrives to speak from the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, Monday, July 22, 2024, during an event with NCAA college athletes. This is her first public appearance since President Joe Biden endorsed her to be the next presidential nominee of the Democratic Party. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

• Copy Link copied

The announcement that Vice President Kamala Harris will seek the Democratic nomination for president is inspiring a wave of false claims about her eligibility and her background. Some first emerged years ago, while others only surfaced after President Joe Biden’s decision to end his bid for a second term.

Here’s a look at the facts.

CLAIM: Harris is not an American citizen and therefore cannot serve as commander in chief.

THE FACTS: Completely false . Harris is a natural born U.S. citizen. She was born on Oct. 20, 1964, in Oakland, California, according to a copy of her birth certificate, obtained by The Associated Press.

Her mother, a cancer researcher from India, and her father, an economist from Jamaica, met as graduate students at the University of California, Berkeley.

Under the 14th Amendment to the Constitution, anyone born on U.S. soil is considered a natural born U.S. citizen and eligible to serve as either the vice president or president.

“All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside,” reads the amendment.

There is no question or legitimate debate about whether a citizen like Harris is eligible to serve as president or vice president, said Jessica Levinson, a professor at Loyola Law School.

“So many legal questions are really nuanced — this isn’t one of those situations,” Levinson told the AP on Monday.

Still, social media posts making the debunked assertion that Harris cannot serve as president went viral soon after Biden announced Sunday that he was dropping out of the race and would back Harris for president.

“Kamala Harris is not eligible to run for President,” read one post on X that was liked more than 34,000 times. “Neither of her parents were natural born American citizens when she was born.”

False assertions about Harris’ eligibility began circulating in 2019 when she launched her bid for the presidency. They got a boost, thanks in part to then-President Donald Trump, when Biden selected her as his running mate.

“I heard today that she doesn’t meet the requirements,” the Republican said of Harris in 2019.

CLAIM: Harris is not Black.

THE FACTS: This is false. Harris is Black and Indian . Her father, Donald Harris, is a Black man who was born in Jamaica. Shyamala Gopalan, her mother, was born in southern India. Harris has spoken publicly for many years, including in her 2019 autobiography , about how she identifies with the heritage of both her parents.

What to know about the 2024 Election

• Democracy: American democracy has overcome big stress tests since 2020. More challenges lie ahead in 2024.
• AP’s Role: The Associated Press is the most trusted source of information on election night, with a history of accuracy dating to 1848. Learn more.
• Stay informed. Keep your pulse on the news with breaking news email alerts. Sign up here .

Despite ample evidence to the contrary, social media users are making erroneous claims about Harris’ race.

“Just a reminder that Kamala Harris @KamalaHarris isn’t black,” reads one X post that had received approximately 42,000 likes and 20,400 shares as of Monday. “She Indian American. She pretends to be black as part of the delusional, Democrat DEI quota.”

But Harris is both Black and Indian. Indeed, she is the first woman, Black person and person of South Asian descent to serve as vice president. This fact is highlighted in her biography on WhiteHouse.gov and she has spoken about her ethnicity on many occasions.

Harris wrote in her autobiography, “The Truths We Hold: An American Journey,” that she identifies with the heritage of both her mother and father.

“My mother, grandparents, aunts, and uncle instilled us with pride in our South Asian roots,” she wrote. “Our classical Indian names harked back to our heritage, and we were raised with a strong awareness and appreciation for Indian culture.”

In the next paragraph, she adds, “My mother understood very well that she was raising two black daughters.” Harris again refers to herself as a “black woman” in the book’s next chapter.

CLAIM: Harris got her start by having an affair with a married man, California politician Willie Brown.

THE FACTS: This is missing some important context. Brown was separated from his wife during the relationship, which was not a secret.

Brown, 90, is a former mayor of San Francisco who was serving as speaker of the California State Assembly in the 1990s when he and Harris were in a relationship. Brown had separated from his wife in 1982.

“Yes, we dated. It was more than 20 years ago,” Brown wrote in 2020 in the San Francisco Chronicle under the article title, “Sure, I dated Kamala Harris. So what?”

He wrote that he supported Harris’ first race to be San Francisco district attorney — just as he has supported a long list of other California politicians, including former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, former Sen. Dianne Feinstein and Gov. Gavin Newsom.

Harris, 59, was state attorney general from 2011-2017 and served in the Senate from 2017 until 2021, when she became vice president. She has been married to Doug Emhoff since 2014.

Harris’ critics have used the past relationship to question her qualifications, as Fox News personality Tomi Lahren did when she wrote on social media in 2019: “Kamala did you fight for ideals or did you sleep your way to the top with Willie Brown.” Lahren later apologized for the comment.

Trump and some of his supporters have also highlighted the nearly three-decade old relationship in recent attacks on Harris .

CLAIM: An Inside Edition clip of television host Montel Williams holding hands with Harris and another woman is proof that Harris was his “side piece.”

THE FACTS: The clip shows Montel with Harris and his daughter, Ashley Williams. Harris and Williams, a former marine who hosted “The Montel Williams Show” for more than a decade, dated briefly in the early 2000s.

In the clip, taken from a 2019 Inside Edition segment , Williams can be seen posing for photographs and holding hands with both women as they arrive at the 2001 Eighth Annual Race to Erase MS in Los Angeles.

But social media users are misrepresenting the clip, using it as alleged evidence that Harris was Montel’s “side piece” — a term used to describe a person, typically a woman, who has a sexual relationship with a man in a monogamous relationship.

Williams addressed the false claims in an X post on Monday, writing in reference to the Inside Edition clip, “as most of you know, that is my daughter to my right.” Getty Images photos from the Los Angeles gala identify the women as Harris and Ashley Williams.

In 2019, Williams described his relationship with Harris in a post on X, then known as Twitter.

“@KamalaHarris and I briefly dated about 20 years ago when we were both single,” he wrote in an X post at the time. “So what? I have great respect for Sen. Harris. I have to wonder if the same stories about her dating history would have been written if she were a male candidate?”

CLAIM: Harris promised to inflict the “vengeance of a nation” on Trump supporters.

THE FACTS: A fabricated quote attributed to Harris is spreading online five years after it first surfaced.

In the quote, Harris supposedly promises that if Trump is defeated in 2020, Trump supporters will be targeted by the federal government: “Once Trump’s gone and we have regained our rightful place in the White House, look out if you supported him and endorsed his actions, because we’ll be coming for you next. You will feel the vengeance of a nation.”

The quote was shared again on social media this week. One post on X containing an image of the quote was shared more than 22,000 times as of Monday afternoon.

The remarks didn’t come from Harris , but from a satirical article published online in August 2019. Shortly after, Trump supporters like musician Ted Nugent reposted the comments without noting they were fake.

CLAIM: A video shows Harris saying in a speech: “Today is today. And yesterday was today yesterday. Tomorrow will be today tomorrow. So live today, so the future today will be as the past today as it is tomorrow.”

THE FACTS: Harris never said this. Footage from a 2023 rally on reproductive rights at Howard University, her alma mater, was altered to make it seem as though she did.

In the days after Harris headlined the Washington rally, Republicans mocked a real clip of her speech, with one critic dubbing her remarks a “word salad,” the AP reported at the time .

Harris says in the clip: “So I think it’s very important — as you have heard from so many incredible leaders — for us, at every moment in time, and certainly this one, to see the moment in time in which we exist and are present, and to be able to contextualize it, to understand where we exist in the history and in the moment as it relates not only to the past, but the future.”

NARAL Pro-Choice America, an abortion rights nonprofit whose president also spoke at the rally, livestreamed the original footage. It shows Harris making the “moment in time” remark, but not the “today is today” comment.

The White House’s transcript of Harris’ remarks also does not include the statement from the altered video. Harris’ appearance at the event came the same day that Biden announced their reelection bid .

Find AP Fact Checks here: https://apnews.com/APFactCheck .

Israel News

Israel news features every important moment from the Jewish State involving politics, celebrities, and innovation. This is the hard hitting, fast paced news that represents the Jewish nation in an un bias frame so that truth about Israel is represented in the media. There is no other substitute for the best Israel news on the web...

Israel Politics

Israel sports, israel culture, benjamin netanyahu, defense news, crime in israel.

'A sense of closure': Terrorists who murdered Amnon Mokhtar in Kalkilya eliminated by IDF

Golden Tom Reuveny shocks the nation

Is Israel too passive in waiting for the Iranian response?

Now on TV: Olympic dramas, the unknown Liz Taylor, and fierce Iranian women

Israel's art roundup: impressionism and jewish painting, hagari: ‘no change in defense policy’ for civilians amid iranian threat.

Rocket sirens sound in South, IDF locates three-meter-deep tunnel near Philadelphi Corridor.

Home Front Command unveils new technology that will warn of emergency events

The message is set to reach mobile phones directly, without the need for any action on the part of the citizen.

Govt approves two new candidates for Council for Higher Education amid claims of politicization

"The takeover of academia by politics is the beginning of the end of democracy," VERA chairman and president of Ben-Gurion University of the Negev said.

Aggressive dogs invade Kibbutz Zikim from Gaza

According to the residents, no one is dealing with the new threat. 

US moves in Middle East are defensive, goal is deterrence

"The overall goal is to turn the temperature down in the region, deter and defend against those attacks, and avoid regional conflict," Jonathan Finer, White House Deputy National Security Advisor.

Liberman, Sa'ar hold concrete merger negotiations - report

Rumors about a unification of non-Likud right-wing politicians swirled for months after the October 7 massacre.

IDF prosecution extends arrest of suspected soldiers

Elements on the right and far-right have demanded the death penalty for those interred at Sde Teiman, and have opposed judicial oversight of the conditions at the site.

'The Monk and the Gun': A look at culture clash in Bhutan's democratic transition

The Monk and the Gun is a political satire with a deep meaning, but the spiritual message behind the story sneaks up on you, or rather, you understand and embrace it gradually.

Israeli paramedic rescues family from burning building in Jerusalem

Yechiel Stern scaled a burning building in Jerusalem to help a family escape from the top floor, just before the roof collapsed.

Two killed, two others wounded in Holon stabbing terror attack

One murdered victim was a 66-year-old woman Rina Daniv. Her husband, Shimon Daniv, 69, is in serious condition.

By subscribing I accept the terms of use and privacy policy

Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh assassinated in Tehran

'Even the cockroaches won't survive': Expert discusses Hezbollah's new EMP weapon

Iran plans to attack Israel on Tisha B’Av, the Jewish day of disaster

IDF strikes Beirut: Hezbollah commander responsible for Majdal Shams strike confirmed killed

Erdogan threatens Israel: 'Like we entered Karabakh and Libya - we will do the same to Israel'

Trump questions Kamala Harris' racial identity at NABJ, says she 'happened to turn Black'

CHICAGO - Republican 2024 presidential nominee Donald Trump in a controversial and combative appearance at the National Association of Black Journalists Annual Convention took swipes on Wednesday at Vice President Kamala Harris's racial identity — a move that comes as excitement swells for the Democratic contender.

"I didn't know she was Black until a number of years ago when she happened to turn Black, and now she wants to be known as Black," the former president said of Harris, who is on track to face Trump as the Democratic presidential nominee. “Is she Indian or is she Black? Because she was Indian all the way and then all of a sudden she made a turn and she went she became a Black person.” 

Trump sat for the 30-minute wide-ranging Q&A where he touched on a number of key issues important to the Black community such as Sonya Massey, the Black woman who was fatally shot in the face by an Illinois sheriff's deputy earlier this month, abortion access and why he chose Sen. JD Vance of Ohio as his running mate.  

The former president's appearance at NABJ sparked widespread backlash from some of those attending the convention, expressing an array of concerns over Trump's comments about the Black community and attacks against the media. For Trump, his remarks came at a critical inflection point of his 2024 campaign as Democrats express increasing optimism about their chances of holding the White House in November with Harris atop the ticket while the Republican continues pressing to court key constituencies, including Black voters . Throughout Wednesday's conversation, Trump was met with some boos, groans and heckling.

Harris responded to Trump's NABJ interview Wednesday night during remarks in Houston. "It was the same old show − the divisiveness and the disrespect," said Harris, who was addressing a historically Black sorority, Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority, during its 60th Biennial Boule.

“And let me just say: The American people deserve better. The American people deserve a leader who tells the truth, a leader who does not respond with hostility and anger when confronted with the facts. We deserve a leader who understands that our differences do not divide us," Harris said.

White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre, who was hosting a White House press briefing at the same time as Trump’s Q&A, called Trump’s comments about Harris “repulsive.”

"Wow," Jean-Pierre said when she was read Trump’s comments on Harris’ race. "What you just read out to me is repulsive. It's insulting. No one has the right to tell someone who they are, how they identify."

Trump accused Harris of being a “DEI” candidate , a talking point by many conservatives using the acronym for diversity, equity and inclusion to disqualify people of color or women who ascend to positions of power and influence. 

Harris, who is Black and of South Asian descent, attended Howard University, a historically Black college. She is also the first female vice president in U.S. history and the first Black woman to hold the office, too.

Shortly after the panel ended, Trump on Truth Social doubled down on his attack against Harris' racial identity, sharing a video where she is cooking with actress Mindy Kaling, who is of South Asian decent. During the video, Harris and Kaling talk about their Indian culture. Harris in the video told Kaling that she looks like "the entire one half of my family."

Harris for President Communications Director Michael Tyler criticized Trump's comments as hostile and called on the former president to accept a debate against Harris.

“Trump lobbed personal attacks and insults at Black journalists the same way he did throughout his presidency – while he failed Black families and left the entire country digging out of the ditch he left us in," Tyler said in a statement. "Donald Trump has already proven he cannot unite America, so he attempts to divide us."

Trump talks about Sonya Massey, but doesn't say her name. To gasps, says: 'you're talking about the water, right?'

Trump was met with loud gasps from the room when he said he was unfamiliar with the details of the Massey shooting, which sparked national outrage, saying he "doesn't know the exact case but I saw something," when asked about the case.

“It didn't look good to me. It didn't look good to me,” Trump said. “You're talking with the water right?” Massey was shot by police while she was holding boiling water.

Trump has previously said that police should get immunity from prosecution if he won the 2024 presidential race. Semafor political reporter Kadia Goba asked whether the police officer in Massey’s case, Sangamon County Sheriff's Deputy Sean P. Grayson, who is charged with her murder, would have immunity. Trump sidestepped the question by talking about gun violence in Chicago. 

When asked again by Goba, Trump said that he would help a person who “made an innocent mistake.”

“If I felt or if a group of people would feel that somebody was being unfairly prosecuted because the person did a good job, maybe with a crime, or made a mistake, an innocent mistake…I would want to help that person,” Trump said.

The former president also doubled down on comments he made accusing immigrants of stealing the jobs of Black Americans.

“I will tell you that coming from the border are millions and millions of people that happen to be taking Black jobs,” Trump said to gasps.

“What exactly is a ‘Black job,’ sir,” ABC News senior congressional correspondent Rachel Scott quickly followed up. 

“A Black job is anybody that has a job,” Trump responded, with laughter from the audience, before continuing to use racist rhetoric against migrants coming to the United States.

Attacks on the media

Throughout the panel, Trump repeatedly attacked the press — and Scott in particular — for questions that were being asked. 

Trump in the very first question asked to him by Scott slammed her for asking why Black voters should support the former president after his criticisms of the Black community.

“I don't think I've ever been asked a question in such a horrible manner,” Trump said to Scott. “Don't even say hello, how are you? Are you with ABC because I think they're a fake news network.”

Scott , FOX News anchor Harris Faulkner and Semafor political reporter Goba lead the Q&A with Trump. 

PolitiFact, a fact checking website, also led fact checking Trump in real time for NABJ.

Hundreds packed into a ballroom at the Hilton Chicago, which holds up to 1,100 seated, according to a hotel employee. Dozens of reporters were outside of the hotel lining up to get into the event with the former president.

On Wednesday, NABJ announced that the organization was speaking with the Harris campaign to have her appear for a Q&A with the organization sometime in September. 

Harris on Wednesday is scheduled to be in Houston, Texas to deliver remarks for a political event. On Thursday, she will deliver a eulogy for the late-Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee in Houston.

Trump throughout the presidential campaign has attempted to appeal to Black voters, a key voting bloc that overwhelmingly supports the Democratic Party. But the former president is still unpopular with many Black voters .

President Joe Biden, who dropped out of the 2024 presidential campaign earlier this month, saw a drop in enthusiasm from Black voters. But Harris, who is on the path to be the Democratic nominee, has reenergized Democratic voters, including Black voters, since entering the race.

Ahead of his appearance, Trump on Truth Social criticized Harris for not speaking at the convention. The Harris campaign in response to the former president’s conversation at the convention criticized his record and his treatment of the press.

NABJ President Ken Lemon said Wednesday that the organization had been in talks with both the Democratic and Republican parties since January, when Biden was still running to be the Democratic nominee. Biden had agreed to speak when he was still a candidate.

At the White House, Jean-Pierre said Tuesday that Biden wouldn't be speaking at the NABJ convention because he is “no longer a candidate.”

The administration understands it's important for Black Americans “to hear directly from this administration, and we have done that — and not just Black Americans but all Americans,” Jean-Pierre said. “That is certainly something that we will continue to do. And we take that very, very seriously.”

Contributing: Joey Garrison

Advertisement

Trump, Appealing to Bitcoin Fans, Vows U.S. Will Be ‘Crypto Capital of the Planet’

Donald Trump, speaking at a Bitcoin conference, told cryptocurrency holders that he would end the “persecution” of their industry.

• Share full article

By Chris Cameron

Reporting from Nashville

• July 27, 2024

Former President Donald J. Trump vowed on Saturday that he would turn the United States into a “Bitcoin superpower" if returned to the White House, wielding much of the same rhetoric of persecution that he has applied to himself and his supporters to appeal to cryptocurrency enthusiasts who want to see less regulation.

“Sadly, we see the attacks on crypto,” Mr. Trump told a gathering of cryptocurrency fans in Nashville. “It’s a part of a much larger pattern that’s being carried out by the same left-wing fascists to weaponize government against any threat to their power. They’ve done it to me.”

He added that, if he were elected, “Joe Biden and Kamala Harris’s anti-crypto crusade will be over” and that “the moment I’m sworn in, the persecution stops and the weaponization ends against your industry.”

Mr. Trump has been competing with Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the independent presidential candidate, for the support of cryptocurrency holders, and his remarks represented one of his most direct pitches yet.

Three large crypto firms have invested about $150 million to elect pro-crypto candidates in congressional races. In his speech, Mr. Trump promoted himself as “the first major party nominee in American history to accept donations in Bitcoin and crypto,” adding that his campaign has raised $25 million from cryptocurrency donations in the last two months.

The former president offered promises of sweeping deregulation and the establishment of a “strategic national Bitcoin stockpile.”

We are having trouble retrieving the article content.

Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.

Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and  log into  your Times account, or  subscribe  for all of The Times.

Thank you for your patience while we verify access.

Already a subscriber?  Log in .

Want all of The Times?  Subscribe .