Reported speech, verbs tell and say

1. Reported Speech
UNIT #10 – LISTENING AND SPEAKING

2. Uses
1. To report what someone else has said.
Ex: John said that he was going to come to the party.
2. In academic writing, to directly or indirectly quote reserach or another text.
Ex: Researchers reported that poeple would rely more and more on
online doctors.

3. Changes in
Tense
When reporting, we
often have to change
the tense:
Tense Direct Speech Reported Speech
present
simple
Ana said, “I feel fine.” Ana said that she felt fine.
present
continuous
Betty said, “I am living in London.”
She said that she was living in
London.
past simple Tom said, “I arrived before you.”
He said that he had arrived before
me.
past
continuous
He said, “I was walking along the
street.”
She said that he had been walking
along the street.
present
perfect
They said, “we haven't seen Julie.”
They said that they hadn't seen
Julie.
past perfect*
Laura said, “I had taken English
lessons before.”
She said that she had taken English
lessons before.
will
My friend said, “I will see you later.” He said that he would see me later.
can
Alice said, “I can speak perfect
English.”
She said that she could speak
perfect English.
must
Peter said, “I must study on the
weekend.”
Peter said that he had to study on
the weekend
*would, could, should, might, past perfect don’t change.

4. Changes in pronouns
Tom said, “I arrived before you.”
He said that he had arrived before me.
They said, “we haven't seen you in ages.”
They said that they hadn't seen me in ages.

5. Common Verbs Used
argue: Scientists: “Global warming will get worse.”
claim: Tom: “I didn’t do it.”
describe: The doctor: “Some illnesses have spread.”
prove: Researchers: “We had found a cure to that illness.”
report: The investigator: “The results can be ready next week.”
state: The expert: “You need to sleep at least eight hours a day.”

6. Common Verbs Used
argue: Scientists argued that global warming would get worse.
claim: Tom claimed that he hadn’t done it.
describe: The doctor described how some illnesses had spread.
prove: Researchers proved that they had found a cure to that illness.
report: The investigator reported that the results could be ready next week.
state: The expert stated that we needed to sleep at least eight hours a day.

7. How to Use 'Say' and 'Tell'
In reported statements, we can use either 'say' or 'tell'. The meaning is the same, but the grammar is different.
Direct speech: John: "I'll be late".
Reported speech: John said that he would be late.
With 'tell' we NEED the object (e.g. 'me', 'you', 'her').
With 'say' we CAN'T use the object (e.g. 'me', 'them', 'us').
So we CAN'T say: “John said me that he would be late.” OR “John told that he would be late.”
Choose the correct verb:
1. Julie said/ told that she'd come to the party.
2. I said/ told that I was going to bed early.
3. He said/ told me that he loved living in London.
4. They said/ told John that they would arrive at six.