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 A sentence in direct speech can thus be divided into two- . fhet
I the main part of the sentence that contains the reporting verb fhe r
+ the quoted section which is the *b|*ct of the reporting verb
Study this rab
When we are asked to change direct speech into indirect speech, we have speech into i
to make certain changes.

t Now, the changes will depend on various things-

. The manner in which the speaker utters the words-is he merely making
l, ,{
a statement or is he giving an order or is he perhaps making a request?
fo'l
, ls the speaker asking a question?
t ls the speaker huppy, sad, excited or furious?
I We will also notice that when we are changing from direct to indirect
speech, the main change takes place in that part of the sentence that present
contains what has been said.

Now, take a look at the following sentences in direct speech. Also notice
the changes made while transforming them into indirect speech.
) The teacher said to the naughty child, 'Be quiet.'
The teacher ordrred the child to be quiet.
The reporting verb crdered has replaced said. We have taken into account
what the speaker is saying and how he is saying it.
. Our coach said to us, 'Drink fluids during practice sessions.'
Our coach advised us to drink fluids during practice sessions. Here are sorft
The word advised is appropriate because that is what the coach is doing. + lf the rep(
. My mother said,'My car has been giving me a lot of trouble.' express6
My mother complained that her car had been giving her a lot an establi
of trouble. tenses ren
The word complainsd reflects the mood of the speaker. . Theft
i
I 'The s
So, when we change from direct speech to indirect speech, we do need to
The tr
take into account not only what is being said but how it is being said. The
that dr
I
i mood and sentiment of the speaker will play a crucial role.
.
I

lf the repc
A,
J
Here are some rules that should be followed while changing sentences
1l when the
k: from direct into indirect, or reported speech. . TheR
I

\, a lf the reporting verb is in the present tense or the future tense, the tense intellil
of the verb in the reported speech remains unchanged. For example,
The h
) The lady says, 'l am a good cook.'
inrellil
The lady says that she is a good cook.
 h, we have
i

I
I

imerely making
Ig
i
a request?

L
lrect to rnd rrect
!*nt"nce
I
that
I

pr. Also notice

@n
I
I

I
l-
En rnto account
I
I

I
i-
5rcns.'
I

$sions.
Fach is doing.
urble.'
Er a lot
I

I
i

h we do need to
said. rhe
I'"t
rg sentences

tense, the tense

For example,

i
I

I
I

I
 lf the reported speech contains a time clause, its tense remains
Pronqr
unchanged.
unchaq
' She said,'when lwas an actoq I liv*d in Mumbai.' . She
She said that when she was an actor, she lived in Mumbai.
' She
Sometimes the gender of the person speaking remains unclear. In that lf the pe
case, we usually use the masculine gender. second;
I
\.-r'
) My teacher said to me, 'l will speak to you on MondayJ . She
4
My teacher told me that he would speak to me on Monduy. o She
rl Change these sentences into indirect speech. The n(rt
1. she said to Rita, 'when I was in Delhi, I often met Mini., spoken I
. She
2. I said, 'Children are very energetic.,
. She
3. The pilot said to the passengers, 'The plane will land in
Kolkata.' Certain I
4. The speaker said, 'Young students need to devote some time distane
to social work.' o now
5. The lawyer said, 'lt is a hopeless case., . this

t
v'
6.
7.
B.
The teacher announced, 'There will be no classes today.,
Sarah said, 'Cita had worked efficiently.,
The director said to the students, 'you are very dedicated, so
o
3i
)
theg
here
thus
you will do well in life.' t ago
9. soma said to me,'l was very ill, but lam better now., . toda
10. The passenger said, ,l must bry some water., ) tonr
11- He said,'My wife wants to study law and join a law firm., . yesfi
12. The police officer said, 'The accident took place at dawn., . last I
. last r
$tatements: From Direct speech to Indirect speech
the I
Pronouns and possessive adjectives in the direct speech are changed,
i
I wherever necessary. For example, Chaq
\
o Pronouns and possessive adjectives of the first person are changed aPpn
I
I
according to the subject of the reporting verb.
I

. He said, 'l want to give my sister a present., 1.

' He said that he wanted to give his sister a present.

t'
A'
l1
t, 2.
i
u
i,,
; Pronouns and possessive adjectives of the second person are changed 3.
according to the object of the reporting verb. For example,
t Mahi said to me, 'You have not done your work., 4.
. Mahi told me that I had not done my work. 5.
 Pronouns and possessive adjectives in the third person remain
unchanged. For example,
t She said, 'Hs wants to give his sister a present.,
' She said that he wanted to give his sister a present.
lf the person addressed reports the speech himself/herself, then the
second person is changed into first person. For example,
, She said to me, 'You appear tired.'
' She told me that I appeared tired.
The nominative of address in direct speech becomes the person
spoken to in indirect speech. For example,
t She said, 'Saf,n, I am going to sleep.,
' She told $arn that she was going to sleep.
Certain words expressing nearness are changed into words expressing
d istance.
o now + then
't this -+ that
these + those
t here + there
t thus + so
t ago + before
' today + that day
d tomorrow + the next day
. yesterday + the day before; the previous day
't last night + the night before; the previous night
last weel</month/year, etc. -+ the week/month /year, etc. before;
the previous week/month/year, etc.

Change these ssntences into indirect speech, Rernember to use

appropriate reporti ng,vetrbs.
't. The budding cricketer said to his coach,'l shall improve if
you guide me.'
I
2. I said to my friend, 'You are not working hard enough.,
b changed 3. The lady said to her son, 'You are very impatient and lose
; your temper for trivial reasons.'
t,
I said, 'He can be trusted to do this job.'
h
I
You said to me,'sandeep should not have criticised his sister.'

it -\.-.---\.

ii.-
 6. He said, 't shall talk to you about this next
month.,
7. Jiya said to me, 'r shart return from London before
you reave 3.
for Chennai., 4-
B. I said to the mason, 'you are taking too long
to finish the
yory.You promised to comptete it"in a month., 5.
9. Dr David said to me, 'you have..injured your
hamstring
u 10.
muscle. You need to take rest tiil next week.,
He said to me, 'you can go swimming tomorrow.,
6.
7.
n4 11. Rahul told me, 'f met ouimaths teach"er yesterday B.
and he
ri promised to visit us today., 9.
12. I said, 'we shifted to this apartment a month
ago.,
10.
Questions: From Direet speech to Indireet speech
Now, let us see how we should change questions 11.
from direct to indirect
speech. 12.
a Jhu
reporting verb must be changed to asked,
enqulred.
j words like demanded, wsnderedlwanted to
know, may also be used.
The question mark is removed. A statement Imperativel
t' is framed.
No conjunction is used if the question begins *iih
words like who, Let us now td
whom, whose, which, what, why. For exJmple,
. advice, etc. il
Rita said to me, ,What do you wish to buy?', o
t The repod
Rita asked me what I wished to buy. advised (
i when the question is not introduced by a question
word, the reporting
reminde{
verb is followed by whether or lf. For example, be chosen
. I asked him, ,Will you be late?, to be repo
I asked him whether he would be late. ' I said
c Do remember that we need ,? keep in mind the I reqr
and the sentiment of the speaker when we change
tone of the question ) The tr
I
from direct to right I
\ indirect speech. For example,
r My friend said, 'would you rike to go for a movie?, The k
T I said, ,No., Exclamatoq
My friend asked me whether r wourd rike to go
I

I for a movie. Let us now tal

d' I replied that I would not.
ii' into indirect s
\ Change the following inta indirect speech.
) The repwl
exclainrcr
1. Ih" stranger said to me, ,H1ve
The s.tranger ,Have
lost you r way?,
you lc t Words srr
2. l said to Rima,
lsaid /\A/n,,l.l
Rirne 'wourd .,^,, t:t-^
you rike +^ L^,
to have an ice cream?, expressed
as excleh
7
!r

I
l,r
F 3. She said to me, 'What would you like to eat, dear?'
h,1lo, leave 4. She said to me, 'How much money should I take for the
[,
8" vacation ?'
lbh the
I 5. She said to the plumber, 'Can you fix it in a day?'
h Ihe plumber said, 'No, I cannot start work before next week.'
Fing 6. lsaid to the man, 'Could you direct me to the post office?'
7. I said to my teacher, 'Can you explain this to me tomorrow?'
B. Cora said to his mother, 'Why can'twe go to the zoo today?'
fiand he 9. She said to her friend, 'Will you help me pack ty bags?'
!:
Her friend said, 'Yes, certainly.'
rl- 10. She said to me, 'Who are you and what is it that you want
l
f'
i'
* from me?'
11.
-':
t'

h- He said to me, 'Can you meet me at the library?.'

Ir lndrrect 12. lsaid to the porteq 'How much will you take for carrying my
,'
IL
F
bags to the platform?'

pn" used.
Irrrperatives: From Direct Speeeh to trndir*et Speech
1.
&.
Let us now take a look at the rules for changing commands, requests,
fre who,
E,
t advice, etc. into indirect speech.
,
ll
E
f. The reporting verb will have to be changed to ordered, requested, or
i
advisd. Other words that may be used are asked, invited, encouraged,

t
I
reporting
reminded, urged, warned, r€,c{}ilfimended, etc. The reporting verb must
be chosen according to who said what and in what way.The verb that is
to be reported is changed into an infinitive. For example,
I
1,
, I said to my friend, 'Could you makc me a cup of coffee?'
i t r,equested my friend to mak* me a cup of coffee.
pquestion . The teacher said to the pupils, 'You must conrplete the work
bct to right now.'
t
The teacher ordersd the pupils to cornplete their work right then.

Exdamatory Sentences: From Direct $peech to trndirect Speech

trwre Let us now take a look at the rules for changing exclamations and wishes
into indirect speech.
+ The reporting verb is changed into wished, prayed, cried,
exclairned, etc.
J Words such as hurrah, alas, oh, etc., are omitted. However, the feeling
expressed must be conveyed appropriately by using expressions such
hm?'
: as excNai,rned with joy.

lfzl-^---zr.-
 The sign of exclamation is omitted. For
exampre,
. Alas! The elephant is dead,, he said. ofh
He exclaimed sadly that the erephant was
dead.
Ift
Fl .Hi
change the following into rndirect speeeh. Hi
1. I said to Rima, 'Hetp me in creaning this
. l-1
room.,
'U 2. The teacher said to the pupirs, ,Do not ai
I 3.
4.
go out into the rain.,
she said to me, 'prease repeat what you just
The director said to the actoq ,Be carefuiwhen
said.,
you perform
CIE

the stunts., l-
5. The priest said to me, 'M^y the Armighty L
r, 6. 'How pretty I look!, said the young;i
grant you
,i."
/ a rong rife!, 3-
{
7. My father said to me, At th.is ,Ltu,yoJwiil rose
ail your money.,
B. Her brother said to heq 'you rno.lrd not speak
iil of your
friends., 5-
9. He said to his sister, ,Do not rush through
this or you may
6.
commit grave errors., 7-
10. 'Please don't misunderstand ffie,, he said
to me.
8-
11. The mother said, 'chirdren, do not be
so nervous about the
exams.' 9.
12. 'You have ggnu very weil! Keep up the good
work,, said the
teacher to his pupil. ro-
il-
From Indirect Speech to Direct Speech 12-
Let us now study how to change sentences
in indirect speech into
direct speech.
.} we know that indirect speech is a meanr reporting what somebody
has said without using the actual words 9{
of tl-re ,f"ut"r.
,t

\
t The best way to change from indirect to
direct speech is to mentally
identify the two partsbf the sentence.
T O The main part will contain a reporting verb
like, said, tel[, suggested,
requested, etc.
I
# The other part will contain what is being
H
' quoted section in direct speech.
reported. This part will be the
\, The part that will become the quote, once
we have made the
transformation, is the object of the reporting
verb.
' He told me that my letter had reached fiirn
the previous week.
He said to me, 'your letter reached me last
week.,

^.--\..4r,
 The teacher asked the boy whether he had read that book.
The teacher said to the boy, 'Have you read this book?'
His mother urged him to pursue a career in medicine'
His mother sald to him,'You should pursue a career in medicine''
He exclaimed that it was a violent storm'
'What a violent storm it is!' said he'
b the rain.'
r s== Change to direct sPeech.
pu pertorm 1. He proposed to us that we should go to.the 7oo.
2. The teacher advised his students to work hard and consistently.
u a long life!' 3. He begged his mother to forgive him' , ti
4. wanted to know how long it would take to reach the
I
The
'.niil
tour money.' station.
I of your 5. The manager said that he was busy th."l' .
6. He said that he had met them a month before.
ryou may 7. Salim admitted that he had acted foolishly.
t
I
B. He asked his students whether they had understood the
ii
toPic.
r about the 9. He informed me that the shop had been closed since the
i previous month.
flg' said the 10. The teacher said that the earth rotates on its own axis.
11. He reminded me that I had to visit my aunt that d"y.
She advised her brother not to worry as she was there
to help'
12.

into
I

I somebody
i

I mentally

,srggested,

fi will be the

[he
il

ps week.
i

{t