Direct and Indirect Speech
ICSE Class 7 · English · Chapter 6
What this chapter covers
- Two ways to report what someone said
- Reporting verbs
- The changes that indirect speech brings
- Reporting statements
- Reporting questions
- Reporting commands and requests
- Reporting exclamations
- Reported to direct speech
Key points
- Direct speech gives the exact words of a speaker inside quotation marks; indirect speech reports their meaning without quotation marks.
- The reporting verb shows how the words were spoken: said and told for statements, asked for questions, ordered or requested for commands and requests, exclaimed for exclamations.
- Said is not followed directly by the listener; told always names the listener.
- After a past-tense reporting verb, pronouns change to fit the reporter, tenses move one step back, and words of time and place change (now to then, here to there, tomorrow to the next day).
- Tenses do not change for universal truths, or when the reporting verb is in the present or future tense.
- Statements are joined with that; yes-or-no questions with if or whether; other questions with their own question word, in statement word order and without a question mark.
- Commands and requests use a to-infinitive (told him to wait, requested her not to shout); Let's becomes suggested that ... should.
- Exclamations lose the interjection and the exclamation mark; the feeling moves into the reporting verb, as in exclaimed with joy or exclaimed with sorrow.
- To change indirect speech back into direct speech, reverse every change and restore the quotation marks and the closing punctuation.
Questions answered
What is the difference between direct speech and indirect speech?
Direct speech gives the speaker's exact words inside quotation marks. Indirect speech gives the meaning of those words in the reporter's own sentence, without quotation marks, usually with changes in pronouns, tenses and words of time and place.
Correct the error: The coach said us that the match was cancelled.
The coach told us that the match was cancelled. (Or: The coach said to us that the match was cancelled.) Said cannot be followed directly by the listener.
Change into indirect speech: Pooja said, "I am learning to swim this summer."
Pooja said that she was learning to swim that summer.
Change into indirect speech: The teacher said, "The Earth moves round the Sun."
The teacher said that the Earth moves round the Sun. The tense does not change because the sentence states a scientific fact.
Change into indirect speech: Mohit said to Lata, "Can you lend me your umbrella?"
Mohit asked Lata if she could lend him her umbrella.
Change into indirect speech: The traveller said to the boy, "Which road leads to the lake?"
The traveller asked the boy which road led to the lake.
Change into indirect speech: The mother said to her son, "Don't play with matches."
The mother warned her son not to play with matches.
Change into indirect speech: Rehana said, "What a lovely surprise this is!"
Rehana exclaimed that it was a very lovely surprise.