Reported Speech

( Indirect Speech )

A) Statements

    Present Progressive --->  Past Progressive

    " I'm doing it " --->  He said he was doing it

    Present Simple  --->  Past Simple

    " I do it "  --->  He said he did it.

    Present Perfect  --->  Past Perfect

    " I have done it " --->   He said he had done it

    Present Perfect Progressive --->  Past Perfect Progressive

    " I have been doing it "  --->  He said he had been doing it

    Past Simple  --->  Past Perfect

    " I did it "  --->  He said he had done it

    Past Progressive  --->  Past Perfect Progressive

    " I was doing it "  --->  He said he had been doing it

    Past Perfect   --->  Past Perfect

    Past Perfect Progressive  --->  Past Perfect Progressive

    Will --->  Would

    " I will do it " --->   He said he would do it

    May  --->   Might

    " I may do it "  --->   He said he might do it

    Can --->  Could

    " I can do it " --->   He said he could do it

    am, is, are, going to  --->  was, were going to

    " I am going to do it " --->  He said he was going to do it

    Could  --->  Could

    Should --->   Should

    Would  --->  Would

B) Questions

    Yes, No questions:

    " Do you live in Rio ? " --->  He asked me if I lived in Rio.

    " Have you done it ? " --->   He asked me if I had done it.

    Information questions:

    " Where do you live ? " --->   He asked me where I lived.

    " How are you ? "  --->  He asked me how  I  was.

C) Imperative

    " Stay calm."  --->  He told me to stay calm.

    " Don't shout."  --->  He told me not to shout.

D) Reporting verbs ( usually in the past )

    say

    tell ( someone )

    ask

    explain

    complain

    insist

    beg

    assure

    deny

    etc... ( many others )

E) Attention with Pronouns, don't forget to transform them if necessary.

F) Other words to transform when necessary.

    here  --->  there

    come  --->  go

    now  --->  then / at the moment

    today  --->  that day

    tonight  --->  that night

    this  --->  that

    these  --->  those

    yesterday  --->  the day before

    last.... --->  the....before

    ....ago  --->  the....before

    tomorrow  --->  the day after

    next....  --->  the....after

G) If the reporting verb is present ( he says; it says ) and the original sentence is present, the tense isn't changed.

    " There is a lot of excitement in town. "

    " The city guide says that there is a lot of excitement in town."