REPORTED SPEECH Simple past

SUMMARY OF REPORTING
VERBS
Note that some reporting verbs may
appear in more than one of the
following groups.
1. Verbs followed
by 'if' or 'whether' + clause:
ask say
know see
remember

2. Verbs followed by a that-clause:

add Doubt
admit estimate
agree explain
announce fear
answer feel
argue insist
boast mention
claim observe
comment persuade
complain propose
confirm remark
consider remember
deny repeat
3. Verbs followed by either a that-
clause or a to-infinitive:
decide promise
expect swear
guarantee threaten
hope
4. Verbs followed by a that-
clause containing should
(but note that it may be omitted,
leaving a subject + zero-infinitive):
advise insist recommend
beg prefer request
demand propose suggest

5. Verbs followed by a
clause starting with a question
word:
decide imagine see
describe know suggest
discover learn teach
discuss realise tell
explain remember think
forget reveal understand
guess say wonder
6. Verbs followed by object + to-
infinitive
 advise forbid teach
ask instruct tell
beg invite warn
command

"I always drink coffee", she said
Present continuous
"I am reading a book", he explained.
Simple past
"Bill arrived on Saturday", he said.
Present perfect
"I have been to Spain", he told me.
Past perfect
"I had just turned out the light," he explained.
Present perfect continuous
They complained, "We have been waiting for hours".
Past continuous
"We were living in Paris", they told me.
Future
She said that she always drank coffee.
Past continuous
He explained that he was reading a book
Past perfect
He said that Bill had arrived on Saturday
Past perfect
He told me that he had been to Spain
Past perfect
He explained that he had just turned out the light.
Past perfect continuous
They complained that they had been waiting for hours.
Past perfect continuous
They told me that they had been living in Paris.
Present conditional

"I will be in Geneva on Monday", he said He said that he would be in Geneva on Monday.
Future continuous Conditional continuous
She said, "I'll be using the car next Friday". She said that she would be using the car next Friday.

NOTE:
1. You do not need to change the tense if the reporting verb is in the present, or if the
original statement was about something that is still true, e.g.
He says he has missed the train but he'll catch the next one.
We explained that it is very difficult to find our house.

2. These modal verbs do not change in reported speech:

might, could, would, should, ought to, e.g.
We explained that it could be difficult to find our house.
She said that she might bring a friend to the party.