Direct and Indirect Speech Rules Pdf – Examples and Infographics

Direct and Indirect Speech Rules Pdf!

Direct and Indirect Speech

Direct Sentences

Study these direct sentences

1. The boy said to the girl, “I can hear you.”
2. The little girl remarked, “I shall always remember this day
3. The man said to the children, “I know you and your parents.”
4. The man cried out “We are not foes, but friends.”
5. He said to me, “Go away.”
6. Leo said to his sister, “Why are you crying?
7. He said, “Hurrah! We have won.”
8. Gilbert said to me, “I am very busy and so cannot accompany you to the station now.”

Indirect Sentences

Study these indirect sentences of upper direct sentences.

1. The boy told the girl that he could hear her.
2. The little girl remarked that she would always remember that day.
3. The man told the children that he knew them and their parents.
4. The man cried out that they were not foes, but friends.
5. He told me to go away.
6. Leo asked his sister why she was crying.
7. He cried out joyfully that they had won.
8. Gilbert told me that he was very busy and so could not accompany me to the station just then.

Direct and Indirect Speech Rules Pdf

Let us! Learn in Detail.

There are two ways in which the words of a speaker can be reported:

1. Direct speech/Direct Narration

We may quote the actual words used by the speaker. This is called Direct Narration or Direct Speech.

1. Indirect Narration

We may have the substance of the words used by the speaker and not his actual words. This is called Indirect Narration or Indirect Speech.

Examples:

Direct: Afzal said, “I am going home.”

Indirect: Afzal said that he was going home.

 

It will be seen that in Direct Speech, (I) the exact words of the speaker have been used, (II) the words quote have been put within Quotation Marks or Inverted Commas, (III) the first letter of the quotation begins with a capital letter, and (IV) there is always a comma, a colon after ‘said’ that introduces the spoken words.

 

In Indirect Speech, the speech that is reported is not put within inverted commas and does not begin with a capital letter. That has been placed before the Indirect Speech.

 

When the verb in one sentence reports, what is said by some speaker in another sentence, the verb in the sentence is called the reporting verb and what is said in the second sentence is called the Reported speech.

Reporting Verb	Reported Speech
My mother said,	“Here is the pen you were looking for yesterday.”
My father said,	“It is time to go away.”

 

While changing Direct into Indirect Speech the Personal Pronouns and the tense of the verbs in the reported speech undergo certain changes as explained below.

 

RULES FOR THE CHANGE OF PRONOUNS

First-person in the reported speech:-

Direct: He says to me”l am tired.”

Indirect: He tells me that he is tired.

 

Direct: He said to me,”l am faithful.”

Indirect: He told me that he was faithful.

Direct and Indirect Speech Rules Pdf

From the study of the foregoing examples we learn:-

 

Rule 1. Pronouns of the First Person in the Reported Speech are changed in Indirect Speech to the same person as the subject of the Reporting Verb.

All nouns are considered to be in the Third Person e.g.,

 

Direct: The man said to the children, “I know you and your parents”

Indirect: The man told the children that he knew them and their parents.

 

Second Person in the Reported Speech:-

 

Direct: He says to me,” You are tired.”

Indirect: He tells to me that I am tired.

 

Direct: He said to lite,” You lack courage.”

Indirect: He told lite that I lacked courage.

 

From the study of the foregoing examples we learn:-

 

Rule 2. Pronouns of the Second Person in the reported speech are changed in Indirect to the same person as the noun or pronoun coming after the Reporting Verb. If the object of the reporting verb is not given, the sense of the Pronoun to be used should be carefully determined. Direct and Indirect Speech Rules Pdf

 

Direct: Joe said to me,” You can go.”

Indirect: Joe told me that I could go.

 

Third Person in the Reported Speech.

 

Direct: He says to me, “He is tired.”

Indirect: He tells me that he is tired.

 

Direct: He said to me, “He is still absent.”

Indirect: He told me that he (another person) was still absent.

 

From the foregoing examples we conclude:-

 

Rule 3. Pronouns of the Third Person in the Reported Speech remain unchanged in the Indirect Speech.

 

Direct: Joe said to her mother, “She is to be blamed.”

Indirect: Joe said to her mother that she was to be blamed

 

In sentences like the above, the meaning is ambiguous as she in the Indirect Speech may apply to Joe, or her mother, or to a third person, spoken of. In such cases, it is better to name the person in brackets after the pronoun thus:-

 

Joe told her mother that she (Joe) was to be blamed.

OR

Joe told her mother that she (her mother) was to be blamed.

OR

Joe told her mother that she (another person) was to be blamed.

 

RULES FOR THE CHANGE OF TENSES

 

Study the following examples:-

 

Reporting Verb in the Present or Future Tense:-

 

Direct: Salim says, “The teacher is not at home.”

Indirect: Salim says that the teacher is not at home.

 

Direct: I say, “I am reading.”

Indirect: I say that I am reading.

 

Direct: He will say, “I did not know it.”

Indirect: He will say that he did not know it.

 

Direct: He will say, “l am not at home.”

Indirect: He will say that he is not at home.

 

From the study of the foregoing examples we learn:-

 

Rule 1. If the Reporting Verb is in the Present or Future tense, the tense of the verb in the Reported Speech is not changed. Direct and Indirect Speech Rules Pdf

 

Reporting verb in the Past tense followed by a verb in the Present Indefinite tense in the Reported Speech. Study the following examples:-

 

Direct: Gilbert said, “I want peace.”

Indirect: Gilbert said that he wanted peace.

 

Direct: He said, “The doctor may come.”

Indirect: He said that the doctor might come.

 

The above examples show that:-

 

Rule 2. After a reporting verb in the Past tense, a verb in the Present Indefinite tense in the Reported Speech is changed into the Past Indefinite tense.

 

Reporting verb in the past tense followed by a verb in the Present Continuous tense in the Reported Speech.

Continuous tense in the Reported speech.

Study the following examples:-

 

Direct: He said, “The king is coming now.”

Indirect: He said that the king was coming then.

 

Direct: Leo said, “I am riding a horse.”

Indirect: Leo said that he was riding a horse.

 

The foregoing examples show that:-

 

Rule 3. After a reporting verb in the Past tense, a verb in the Present Continuous tense in the Reported Speech is changed into the Past Continuous tense.

 

Reporting verb in the Past tense followed by a verb in the Present Perfect tense in the Reported Speech.

 

 Study the following examples:–

 

Direct: Joe said, “I have ridden a horse.”

Indirect: Joe said that he had ridden a horse.

 

Direct:  He said, “My son has come.”

Indirect: He said that his son had come.

 

The following examples show that:

 

Rule 4. After a reporting verb in the Past tense, a verb in the Present Perfect tense in the Reported Speech is changed into the Past Perfect tense.

 

Reporting verb in the Past tense followed by a verb in the Present Perfect Continuous tense in the Reported Speech. Direct and Indirect Speech Rules Pdf

 

Study the following examples:-

 

Direct: Joe said, “I have ridden a horse.”

Indirect: Joe said that he had been riding a horse.

 

Direct: He said, “It has been snowing yesterday.”

Indirect: He said that it had been snowing the previous day.

 

These examples show that:–

 

Rule 5. After a verb in the Past tense, a verb in the Present Perfect Continuous tense in the Reported Speech is changed into the Past Perfect Continuous tense.

 

Rules 2, 3, 4 and 5 may be briefly summed up as follows:-          

 

If the Reporting verb is in the past tense, the Present tense in the Reported Speech is changed into its corresponding past form.

 

Reporting Verb in the Past tense by a verb in the Past Indefinite tense in the Reported Speech.

 

Study the following examples:–

 

Direct: Joe said, “I spoke the truth.”

Indirect: Joe said that he had spoken the truth.

 

Direct: She said, “He came at dinner-time.”

Indirect: She said that he had come at dinner-time.

 

These examples show that:-

 

Rule 6. After a Reporting Verb in the Past tense, a verb in the Past Indefinite tense in the Reported Speech is changed into the Past Perfect tense.

 

Reporting Verb in the Past tense followed by a verb in the Past Continuous tense in the Reported Speech.

 

Study the following examples:–

 

Direct: He said, “It was snowing yesterday.”

Indirect: He said that it had been raining the previous day.

 

Rule 7. After a reporting verb in the Past tense, a verb in the Past Continuous tense in the Reported Speech is changed into Past Perfect Continuous.

 

Reporting in the verb in the Past Speech tense followed by a verb in the Past Perfect tense Reported speech.

 

Study the following examples:–

 

Direct: Joe said, “I had spoken the truth.”

Indirect: Joe said that he had spoken the truth.

 

Direct: He said, “I had written a letter.”

Indirect: He said that he had written a letter.

 

Rule 8. After a reporting verb in the Past tense, a verb in the Past Perfect tense in the Reported Speech remains unchanged.

 

Reporting Verb in the Past tense followed by a verb in the Past Perfect Continuous tense in the Reported Speech.

 

Study the following examples:–

 

Direct: John said, “The man had been working.”

Indirect: John said that the man had been working.

 

Direct: He said, “The man had been coming.”

Indirect: He said that the man had been coming.

 

From the foregoing examples we learn:–

 

Rule 9. After a reporting verb in the Past tense a verb in the Past Perfect Continuous tense in the Reported Speech remains unchanged.

 

Reporting Verb in the Past tense followed by a verb in the Past Perfect tense in the Reported Speech.

 

Study the following examples:-

 

Direct.   Joe said, “He had spoken the truth.”

Indirect: Joe said that he had spoken the truth.

 

Direct: He said, “I had written a letter.

Indirect: He said that he had written a letter.

 

From the foregoing examples we learn:–            

 

Rule 10. After a reporting verb in the Past tense, a verb in the Past Perfect tense in the Reported Speech remains unchanged. Direct and Indirect Speech Rules Pdf

 

Reporting Verb in the Past tense followed by a verb in the Past Perfect Continuous tense in the Reported Speech.

 

Study the following examples:-

 

Direct: John said, “The man had been working.”

Indirect: John said that the man had been working.

 

Direct: He said, “The man had been coining.”

Indirect: He said that the man had been coming.

Direct and Indirect Speech Rules Pdf

From the foregoing examples we learn:-

 

Rule 11. After a reporting verb in the Past tense a verb in the Past Perfect Continuous tense in the Reporting Speech remains unchanged.

 

Rule 12. After a reporting verb in the Past tense shall will, may, and can would in might the Reported Speech are changed the respective application into of the should, would might and could. This is practically the application of the rule according to which the Present Tense in the Reported Speech is changed Into its corresponding Past form.

 

Examples:-

 

Direct: He said, “The man shall come.”

Indirect: He said that the man should come.

 

Direct: He said, “The man will come.”

Indirect: He said that the man would come.

 

Direct: He said, “The man may come.”

Indirect: He said that the man ‘night come.

 

Direct: He said, “The man can come.”

Indirect: He said that the man could come.

 

According to one of the rules relating to the change of tense: If the reporting verb is a Past tense, the tense of the verb in the reported speech must be changed to one or other of the four forms of the Past tense.

There is one exception to this rule similar to that described in connection with the Sequence of Tenses.

If the reported Speech relates to some universal or habitual fact, then the Present Indefinite in the reported speech is not changed into the corresponding Past but remains exactly as it was

	Past tense, “Present tense”
Direct	He said, “We cannot be quite happy in this life.”
Indirect	He said that we cannot be quite happy in this life
Direct	He said, “The earth moves around the sun.”
Indirect	He said that the earth moves around the sun.

 

Some more examples of the Reported Speech expressing a universal truth or a habitual fact in the Present tense in the indirect Speech:

 

• The teacher taught us that water is a compound of Oxygen and Hydrogen.
• He informed the stranger that the Hindus burn their dead.
• The sage preached that flesh dies, but soul endures.
• Tolstoy believed that God is where love is.
• Joe said that his grandfather smokes occasionally.
• He said that his neighbor drinks but only now and then.
• The teacher told the boys that patience and preservance overcome mountains.

 

Words indicating the nearness of time or place in the Direct speech are changed into those indicating distance when converted into Indirect Speech. Thus:-

 

This	becomes	that
These	,,	Those
Thus	,,	So, in that way
Now	,,	Then
Here	,,	There
Hence	,,	Thence
Hither	,,	Thither
Today	,,	That day, the same day
Tomorrow	,,	The next day
Yesterday	,,	The day before, the previous day
Last night	,,	The previous night
Come	,,	Go
Ago	,,	before

 

Examples:

Direct	He Said, “I will leave you now.”
Indirect	He Said, that he would leave them then.
Direct	He Said, “I will come here.”
Indirect	He Said, that he would go there.

 

Infographics Direct and Indirect Speech Rules Pdf

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