2. DIRECT SPEECH
Direct and indirect speech can be a source of confusion for English learners.
Let's first define the terms, then look at how to talk about what someone said,
and how to convert speech from direct to indirect or vice-versa.
You can answer the question What did he say? in two ways:
by repeating the words spoken (direct speech)
by reporting the words spoken (indirect or reported speech).
3. Direct Speech
Direct speech repeats, or quotes, the exact words spoken.
When we use direct speech in writing, we place the words
spoken between quotation marks (" ") and there is no
change in these words. We may be reporting something
that's being said NOW (for example a telephone
conversation), or telling someone later about a previous
conversation.
Examples
She says, "What time will you be home?"
She said, "What time will you be home?" and I said, "I
don't know! "
"There's a fly in my soup!" screamed Simone.
John said, "There's an elephant outside the window."
Direct Speech
4. Examples : Direct and Indirect
• Direct speech: “I
had a headache
yesterday.”
Example
01
Example
Indirect speech: You
said you'd had a
headache the day before
yesterday.
02
Example
Direct speech: “It's been
raining since this
afternoon.”
03
Example
indirect speech: He said
it'd been raining since
that afternoon.
04
7. INDIRECT
Indirect speech conveys a report of something that
was said or written rather than the exact words
that were spoken or written. It is used in many
United Nations documents, including summary
records and reports on the proceedings of
intergovernmental bodies. Indirect speech is not
enclosed in quotation marks.
8. Direct : She said, 'She can dance'.
Indirect: She said that she could
dance.
Direct: She said, 'I may buy a dress'.
Indirect: She said that she might buy
a dress.
Direct: Rama said, 'I must complete
the assignment'.
Indirect: Rama said that he had to
complete the assignment.
9. Example
I asked her what her
plans were
EXAMPLES
Grammar
The basic rules for changing or
converting direct speech into
indirect speech: Remove comma
and inverted commas.
--------
Citizens complained
about the smoke
Direct Speech VS
Indirect Speech
For example: Direct speech:
“I'm seeing my brother
tomorrow.” Indirect speech:
She said she was seeing her
brother the following day.
FORM
speech which tells you
what someone said, but
does not use the
person's actual words
EXAMPLE
for example, 'They said
you didn't like it'
10. Teaching direct and indirect speech
is best done by reading and writing
dialogue. By first reading dialogue
and working through examples,
teachers can illustrate the difference
between direct and indirect speech.
Direct speech occurs when the
person speaking is quoted.
COMPARATIVE
11. Indirect speech
conveys a report of
something that was
said or written
rather than the
exact words that
were spoken or
written.
