This document discusses reporting speech and verbs used to report speech. It provides examples of direct and indirect speech using reporting verbs like "say", "ask", and "tell". It also lists other reporting verbs that can be used like "order", "promise", "apologize", and "insist" along with examples of how to use them to report direct speech indirectly. Key things to check when changing direct to indirect speech are pronouns, verb tenses, place/time expressions, and word order for indirect questions.

1. Type
Example
direct speech “I speak English.”
reported speech
(no backshift) He says that he speaks English.
reported speech
(backshift)
QUESTION
Indirect question
He said that he spoke English.
Do you speak English?
He asked me if I spoke English.

3. • TELL sb She told me I should go
• SAY sth (TO sb) She said she was tired
• When transforming statements and questions, check whether you have to
change:
– pronouns
– present tense verbs (3rd person singular)
– place and time expressions
– tenses (backshift)
– Word order for indirect questions

4. /earlier

5. Other verbs we can use to report
sentences:
• Order
• Promise
• Apologise
• Insist
• Persuade
• Explain
• Refuse
• Invite
• etc
(1) Don’t
move!
(3) I’ll never do
it again, mom …
(2) I’m not
going to
do that for
him!
(5) I’m sorry I’m
late.
(5) I’m sorry I’m
late.
(4) Would you
like to come
with us?
(4) Would you
like to come
with us?

6. Reporting verbs Direct speech Indirect/reported speech
Order
Invite
(someone)
Offer
Persuade
Remind
Refuse
to ‘Stop the car’
‘Would you like a drink?’
‘Shall I carry your bag?’
‘Why don’t we go for a
walk?’
‘Don’t forget the letters’
‘No, I won’t do it’
He ordered (me) to stop the car.
He invited (us) to have a drink.
He offered to carry my bag.
He persuaded me to have a walk.
He reminded me to post the letters.
He refused to do it
Admit
Apologise for
Insist (on)
- ing ‘Yes I stole the money’
‘I’m sorry I broke the
glass’
He admitted stealing the money.
He apologised for breaking the glass.
He insisted on getting off the bus.
Explain
Promise
Suggest
Insist
(that) ‘I have to think about it...’
‘I’ promise I’ll call you’
‘ We could visit aunt Lidia’
He explained (that)he had to think
about it.
He promised (that) he ‘d call me./He
promised to call me.
He suggested that we visited
Lidia

7. • Report some parts of the interview, using
SAY, TELL and ASK and also:
• Apologize, insist, persuade, explain, thank,
congratulate, …
E.g. Ellen said that Pen hadn’t thanked her…

8. POSSIBLE ANSWERS:
• Penélope apologized for not having been heard.
• Ellen congratulated Penélope on her Oscar.
• P. said she was a fan of Sex and the City.
• She said she played the part of a banker.
• She said she would never get rid of her accent.
• Ellen advised her not to get rid of it.
• P. told Ellen that she had been warned not to tell anything about
the scene/film.
• Ellen insisted that Penélope told her what the scene was about.
• Ellen said that she had read that Penélope’s mother had a beauty
salon in Madrid and P. said that she felt that that had been her first
acting school, because…
(C)A presentation by Dulce (EOI)