Indirect Speech for Question Sentences-Rules

• The basic rules for converting Direct Speech (question

sentences) into Indirect Speech are as follows: Examples
are at the end.
• Commas and inverted commas will be removed.
• The conjunction ‘that’ will not be used in Indirect Speech
(question sentences). The conjunction ‘that’ is used in
Indirect Speech of all positive sentences.
 Indirect Speech for Question Sentences-Rules
• In Indirect Speech, the question sentence will be
expressed in assertive (positive form) instead of
interrogative form.
• Question will not be used in Indirect Speech of
interrogative sentences.
• The verbs such as ‘say’ or ‘tell’ (e.g. he said or she said) in
direct speech is replaced with verbs such as ‘ask’ or
‘inquire’ (e.g. he asked or she inquired) in indirect speech.
• The above rules are common for all question sentences.
Apart from these common rules, there are a few specific
rules which apply according to the type of question in
sentence.
• There are two types of question sentences:
• 1. Question which can be answered with ‘yes’ or ‘no’.
• 2. Question which cannot be answered only with ‘yes’ or
‘no’ but requires a detailed answer. Such questions usually
start with “what, why, how, when etc.”
• TEXAMPLES:
• Do you like mango? (Such a question can be answered by
only ‘yes’ or ‘no’)
• What are you doing? (such a question cannot be answered
with only ‘yes’ or ‘no’ but requires a detailed answer e.g.
I’m listening to music.)
• The specific rules according to type of question are as
follows:
 Question that can be answered with ‘Yes’
or ‘No’
• To make indirect speech of such questions, the
word ‘if’ or ‘whether’ will be used in indirect
speech.
• Both the words ‘if’ and ‘whether’ can be used
interchangeably.
DIRECT SPEECH INDIRECT SPEECH

David said to me, “Do you like coffee?” David asked me if I like coffee.

He said to me, “Will you help me?” He asked me if I would help him.

She said to me, “Can I use your phone?” She asked me if she could use my phone.

They told me, “Have you gone to They asked me if I had gone to London.
London?”

He said to me, “Did you meet your He asked me if I had met my friend.
friend?”

John said to her, “Will you buy the John asked her whether she would buy
book?” the book.

She said, “Are they waiting for me?” She asked whether they were waiting for
her.
 Questions that cannot be answered with
only ‘yes’ or ‘no’
• To make indirect speech of such questions, the
words ‘if’ or ‘whether’ will not be used.
• The question is changed into assertive
(positive) form and is simply placed after the
reporting verb.
DIRECT SPEECH INDIRECT SPEECH
He said to me, “What are you doing?” He asked me what I was doing.

She said to me, “What is your name?” She asked me what my name was.

David said to me, “How are you?” David asked me how I was.

They said to me, “Where have you They asked me where I had gone.
gone?”
Teacher told her, “Why did you fail the Teacher asked her why she had failed
exam?” the exam.
I said to her, “What were you eating?” I asked her what she had been eating.

He said to her, “How will you help me?” He asked her how she would help him.

The student said, “How can I buy this The student asked how he could buy
book?” that book.
They said, “How is the weather?” They asked how the weather was.
 Indirect Speech for Imperative and
Exclamatory Sentences
• A sentence that expresses a command, request, an advice or a
suggestion is called an Imperative sentence. Here are some
examples:
• Open the door. (command)
• Please help me. (request)
• Quit smoking. (advice)
• Don’t make noise. (command)
• As imperative sentences have command (or an order), a
request, an advice or a suggestion, to change them into
indirect speech, some specific verbs (i.e. requested, ordered,
advised, forbade, suggested) replace the verbs (e.g. said or
told) of reporting verb.
• Direct Speech: She said to me, “Please help me.”
• Indirect Speech: She requested me to help her.
• Direct Speech: Teacher said to him, “Do not waste time.”
• Indirect Speech: Teacher advised him not to waste his time.
• Direct Speech: He said to her, “Please lend me your camera for
one day.”
• Indirect Speech: He requested her to lend him her camera for one
day.
• Direct Speech: Doctor said to him, “Avoid unhealthy food.”
• Indirect Speech: Doctor advised him to avoid unhealthy food.
• Direct Speech: The boss said to the employee, “Get out of the
room.”
• Indirect Speech: The boss ordered the employee to get out of the
room.
• Direct Speech: He said to his servant, “Clean the room.”
• Indirect Speech: He ordered his servant to clean the room.
 Indirect Speech for Exclamatory Sentences

• A sentence that expresses a state of sorrow, joy or

wonder is known as exclamatory sentence.
• EXAMPLES:
• Hurrah! I won the competition. (state of joy)
• Alas! I couldn’t qualify the exam. (state of sorrow)
• Wow! What a beautiful car. (state of wonder)
• An exclamatory sentence express state of joy, sorrow,
or wonder to change them into indirect speech,
specific words (i.e. exclaimed with joy, exclaimed with
sorrow, exclaimed with wonder) are added to the
sentence.
• Read the following sentences:
• Direct Speech: They said, “Hurrah! We won the game.”
• Indirect Speech: They exclaimed with joy that they had won the
game.
• Direct Speech: He said, “Alas! I failed the test.”
• Indirect Speech: He exclaimed with sorrow that he had failed the
test.
• Direct Speech: He said, “Hurrah! I bought a nice shirt.”
• Indirect Speech: He exclaimed with joy that he had bought a nice
shirt.
• Direct speech: She said, “Wow! What a beautiful flower is it.”
• Indirect Speech: She exclaimed with wonder that what a
beautiful flower it was.
• Direct Speech: She said, “Oh! I lost my purse.”
• Indirect Speech: She exclaimed with sorrow that she had lost her
purse.
 Changes in Pronoun in Indirect Speech-
Rules
• To convert a direct speech into indirect speech, the
pronoun (subject or object) in a sentence is changed. Here
is a simple example:
• Direct Speech: He said, “I like music.”
• Indirect speech: He said that he liked music.
• In the above example, the pronoun ‘I’ is changed to ‘he’ in
indirect speech. This sentence has two parts: a reporting
verb e.g. ‘he said’ and a reporting speech e.g. ‘I like
music.’
• The pronoun of reported speech changed according to
pronoun of reporting verb of the sentence.
• There are four easy rules for change in pronoun in indirect speech.
• RULE NO. 1: The first person pronoun of reported speech (e.g. We, I,
Me, My, Mine, Us or Our) is changed according to the pronoun of
the reporting verb if it is third person pronoun (i.e. she, he, it, they,
their, her, his)
• EXAMPLES:
• Direct Speech: She said, “I will go to London.”
• Indirect Speech: She said that she would go to London.
• Direct Speech: He said, “I work in a factory.”
• Indirect Speech: He said that he worked in a factory.
• Direct Speech: They said, “We have completed the work.”
• Indirect Speech: They said that they had completed the work.
• Direct Speech: He said, “My laptop is heavy.”
• Indirect Speech: He said that his laptop was heavy.
• Direct Speech: She said, “My son is cute.”
• Indirect Speech: She said that her son was cute.

• RULE NO.2: The first person pronoun of reported speech (i.e.

We, I, Me, My, Mine, Us or Our) is NOT changed, if the
pronoun of reporting verb is also first person pronoun (i.e. I,
We)
• EXAMPLES:
• Direct Speech: I said, “I had applied for a job.”
• Indirect Speech: I said that I had applied for a job.
• Direct Speech: We said, “We sing a song.”
• Indirect Speech: We said that we sang a song.
• RULE NO. 3: The second person pronoun (i.e. you, yours) of the
reported speech is changed according to ‘object’ of the reporting
verb.
• EXAMPLES:
• Direct Speech: She said to me, “You are a brilliant student.”
• Indirect Speech: She said to me that I was a brilliant student.
• Direct Speech: She said to them, “You are brilliant students.”
• Indirect Speech: She said to them that they were brilliant
students.
• Direct Speech: He said to me, “Your shirts are beautiful.”
• Indirect Speech: He said to me that my shirts were beautiful.
• Direct Speech: He said to them, “Your shirts are beautiful.”
• Indirect Speech: He said to them that their shirts were beautiful.
• RULE NO. 4: The third person pronoun (i.e. he, she, it, they, his, him,
them) of the reported speech will NOT be changed in the Indirect
speech.
• EXAMPLES:
• Direct Speech: He said, “She will buy a pen.”
• Indirect speech: He said that she would buy a pen.
• Direct Speech: She said, “They are singing a song.”
• Indirect Speech: She said that they were singing a song.
• Direct Speech: They said, “It is raining.”
• Indirect Speech: They said that it was raining.
• Direct Speech: You said, “She loves him.”
• Indirect Speech: You said that she loved him.
• Direct Speech: David said, “He works in a factory.”
• Indirect Speech: David said that he worked in a factory.
• Direct Speech: He said, “She is waiting for them.”
• Indirect Speech: He said that she was waiting for them.
 Change in Time and Adverbs of Indirect
Speech-Rules
• For converting direct speech into indirect speech, some
changes are made to the sentence. These changes
include: change in the time and adverb of the sentence.
These changes are made according to the following rules:
• Tomorrow changes into the next day
• Today changes into that day or the same day
• Yesterday changes into the previous day or the day
before.
• This week or month or year changes into that week or
same week or that month or same month or that year or
same year
• Next week or month or year changes
into the following week, month or year.
• Last week or month or year changes
into the previous week, month or year.
• Ago changes into before.
• Now or just changes into then.
• This changes into that.
• Here changes into there.
• Hence changes into thence.
 Examples
• Direct speech: He said, “I will go to college tomorrow.”
• Indirect speech: He said that he would go to college the
next day.
• Direct speech: she said, “I am busy today.”
• Indirect speech: she said that she was busy that day.
• Direct speech: He said, “I met my friend yesterday.”
• Indirect speech: He said that he had met his friend the
previous day.
• Direct speech: They said, “We have a lot of work to do this
week.”
• Indirect speech: They said that they had a lot of work to do
that week.
• Direct speech: She said, “The weather is pleasant this month.”
• Indirect speech: She said that the weather was pleasant that
month.
• Direct speech: He said, “He will be at home the next day.”
• Indirect speech: He said that he would be at home the following
day.
• Direct speech: They said, “They will attend classes next week.”
• Indirect speech: They said that they would attend classes the
following week.
• Direct speech: David said, “My examination will start the next
month.”
• Indirect speech: David said that his examination would start the
following month.
• Direct speech: She said, “I met him the last week.”
• Indirect speech: She said that she had met him the previous week.
• Direct speech: He said, “They earned a lot of money the
last month.
• Indirect speech: He said that they had earned a lot of
money the previous month.
• Direct speech: She said, “I am writing a letter now.”
• Indirect speech: She said that she was writing a letter then.
• Direct speech: He said, “I like this car.”
• Indirect speech: He said that he liked that car.
• Direct speech: He said, “The cat is playing here.”
• Indirect speech: He said that the cat was playing there.
• Direct speech: Teacher said, “Students will come here.”
• Indirect speech: Teacher said that students would come
there.
 Indirect Speech for Modals
• For converting direct speech into indirect,
Present modals (must, can, may) are changed
into Past modals (could, might, had to). Read
the following examples:
Direct
Can changes Could
Indirect

He said, “I can sing a song.” He said that he could sing a

song.
She said, “I can write a poem.” She said that she could write a
poem.

David said, “I can play a guitar.” David said that he could play a
guitar.
 May changes into Might
Direct Indirect

She said, “I may go to Paris.” She said that she might go to

Paris.

He said, “I may call a doctor.” He said that he might call a

doctor.

They said, “We may buy a car.” They said that they might buy a
car.
 Must changes into Had to
Direct Indirect

He said, “I must study this book.” He said that he had to study that
book.

They said, “We must finish the They said that they had to finish
work in time.” the work in time.

She said, “I must eat a healthy She said that she had to eat a
diet.” healthy diet.
 Indirect speech for Modals e.g. might,
should, would, could, ought to
• These modals are not changed and remain the
same in indirect speech. Read the following
examples:
Direct Indirect

He said, “I should start a job.” He said that he should start a job.

She said, “I should not waste my She said that she should not waste her time.
time.”

They said, “We should help the They said that they should help the poor.
poor.”

She said, “I might eat a cake.” She said that she might eat a cake.

They said, “We might go to the They said that they might go to the cinema.
cinema.”

He said, “I might attend the He said that he might attend the meeting.
meeting.”
David said, ”I could buy a camera.” David said that he could buy a camera.
He said, “I could play football.” He said that he could play football.
She said, “I could cook food.” She said that she could cook food.
Direct Indirect

She said, “I would wait for my son.” She said that she would wait for her
son.

He said, “I would decorate the walls.” He said that he would decorate the
walls.

They said, “We would watch a movie.” They said that they would watch a
movie.

David said, “I ought to avoid unhealthy David said that he ought to avoid
diet.” unhealthy diet.

He said, “I ought to start a business.” He said that he ought to start a

business.

She said, “I ought not waste time.” She said that she ought not waste time.