The Rule
When we report what someone said, we shift the tense one step back into the past:
| Direct Speech tense | Reported Speech tense |
|---|---|
| present simple | → past simple |
| present continuous | → past continuous |
| past simple | → past perfect |
| will | → would |
| can | → could |
| must | → had to |
| Direct Speech | Reported Speech |
|---|---|
| "I work in Madrid." | She said she worked in Madrid. |
| "We are expanding." | He said they were expanding. |
| "I will send the report today." | She said she would send the report. |
| "You must sign this form." | He told me I had to sign the form. |
Say vs Tell: Use say without a person. Use tell with a person:
✓ She said the meeting was cancelled.
✓ She told me the meeting was cancelled.
✗ She told the meeting was cancelled.
Time expressions: today → that day | yesterday → the day before | tomorrow → the next day | now → then | here → there
✓ She said the meeting was cancelled.
✓ She told me the meeting was cancelled.
✗ She told the meeting was cancelled.
Time expressions: today → that day | yesterday → the day before | tomorrow → the next day | now → then | here → there
Common Mistakes
She said that she will send the full report that evening.
She said that she would send the full report that evening.
He told that the Monday meeting had been cancelled.
He said the Monday meeting had been cancelled. / He told me the meeting had been cancelled.
She said me to check all the figures before sending.
She told me to check all the figures before sending.
He said he works in the finance department here.
He said he worked in the finance department.
Gap Fill — Press Enter to Check
Error Correction
Multiple Choice
Put the Words in the Correct Order
Sentence Transformation — Press Enter to Check
Conversation Practice
1
Report what your manager or a colleague said to you this week. Use reported speech throughout.
2
Roleplay: tell your partner about a key meeting you attended. Report what three different people said.
3
Report the main points of a news article or business story you read recently.
Homework
Write a summary (8 sentences) of a real meeting or conversation you had recently. Use reported speech throughout: 'She said...', 'He told me...', 'They mentioned that...', 'She asked whether...'