Adam
Alex
Benjamin
Emma
Gill
Jade
James
Rebecca
Ronnie
Grammar: Reported Speech in English
In this lesson you will learn how to correctly relate what others have said to you. In English grammar, this point is known as “reported speech”. You’ll learn how to change tenses, as required, to convey your message correctly in spoken and written English.
Quiz
Test your understanding of this English lesson
Test your understanding of the English lesson by answering these questions. You will get the answers and your score at the end of the quiz.Levels
Lesson Topics
357 COMMENTS
Dear Madam
I thank you very much for your efforts & hard work to help people like me.
I loved above video abuot repported speech. i got it but what is reported speech when original sentence it a past perfect / past perfect continuous and future’s other 3 tenses.
Some more things i m not sure are . how would be negative sentence of this
1.she has a nice car.
she doesn’t have a nice car.
or
she doesn’t has a nice car.
Ravi
Burlington, Canada
She doesn’t have a car
has*
sorry
has is wrong
She doesn’t have a car.
Hello Rebecca!!
i love ur lectures, infact im now in love with this website. all of u are doing great.
your lesson on reported speech is very clear n precised. it helped me a lot. but could u please, if possible, manage to record a lesson on “WH” words (like who, what, when, where, and how) reported speech with their affirmative, negative and interrogative also please try to cover the topic about “let” reported speech sentences.
hoping to hear from you soon.
thanks.
she told me that he doesn’t have a car
Hey! i can help you with this sentences:
1. She has a nice car (Present Simple Tense)
Angela said me that she had a nice car.
2. she doesn’t have a nice car(the same tense)
Angela mentioned that she didn’t has a nice car.
there is nothing hard. you must also take it in next tense (present simple to past simple; present continuous to past continuous and so on).
James, sorry but you have done a mistake. Use always said without me. You have to use me as told me. An example: She told me she had a car or She said she had a car. Tks.
she doesn’t have a nice car because you’re usind DOES.
You can say : She hasn’t a nice car
According with Essential Grammar in use 2nd edition unit 7 section c pag 20
she hasn’t got a car indicates a possession (like she has got green eyes or she has green eyes)
when you are using a negative sentence in present simple the auxiliary verb doesn’t indicates the third singular person and the negation so the main verb goes in its base form: she doesn’t have a car otherwise using has after doesn’t will be a grammatical error (she doesn’t has a car) because you will be making two negations in the same sentence.
Good night!
hi hgnis 76;
past perfect doesn’t change:
She said, “The lesson had already started when he arrived.”= she said that she had already started when he arrived.
past perfect continous doesn’t change:
She said, “I’d already been teaching for five minutes.”=She said she’d already been teaching for five minutes.
-she dosn’t have a nice car
We thank her
Dear hgnis76,
my English has a poor level but I’m sure “she doesn’t has a nice car” is ungrammatical. Only one verb can give -s in one sentence (clause).
Sk
Dear Rebecca,
does exist a reporting speech? I mean for example:
I tell you (not past tense!) that you’re very nice because of this cool online teaching.
Sk
Yes, reported speech exists but not in your sentence. Thanks for your feedback. All the best to you,Skalkaz.
hello english teacher.
how are you doing?
this is deepak.
could u please tell me difference between, do, does, did, don’t, & has, have, had,
&how to use them like, he don’t, or he doesn’t, he has, had.
please help me with this, hoping for a very soon reply.
T.K.G.B….
Hi Skalkaz
Thanks for helping and for the cool comments.
Rebecca
Hi Skalkaz
Thanks for the ideas for future lessons. We’ll try and help you in this way.
Rebecca
Please explain the followinng:
In indirect speech after writing reporting verb “THAT” is written while you did not use “that” in indirect speech please explain
Dear NOOR!
The conjunction that is often dropped, especially after common reporting
verbs (e.g. say, think) in informal speech.
She said (that) she’d had enough.
I think (that) you’re probably right.
That cannot be dropped after certain verbs, especially intransitive verbs – e.g. reply, email, shout.
James replied that he was feeling better, (NOT James replied he was …)
She shouted that she was busy, (NOT She shouted she was busy.)
(source: Practical English Usage)
Thanks for your question, Noor, and thanks for providing the answer, Shalkaz! Good work!
Rebecca
Hi Rebecca,
Just a thought…
In the first set of examples:
to change “He is a teacher” into
“He told me he was a teacher”
does kind of mean he wasn’t a teacher anymore. This might be mis-leading (although I know it doesn’t intend to).
Does this mean the listener to the report should also adjust himself to the english style of reporting?
Hi Nilo
When you say “He told me he was a teacher.” , you are using reported speech correctly. It means the person is still a teacher, even though it may sound like it’s not true right now.
If you say, ” He told me he used to be a teacher.” then it means he is not a teacher any more.
See the difference?
Rebecca
hi, mrs Rebecca u really r the best teacher of mine!!!!
Mrs. Rebecca, If the original sentence was “He USED to be a teacher”, would the reported speech be “He told me he HAD used to be a teacher” or “He told me he USED to be a teacher”?
Thank you for the reply and the nice lesson.. :)
Thanks for this reply. It’s quite clear now.
Hello Rebecca .
Just stopped by to say Hi to you and James . I am an English teacher here in Brazil and always recomend your website to my students . I think it is a great tool for them . Thank YOU ! God bless you . tchau …
Thanks for help, I will have exam for 2 days and it it helped me to understand my problems.
by love from Zagreb
Hope you got a really high score on your exam! Thanks for your feedback, Matej.
Dear Madam
You are doing a great job with this site to teach English.
Thank you very much.
And I would like to tell, I felt that I was learned something about your “Reported Speech” lesson.
I like to learn more in future.
Best Regards.
Prabath – Sri lanka
Thanks Prabath. Glad I could help you understand Reported Speech a little better. Good luck with your English.
A lesson is really good, Madam!
hi rebeca
first of all thanks for your help ,but i still have a doubt ,i read that when that If the sentence starts in the present, there is no backshift of tenses in Reported speech.
Example: Susan: “I work in an office.” Susan says that she works in an office.
If the sentence starts in the past, there is often backshift of tenses in Reported speech. (see: Note)
Example: Susan: “I work in an office.” Susan said that she worked in an office.
as you can see both examples are in present. how to know if i have to change the sentence at past or not?——————————————————————————–
Thanks for your feedback, Elizabet. Please see my detailed comments to Jonathan below.
My best wishes to you.
thank you very very very very very much
i realy benfite from you thanks alot alot alot
You’re very, very, very welcome! So glad the lesson helped you.
thank you
can you explan time perfect??
Okay, I will record a lesson on this just for you and the many others who are confused by the perfect tenses in English.
In the meantime, make sure to review the present and past simple, present and past continuous and the future tenses, because you can also express your thoughts quite adequately using just these tenses. So making sure you master these first will make your life easier.
Thanks again for your suggestion.
Hi Rebecca
I enjoyed your lesson and I wanted to give you my thanks.
I would like if you could do a video with the explication to use the words “by” and “for”. They mean very similar in spanish. Also about “Although” and “despite”.
Have a nice day
Raul
Thanks, Raul for the compliment and your suggestion. I will be recording some new lessons soon and will do the ones you’ve suggested. Thanks.
Thanks again your another useful video lesson. I have had 100.00 score. That’s cool. Tata very much.
Great stuff!
These lessons are so very important,I was need it.Now I feel better because day by day I´m improving faster than a few years ago.
Thank you Rebecca,God Blees you!
So glad the lesson helped you. Good for you!
Thank you for refreshing my memory teacher. :-)
My pleasure.
Dear Rebecca,
thanks for the great things you have shared with the world. I do understand the reported Speech, but I am not sure with the qouted speech. What is the differences between the other two? when should I use reported Speech and when should I use the qouted speech. Please educate me here.
Thanks
Dismas
Thanks for your feedback.
Well, usually, it’s difficult to quote someone when we’re speaking. We usually only refer to famous quotations in speech.
In writing, it’s possible to use the exact quotation because we can see the quotation marks and understand that it is a direct quote.
Also, while speaking we only use the exact words when there is a special reason to quote the person. Perhaps what he or she said was surprising or shocking or wonderful…something exceptional.
Otherwise, we just use reported speech. Hope this helps to clarify the issue a little.
Hi, Teacher !
I love yr lesson !
Tks for enlighten me !
I will keep updating lessons here, hope u dont mind..
Yes, please do come back as we add new lessons all the time. Happy I could help you.
Hi Rebecca,
I have some questions about reported specch.
1. Can we keep the tense in reported speech if it still true? For example:
Jay said,” I like / love/ hate eating apples.” ( Jay said that he likes/ loves/ hates eating apples)
2. Can we use ‘say(s)’ as reporting verb in reported speech?
Jane says, ” I like action film.” ( Jane says that she likes action film.)
3. Any rules in reported speech about stative verbs (like, love, see, seem, etc)?
Thanks for your questions, Itim.
1) Yes, it is possible.
2) Yes
3) The same rules apply as to other verbs.
My best wishes to you.
frist to all, thank you very much for the lessons, they are very useful for me.
I think that never had seen “she doesn’t have”… I thought that the correct form was: “she hasn´t” are both forms correct?
Thanks!
thanks for teach. Good luck to you!!!
Thanks; the same to you!
wow.. it’s difficult.. but i must try to loved it.. thanks for the teach..
and good luck for your job
Good for you, for not giving up! My best to you, Karel.
Hi thank you very much . I have learnt a lot.
However I have some questions about time indicators:
for example:
I am going to see my mother today.
I think that this film is amazing.
could you please change them to indirect speech, and explain.
Thanks a lot
He said he was going to see his mother today.
She said she thought this film was amazing.
All the best to you, Souri.
hi rebecca,
thank you for your all help.best wishes for you.
And to you too, Noureen. Thanks for watching and for your feedback.
hi ! My name is anh . I come from vietnam. Ilike you very much when you teach english . I could ask you some questions if you agree I will ask you later.
do you teach me english on internet ? which way I pay money to you
Thank you kindly for your offer, Anh. At this time, I don’t teach English over the Internet. There are many other excellent teachers who do. I wish you the best, Anh.
Thanks a lof …. The lesson was very useful.. I learnt a lot!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
So glad I could help, Nathy. All the best to you in the future.
thank you very much
your lesson very useful
Thank you very very very very much again
I am very happy for your lossen
My pleasure, Ebrahim. Thank you for your kind comments. All the best to you, too.
Dear Rebicca,
I thank you vey much for your effort to help people to learn the most great language in all over the world . I was so happy when i found your site because I think that the teaching directly by videos is most usefull and helpsull. Thanks again and may allah pless and help you .
Thank you for your kind feedback, Ali. I wish you all the best.
Dear Rebecca
Thanks a lot, this lesson was very useful for me.
So glad the lesson helped you. My best wishes to you, elhidrologo.
Dear Rebbecca
Thank you very much for your excellent explanation english lessons that you corronspound to your worldwide students,and i hope you you will be the winner of english teachers all over the world THANK YOU AGAIN.
Thank you kindly, Ahmed. Everyone gains when we help each other. I learn from my students each day, too. There are so many lessons to learn in life, and luckily, learning keeps life interesting.
My best wishes to you, Ahmed.
Hi Rebecca,
I have some questions to you about some special usage of the word get. Here is the pattern. get+noun+adjective. i saw it in the dictionary but i can’t understand the explanation it says here that the word get is being used to cause somebody or something to be or become. i hope you will answer my question as soon as possible.
May the lord always blessed you.
Thank you.
Thanks so much for your comments, Bg.
I am not sure exactly what you’re asking me so please give me an example so I can help you. Maybe you mean,
“You got your mother worried by not calling for so long.’ This would mean that you made your mother become worried.
We use get in lots of different ways in English.
I wish you all the best.
thank u mam.i really happy to watch your web site.my speaking power is week and i m so happy to see u.again thanks..
Keep practicing and you will improve each day. All the best to you, Anjali.
hi Rubecca,i am Dibad and i am from Somlia,i recently joined this wonderful sate which i realy found helpful, particularly report speech lessons so i strongly say to you, thank you very much for your effort that you have done for sake of us.
Welcome to engvid, Dibad. So glad you are enjoying the lessons and learning from them too. My best to you.
hi i am juhi i am in 7th std thank u for explaning so nicely
Thanks. I am sure you will do very well in your English studies, since you are taking the initiative to increase your knowledge at such a young age. Good for you, Juhi! My best wishes to you.
i am very thankful to you for your priceless advice here
.thnks ,thanks alot madam
You’re very welcome, Ashu. All the best to you.
Thanks mam. The way u teach us is awesome.
That’s very kind of you. Thanks!My best wishes to you, Jack.
Hello, dear Rebbeca.
thanks for your help.
I see that you are very generous and humble.
you deserve all the best.
just a questions.
what is the difference between indirect quesiotns and reposted questions.
indirect questions=embedded questions
Do you know what time it is?
REPORTED QUESTIONS
He asked me what time it is.
thanks in advance
from Peru
Norma
Thanks for your comments, Norma.
In embedded questions, we change the order of the words, but we do not change the tense.
Example:
Where is the supermarket?
becomes
Do you know where the supermarket is?
In reported speech questions, we usually change the tense.
Where is the supermarket/
becomes
He asked me where the supermarket was.
My best wishes to you, Norma.
hello madam, first of all thank you for the effort you make to help us,may god bless you. second i’m a student from an arabic country,and my question is :some times we are given exersices in which we find indirect speeches and we are asked to write the direst ones, my problem is with the past perfect,for exemple:(mike said that he had finished writing his book), i don’t know whether i write :mike said:”i have finished/finished or had finished writing my book”.
thank you in advance
fifi
In this case, because you are adding a direct quote, you would write:
Mike said, : I have finished writing my book.”
All the best to you, Fifi.
i like your maner of teaching. you make your lessons understood easily and staying in mind of people.
I’m glad you found the lesson effective. Thank you kindly for your feedback. my best wishes to you, Clovis.
good lesson
Thanks, Samreen. All the best.
Hi Rebecca, I came across your videos because I was looking for reported speech in Spanish and was curious because I had just had a minor disagreement with my Venezuelan-born teacher over how English reported speech is constructed. Her position was the same as yours, that there is always a back-step in tense in reporting, however I do not believe that this is a universal truth. The back-step, if made, is almost always in the context of some other point that the speaker wants to stress. So for example, there is nothing at all that I can see that is wrong with the construction “the professor said that you are smart”. To use the past tense in this case would likely indicate some other issue within the sentence and likely a one-time situation, so for example “the professor said that you were smart to choose the MBA course ” for example, although in such a case it is likely that the original sentence would also have been in the past “Jane, you were smart to choose the MBA course”. Alternatively, the use of the past tense might indicate a true past event “the professor said that you were smart once but are not any more” but again in that case, the original sentence would also have been expressed in the past “you were smart once but not anymore”.
Sorry therefore, but I cannot agree with your analysis that you always step back a tense in reporting speech and I believe that this is something that should be corrected with the people that are learning English through your programme.
Thanks for your question, Jonathan. I can understand your point of view.
In these video lessons, we explain the basic rules of English grammar, as applicable most of the time. There are always grammatically correct exceptions, and there are also grammatically incorrect expressions used commonly by native speakers of a language without too much regard to the rules. Reported speech certainly falls into this category. This is why your sample sentence, “The professor said you are smart.” seems quite acceptable and certainly understandable.
In terms of the grammatical rules, when we report what someone has said though, we are supposed to do the back step. The exceptions are as follows:
a) Sentences with should, ought to and might do not change
b) Sometimes, if reporting something immediately after or soon after it was said, we need not do a back step in tense.
c) If we’re talking about general truths, we need not make the change.
d) If the reporting verb itself is simple present, present perfect or future, we do not change the tense. Example: She SAYS she jogs every day.
Hope this helps to clarify the issue.
I want lesson of concession please.
thanks bye
you are smart and good job of ours lessons video thank you so much.
hı teacher I am from turkey everyday I watchıng your lesson very usefull for me..
Dear Rebecca,
How can I change the following sentence into a reported speech?
“It’s can’t be very nice having all these cars going by all the time”
Thank you in advance!
thank you teacher rebbeca!^^ it will help me a lot for my study in english..
Everything is correct in this quiz.I was very excited,I know this very good.
hello again,let me try with your sentence ANH:
first there is a mistake at the beginning,there shouldn’t be an auxiliary before the modal verb “can”, so you may say:
it couldn’t be very nice having all those cars going all that time.
I wish the teacher would agree with me.goodluck for all.
hi rebecca, i have a question for you …
when you were explaining the first part of the video you didn’t use the word “that” in the sentences , but when you asked to the audience some examples, you used “that”…. is “that” an optional word?
you are a great teacher!!! ^.^b
greetings from Mexico
Thank you so much. I really learned a lot.I am going through more on your website.Thank you so much, I really found it helpful.
THIS IS A WONDERFULL PAGE TO PRECTICE MY ENGLISH I´M HAPPY TO HAVE FOUND IT! :)
i got 100 score))))…thanks Mrs.Rebecca.U r great teacher.
rebecca u r amazing teacher.i have problem that i understand all english but im scare to speak english and do some mistkes when i go to speak actually i know all the tenses but i do mistakes when i speak plz rebecca help me out thanks waithing for replay
thanks a lot it was really helpful
Thank you.
THANK YOU MS.REBECCA;*
HI REBECCA
“I used to smoke” he said
He said he used to smoke /OR hE SAID HE HAD USED TO SMOKE.
PLEASE WHICH ONE IS APPROPRIATE.
mANY THANKS MRS REBECCA
heloo rebecca,,,, nice to see your video,,, thanks to teach us english
Hi Rebecca :)
what are the different functions of reported speech?…actually me and my friends are going to report “Reported Speech” in our English class and because of your video we are somewhat enlightened to what is “Reported Speech”…thanks :)
Dear Rebecca
I need ask you something
when we write he toled me …..
it always like this
and …
when we can write said
thnx:)
Thank you for your teaching.
It’s very helpful. I couldn’t using grammar correctly before. but from now, I have a little bit increasing.
Thank you again.
What a nice explination it’s my first time to understand this grammer clearly thanks alot.
Thanks a lot
My Score in the Reported Speech was : 100.00 . I got 10 correct out of 10.
you are the best
I’m Arabic and I am English teacher. I will learn from you a lot about how to teach English because you are the best .
:)
hi Rebecca.
Could you please give me a lesson about the differences between MUST and HAVE TO.I sometimes make a mistake between them.
Thank you very much for your help
Dear Madam ,
I have a very important question.
Is it possible to use present perfect tense,or past perfect tense in the main sentence?
I have told you that…..
I had told you that…..
If yes, does the tenses changes after them or not like after the simple past tense?
For example: I had told you that you would be happy. /instead of you will be happy/
I wait for your answer urgently
Thank you in advance
Teoleander
Hi rebaca,
your lessons are excellent. I attended for many English classes but I never met a teacher like you.
In your profile by saying that “there is no bad student” you given me lot of confidence.
your accent is neutral.please suggest good books(novels,grammer) which will help in improving my English. I am from India.
Thank you
Hi, rebaca
Iam from Indonesia and your lesson are excellent but sorry my english is not good, Rebaca, Do you know Toeic ?
regards
Darmawil
Rebecca, when we use told and said in reported speech. I don’t understand. Please help me!
“Cindy’s voice was music to my ears,” Roger told me.
Was changes to what?
Dear Rebecca
i am from Afghanistan i would like to thank you so much for vidio teaching i learned so much from it and i appreciate your hard work and your friendly teaching. best regards
hi. rebecca
what do u mean for ‘one step back in tense’?
is that i have understood below?
simple present ——>simple past
present conti.——->past conti.
present perfect——>past perfect
present perfect conti——> past perfect conti
simple past———->past perfect
past perfect———>past perfect
past conti.———->past perfect conti.
past perfect conti—–>past perfect conti
simple future——->simple past
future conti——>past conti
future perfect——->past perfect
future perfect conti——->past perfect conti.
am i right? please throw light.
thanks.
Thank you Rebecca! It was a very useful lesson to me.
I can’t come to the party tonight.”
Why is it? couldn’t came… It is couldn’t come?
Thanks ma am
You theach very very well!!!
thanks my angel
This is very, very useful lesson for all of us who have been practising English as foreign language. Just keep doing that, you are the best. . .
Hi Rebecca,
I am confused.In spoken english people always use the tense in a diffrent way.Once I was talking with one English man.He used the following. ” Yeasterday I told Thomas to arrange a car for me.He told I will do it .But he did not do anything .I think these people are irresponsible.” later I called him he said sorry, I forgot ” .In this sentence as per correct grammer He should say 1) ” He told he would do it” and 2) he said he was sorry, he had forgotten”.Any comments from your side.
Very simple: people don’t always speak correctly.
what about “you should say that”? Would it be “he told me:”you could say that”?
So, ‘should’ becomes ‘could’, ‘shall’ becomes ‘should’, is this correct?
Lastly, what about ‘could’, ‘would’, and ‘must’?
Thank you Rebecca.You’re very nice to explain.Lily from Brasil
thank you.u’re very patient to explain a lot..thanks to ur brain…
Thanks Rebeca. could you please tech about third conditional or second. I really appreciate.
dear madam rebeca,ur’just fantastick!
What makes you perfect, that you are versed of what you say.
Thanks.
thaaank you so much for the hard work that you are doing i have an exam tom and en sa2 allh i will bass it
I like your lessons so much, please do more lessons soon. Thanks.
Love u much teacher Rebecca for what you have done
Hello Madam . You explained the reported speech very well but what about the imperative and the question in the reported speech ?
Thank you so much. I did not understand “Future report speech”. Example on the test: Rachel: “Michael and I are getting married next summer.” Rachel announced that _____ next summer. May i use “were” or “are” ..
Thank you so much
hi
what about the imperative and the question ?
Hi Rebecca that was excellent on reported speech.
I would really like to know the difference between indirect and reported speech.
Kamal
Would u like to give me some lectres on WH question.
very nice explanation,good teacher
Thanks a lot Rebecca!
It was a nice video. I’ve been watching these videos from past few months. They are very interesting.
sincerely,
Vivek
i’m happy, i got full marks. thank you teacher
really useful
dear madam: i like your teaching way. i got 80 marks this lesson.
Hi Rebecca!
When I was high school,I got lowest grade on my English subject because I didn’t know how to use the grammar rules correctly.But when I was watching your video Ive learned a lot.My English skills are improving and I can’t thank you enough for the help…
God Bless and more power!
What about the example of She said, “My name is Sally”. Do you change the tense in the reported speech and make it. She said her name was Sally?! I think it should be “her name is..”.. What do you think? Need to know your opinion about this one and about the change of tense when you report facts.
we must change “to be”,so its indirect speech must be (her name was),if reporting verb is in past simple,this rule is followed,am i rite Rebbeca?
oh! i need learn english
Hai rebecca , it was a nice video and i learnt a lot from your website. I dont have a strong foundation in english but still i am planning to give GRE and TOEFL in next four months. Could u please give some tips for english preparation. It will be helpful for me.
in the indirect speech we also change the pronouns as u did’nt change “you” into another pronoun.
Hi! And what’s the reported speech for this:”I would like to speak to you”?
this video site it’s really helpful for everyone including me,i’ve learnt English since i was young and i’m becoming an English Teacher now but i’m still learning and increasing my ability to explain some material to my students because i think the good explanation give the good impact and result,and you guys are the best tutor,espesially you Rebecca.say hi from Indonesia =)
Dear Teacher,
I would like to express my profound thanks to you for explaining clearly about report speed grammar and I think that your lesson and your explanation will really help me improve my English.
Teacher could I ask you about English words outside the lesson?
I have wondered so long already about one English word and that word is :the plant which produce cauliflower what is English called ? because I have ever seen the cauliflower only but never seen its plant’s name.
I’m sorry teacher asking that word which is not related to the lesson above.
Respectfully,
SOM.SOPHEAK RITH FROM CAMBODIA
Thank you
The plant is also called cauliflower.
Dear Teacher REBECCA,
Thank you very much for answering my question.
Respectfully,
SOM.SOPHEAK RITH
Thank you
Actually i don’t know how to thank you miss Rebecca. thank you so much
Dear Rebecca, in my test I made just one mistake, the 5th one. Could you tell me why the correct answer is “she couldn´t come” instead “she couldn´t came”, suposed to be the verb must be changed to past.
Thank you in advanced.
Hi Rebecca,
I was really excited to come across this site that provides comprehensive details in grammar.
My question to you is how do we identify a habitual action? This in turn means that we don’t have to change the verb tense? I need some constructive examples.
Thanks
I love study English!!! do and accecpt is wonderful…thanks very much Rebecca…
Hi Rebecca,
I really got excited after I found this site that provides comprehensive details in grammar.
My question to you is about the differences between “indirect Questions” and “Embedded Questions”. They seem to be the same to me. I need some constructive examples.
Thanks
Hi Rebecca,
What about indirect questions??
Thanks
Sue said that she was very happy with her new job.into direct speech
I am very happy with her new job,Sue said
thank vrey much for this fantastck lesoon <3
Hello madam Rebecca,
Direct Speech And Indirect Speech…. is it same with reported speech??…
Thanks
Dear Madam:
Could you explain me the difference using “Must and Have to” in indirect speech?
I am waiting for answer!!
Dear Rebecca,
Past tomorrow I will have a exam and I´m really very happy watching your class about Report Speech. In a short time you explained the subject very clear. Actually I´m very glad to have found these excellent teachers spending the time for teaching us.
I let to you my hug and Hello from Chile. I´m Brazilian but I’m living at Chile and I studying at Chilean College, Translation from English to Spanish. It’s no easy because both languages are not mine, but I can say to you that it’s very interesting challenge.
My best regards from South America to everybody.
Bye,
Marcio
Day after tomorrow I will have a exam and I´m really very happy watching your class about Report Speech. In a short time you explained the subject very clear. Actually I´m very glad to have found these excellent teachers spending the time for teaching us.
Receive my hug and Hello from Chile. I´m Brazilian (Portuguese language)but I’m living in Chile and I’m studying at Chilean College, Translation from English to Spanish. It’s no easy because both languages are not mine, but I can say to you that it’s very interesting challenge.
My best regards from South America to everybody.
Bye,
Màrcio
We like these hugs!
Dear Rebbeca,
In Brazil we have this greeting like normal to say goodbye. I think is too important to change our energies through the hugs.
Let the physical distance to the Asiatics!
Many hugs to you.
Thank you… :)
Hello,teacher.I think i may be your young student. i want to know lesson Report Speech, if it is posible Can you explain me.
Thanks a lot!
hello madam,
i would like to ask you how to speak direct and indirect speech.if anybody tell something ,the same word tell to the third person.most of the peoples are using said that,said,he was saying,told me.please explin me with example and send to my mail id
Thank you Rebicca you are awesome teacher
and you will say in reported speach: he said : I was awesome.Thank you and “Merry Christmas”
thank you it was useful
I liked this lesson. It is easy to understand. Happy new year to all.
This lesson helps a lot! Thanks so much. This lesson will really improve grammatically and verbally my English skills.
Thanks! It is very useful for me. I was afraid to learn grammar before but I try to understand now……
Thank you. I was struggle in how to use Reported speech properly,now,I clarifies this concept.
Thank you so much!!!
Ma’am
In your 1st set of examples, “You are smart” isn’t it changed into “he said that I was smart” ?
thank you :D
thanx rebecca ..10/10 ı did. my friend told me rebecca was very good teacher. yes he is right..:)))
Hello Rebecca,
You are awesome teacher !!! I understand the whole lessen perfectly. Write down one fan to this website.
Thank you very much.
thank you Rebeca I listed this class several times with other teacher and you´re the best
hi you are a clever teacher.
Hello everybody. I’m Ole.
Hello!
It of great help to me as I took that quiz just below the video.I did not see the video, but I could get all the answers correct except for the first one.I am very happy with my results.I whole-heartedly thank you.
Hmm.. do we use reported speech after:
-He noticed…..
-They suggested…
-She proposed…
etc.
when it is clear that the person was saying something ?
{Jeevan said to his teacher ,” I cannot understand this lesson .Will you teach it to me once again?}
MAM THIS IS A QUESTION THAT REWRITE IN A REPORTED SPEECH….
I feel that oral questions more effective for me than written.
questions is more
fix
Rebecca i want to say something for you:
YOU ARE SWEET AND THE BEST ONE…love you!
Bisous
what is the meaning of WOULD i really be mad :((( please help me my teacher i will wait your unswer it is so important for me
hello !!!
i have a question :
jean asked jeany “are you a student ?” – “yes, i am”
can you transform this question to reported speech for me ? Thanks
hi mrs,it’s for the first time i get on this website,i really love this lesson,it is so useful for me,my name is Jeff,from haiti bye
Hi Rebecca,
I have a question. What if the reporting person is first and second person who report about themselves. Does the pronoun remain the same in the reported speech? Eg: I said:’I am here’
and You said:’you are here’
Thanks in advance
Hi Rebecca.
Thanks so much all of you teaching.
Hi Rebecca,
Fantastic lesson…it will be useful for my students
it is really confusion bt i understood it well n thank u alot for making me understand it well
Dear Rebecca,
That is so wonderful. I will try to learn from you and I will ask you whenever I have the question. Please you good luck and please you keep your mission to help to many people around the world. Thanks from Pharin.
i have no words to express my feelings .because this site solve my big problems .but now i want to start from the start but how??
HI REBECCA, VERY GOOD LESSON. I GOT A QUESTION ABOUT EMBEDDED QUESTION. DO YOU CHANGE THE SENTENCE FROM PRESENT TO PAST IN THE EMBEDDED QUESTION?
Thanks teacher for your nice lesson I hope that you will bring new Technic for this subject.
Thanks.
can you explain how i can Utter sounds
Rebecca,
I hate to see you tell students that we use ‘reported speech’ because we use ‘reported speech’. I think you said we HAVE to use ‘reported speech. But only if you don’t care about accuracy. You say, ‘He told me he was a teacher’, but that’s not true. He told you he IS a teacher, if he is still a teacher. If he was a teacher from 1995 to 2006, then you would say, ‘He told me he was a teacher (from 1995 to 2006). The notion of ‘reported speech’ is a CONSTRUCT, it is not something that makes any sense. We should stop trying to teach it. It is NOT useful. Sorry, I’m not shouting but there is no way to underline. Contact me if you like .
br dot hadvines at yahoo dot com
Thanks a lot. it was helpful :)
Rebecca, could you explain the topic of: the direct and indirect questions with reported speech please? thank you =)
Rebecca,
I just watched your VDO, It’s very good VDO !!! Now I’m studying english in USA ,I’m looking for writing learning on internet.
Could you please recommend me.
Regards,Kit
Hello Madam,
could you please help me to identify whether the following sentence is in reported speech or not?
“The death toll is expected to rise.”
Thanks a lot!
Thank you!
thanks alot
Thank you so much Rebecca! You’re great :)
Hey Rebecca, nice videos you’re great! I have a question regarding reported speech. For example:
Mary: There’s a great movie on TV today.
In reported speech it could written in two ways right?
First: “Mary told me there was a great movie on TV that day.” – Which implies the day she said it was before the day I was talking.
Second: “Mary told me there’s a great movie on TV today”. – It can stay the same because we are living the day the movie is going to be on right?
Thanks in advance!
Hi miss…
ty for ur lesson…10/10—actually reported speeches are a bit confusing, yet we have to practice to gain more confidence… regards…
carlos,lima..peru
Very useful! Thanks for your classes.
Thank you!! Finally I understood “reported speech”!!
Could you complete the list please:
Present simple becomes Past Simple
Past Simple…..Past Perfect
Past Perfect….?
Past Continuos….Past Perfect Continuous
Present Perfect…Past Perfect
And all verb tenses
Thank you again!!
sometimes it is a little difficult to understand that kind of thing, but thanks to you it is easier for me.
he tOLD me he would ( wrong) I WOULD TRUE 7 .00
hi Rebica thank you for all hose who stand in front of the cam to teach and gives there time to us, I have problem when i talk to the people who are poor in the english language i ll be confused and i can not understand from them at all not like the native one
second pro. is when i talk i m posing or tattering any suggestion
best regard
Hassan
10 out of 10 thanks Rebeca
Hi,thanks for a very nice lesson about reported speech. But would you like give us a lesson about REPORTING VERBS?
OK I got 10 out of 10 corect, so I can’t explain why I can’t pass an exam that I’m doing online about reported speech.
By the way I saw you didn’t talk about “asked” form of reported speech, so if you can do it in future lessons that will be great.
Thank so much for your help.
thanks I got from 10 -10 grade
Hi Rebecca
Thank u very much for ur great lessons on reported speech. Please explain to me when do we use “that” in reported speech. I noticed u have used in some sentences and left in others. What is the right set of rule to follow.? Waiting for ur reply, thanks
THANK YOU SO MUCH !REBECCA .YOU ARE MY IDOL !
it helped me a lot and thank you because it was an assignment in my school thanks a lot.
good job teacher i really love ur explaination
Thanks dear Rebecca it was easy and understanduable Thanks again
please explain for students how to make question in reported speach ! i heard that it is a bit difficult
Dear rebecca madam, tomorrow is my eng. Exam n ur dis video wz vry helpful to me n u made it vry clr..now i feel i don need to open the book..thnxx.. U r even better den mah english teacher..:)
thank you very much for the lessons
9 out of 10
Thank you very much for clear lesson :-)
hi every one
I want to know if some one told me “you ate dinner” the reported speech will be “he said that I had eaten dinner” or as the teacher said it will be “he said that you had eaten dinner”?
Thanks ma’am this lesson’s realy work!!!
Thnahs Rebecca…very very helpful lesson
Dear Rebecca,
I am a form two student from Hong Kong.It is my first time to ask questions here.Thanks your help first. I want to ask you three questions. First, do we need to change the tense in reported speech if it is a fact or it is a opinion in direct speech. I asked many people before but someone answered “Yes” and someone answered “No”. So,I really feel confused about it.
For example,Mary said”It is a fantastic place.”
A.Mary said that it was a fantastic place. or
B. Mary said that it is a fantastic place.
Which answer is correct?
Second, I want to ask a question about pronoun in reported speech.
For example,”You needn’t wait for me” said Mary.
We need to answer [Mary said that I needn’t wait for her.] or
[Mary said that he/she need’t wait for her.]This means if the direct speech doesn’t mention which person it is talking to but there is “you”, we need to change “you” to “I” or”he” or”she”?
For example, [“She will take you all to Stanley Market.” said Mary]
We need to answer [Mary said that she would take us all to Stanley Market]
or {Mary said that she would take them all to Stanley Market]
Lastly, I want to ask what is the different about “said” and”told”
For example, [Mary said to us”We got married six months ago.”
We should say[Mary told us they had got married six months before.” or
[Maru said to us they had got married six months before.]?
Please answer the questions as soon as possible because I had a test on Monday about reported speech. Thanks you so much!
Best wishes,
Alice
tnx reBecca Very HelpFul lessOn
Hello Rebecca!
Thanks for the videos. In fact I had a test on the 3rd of march and my grammer class work was with one of my classmates.It was just then that i came across the website of eduvid and got a practice on reported speech.
Thanks a million,
Regard,
prashant,banglore,india
Excellent! It’s easier than I thought! Thanks for your explanations :)
I used to be panic about reported speech–too complicated . I had to change the tense , paid attention to pronoun and felt slight boring to say told told told…
From your given quiz , I got D too, I learned more useful words , such as comment , admit , announce,confide. I am so excited. Thank you.
i’m going to cry :(
this is the first time in my life…
it did not happened to me before
i got many full marks in the same day
realy i don’t know how can i thank you rebecca
hi rebacca i’m amine in morrocco i love the way how you explain thank you
Great lesson !
Hi Rebacca,
Can we use this concept in writing as well? Or it’s only in speech
hi mam
if there is an universal sentence how we could change it , into reported speech ? for example. sun rises from east
i am waiting for your answer .I hope u will be replay me an answer
Thanks Rebecca, it’s so useful lesson.
i got 7/10 ;(
Rebacca, you are An amazing Teacher … You make The English More Easier to Me :)
i have a question about it, is it correct?
john: What did you do?
mary : John asked what i did
why could it be correct? if past switched to past perfert.
thank a lot for this lesson video!
Hello,teacher Rebecca.Thanks you so much for your teaching you are perfect teacher.
A little difficult to catch it immediately but I’m pleased for the lesson, thanks!
I had a little problem with this subject. But not any more. I got the lesson. :)
I got 10 correct out of 10. :)
Thanks Rebecca.
Whatever a lesson is difficult, you make it very simple. And I like your teaching because you are very patient, and you give us many examples. :)
thank you so much .i have a question i don’t know when to say in reported speech she told and she said…i really get confused when it comes to said and told.do they have the same meaning or not if not when to use them correctly. thank you
hi rebecca can you explain to us about active and passive voice because these days i will be an exam and you will have helped me by the and of this month
I loved this explanation. Thank you so much for all the effort that you guys do for teaching us in wherever places we are. I’m so grateful. However in my case it could’ve been more useful if instead of the original sentences that were writing on the board we had the report speech examples.
Hello Rebeca,
Thank you very much for your lesson.
I learned Reported Speech in high school as well as in ESL classes and here watched your lesson, the rules are same, but I find native speakers often don’t follow the rules. It’s very confusing. Finally I found this site that explains the why. I wanted to run by you and see if what it says is right, http://esl.fis.edu/grammar/rules/repspee.htm “The main problem for the learner of English is to decide which tense is needed for the verb(s) in what is reported. Generally, English speakers do not change the tense if what is said is still true or has not happened yet, and they believe the speaker.” it has examples, which are exactly what I often hear how native speakers talk. I look forward to hearing your reply. Thank you very much.
Hi Rebecca,
In the video you had this example:
“you ate dinner.”
and you reported it as “he said that you had eaten dinner.”
Shouldn’t we report you as I in this sentence and report it like this:
“He said that I had eaten dinner.” ?
great lesson
Thank you very much
Simply excelent
Thanks Rebbeca.
I’m deeply grateful for your lesson!It’s was very interesting!)
Thank you Ms Rebbeca
super ı have 100 points
Hi, Rebecca thank you for your teaching, you are great. I got 100 %. Was very usefull.I appreciate
Thank you very much, got 90%.
Thank you dear Rebecca, you are a saviour ;)
I GOT 100% ON THE TEST!!! IT WAS EASY THANKS TO YOUR LESSON DEAR REBECCA, xoxoxoxo
i got 10 correct out of 10…..thanks rebecca.
Rebecca, thank you very much for your interesting lesson! I like it very much!
I’ve got 100! thanks,Rebecca
Thank you sir.
I got 100, thanks for your help Rebecca!
Thank you ,Rebecca.
i got 100 score :) thank you :*
Hi MS REBECCA! WHAT WOULD BE THE REPORTED SPEECH OF “HE IS MY BROTHER”. THANK YOU!
thank a lot of mam .
God bless…
Thank you Rebecca
merci madam
Hello Rebecca! I got 100%, but I have a doubt if I had to pass PRESENT SIMPLE or WILL from REPORTED SPEECH to DIRECT SPEECH, how would be it? Do I have to change the tense or not? for example:
Reported speech:
He refuses to sell the movie rights
Direct speech:
I refuse to sell the movie rights
Is it right?
Thanks, Rebecca!
Thamks millions
Thanks, Nice.
thank you for the help it was amazing
I want to ask the question of whether I can put
[
told me that ]
9 of 9
thank you very much
Thanks for this useful video. This help me to understand clearly about this grammar. Thank you very much.
Dear Rebecca,
I convey you a great thank you for this lesson.
Yours sincerely.
my quiz
100
You got 10 correct out of 10.
:D
hi, teacher
your lessons are good, but I noticed that you don’t explain every example on blackboard, you always face to the camera and give us examples, whereas using the board is effective for students!
thanks teacher
hi rebecca how will you tell someone in a polite way that he’s/she’s using a wrong grammar.
thank you so much Rebeecca
i am just ask when say He/She Said and when i say He/She Told me ?
thank you
Thank you Rebecca.
why you don’t use (that)
He told me that he was a teacher ????
help plz!!!
Thank you teacher , I got 100 :)
I like this lesson very easy to understand .
I like this part of the grammer very much. I got 10. thanks.
Hello Rebecca,
In the question, “John: “I love chocolate cake.” John told me _____ chocolate cake.”
Is it “he loved” or “that he loved”?
Kindly clarify the difference.
Thank you in advance,
Umesh
Hi,teacher,hope,you’ll be fine.I’m a student of O levels,Teacher please will you help me with the english,I go through from many mistakes.
I really admire the way,you teach,I did 8 idioms yesterday from your given lecture,really adoring,thank you loads
Good one.
Yessss. I got 10 correct out of 10.
:D
This grammar was new for me, thanks a lot Rebbeca.
Thank you, dear Rebecca!
what is the difference between they live in Russia and They are living in Russia…?
I scored 100% in the quiz. thank you! :)
I wish to understand correctly this lesson, but I can’t. It is so confussing to learn the English tenses. How you can help me the different way or What technique I should to use for that?
Thanks a lot!
Thanks Rebecca Nice lesson :)
Hi Rebecca
I’d like to ask you a question….
I watched a video of yours in which you were teaching the reported speech….you mentioned an example in direct speech “he is a teacher.”
Then you wrote the corresponding indirect form of it…like ( he told me he was a teacher ) …
My question is that doesn’t it have to be like ( he told me he were a teacher) because I read in the English grammar digest by Trudy Aronson it is to be always “were” form of be instead of “was”
Hi
I myself found the answer….I was confusing it with the conditional forms….but I didn’t know how to remove the comment…
Thank you so much, very useful.
My friend told me that she had eaten rice and kimchi for lunch today.:D Thank you Rebecca.
thank you ma’am i got 90
You are the only teacher that I could understand every lesson very well without getting confused or tired
i got 80%
thank you teacher I got 100 % you’re a vary good teacher thanks allot.
Easy peasy lemon squeezy
10/10 …. very good lesson thanks for your help ?
Thanks Rebecca! You made it so simple to understand.
Thanks.
nice speech regarding narrations moreover I have passed the test by giving correct answers 10 / 10
thanks！
Thanks Rebecca!
You got 10 correct out of 10.
thank you.
Dear Rebecca,
I was watching the following video https://www.engvid.com/english-grammar-if-will-would-were/ and tried to practice reported speech with something that James said.
James: If I were to pay atention what I was doing I would be better at the board.
So James commented on the fact that if he had been paying atention what he had been doing he would be better at the board.
Well I kindly ask you to advice whether the reported speech was applied correctly.
Thanks in advance.
Best regards,
This lesson was very hard. Could you please make more videos about reported speech?
thanks
Hi Mrs.Rebecca.
My name is Ilgar.I am 32 years old and from Azerbaijan. I would like to improve my english skill and get IELTS certificate.I have watched yours videos on YouTube and enjoy your tutoring. I am looking for English tutor and I think if you will be agree,I would be glad to improve my english to the high level by your support.
How can it be possible to be your student?Do you conduct lessons on SKYPE?
I will look forward to hearing about the ways how I can be your student.
Thanks for attention
Hi Rebecca
Do you have any personal website?
If you have, please send me it’s URL address.
My email: venuscomputer@live.com
My websites: http://www.sheshjavan.ir
http://www.venuscomputer.ir
Thank you Rebecca
it’s the first time to understand his lesson. thank you very much.
thank you. You said that we had to use the reported speech when we had to say something that someone else had said.
i am happy i got 10/10
Thank you …
9/10. Thank you! Rebecca, could you please to explain, why in the 4th question the right answer is she “couldn’t come”? Thank you for all your help to us!!
i think can not-could not.therefore come no past tense.
thank you Rebecca. you are really helping for my study processing.
THANKS A LOT
I GOT 100%
‘do you have exams this Friday?’ mum asked me.
can you please tell me how to write this sentence in reported speech.
10/10
tanks again
I watched this video twice on July 30, 2021, and took the quiz after watching it once. I got ten out of 10.
Thank you.
Hello….I’d like to brush my speaking up. Is there anyone else who is interested in speaking to me on a regular basis? My whatsapp number is +88 01812788727. Thank you.
Rasho.
10/10 thanks Rebecca <3
10/10 thanks Rebecca
Hi Rebecca,
Regarding the 5th question.
Angela: “I can’t come to the party tonight.”
Angela explained she couldn’t come to the party tonight.
Aren’t we supposed to change the word ‘tonight’ into ‘that night’ as well?