When you repeat what someone said without quoting them directly, you’re using reported speech (also called indirect speech). The rules for shifting tenses, pronouns, and time expressions are some of the most systematic — and most tested — grammar in English. Master them and you unlock everything from news writing to storytelling to professional communication.
The core idea is simple: when the reporting verb is in the past, the reported content usually shifts one step back in time. The details are where most learners slip.
Direct vs Reported Speech
- Direct speech — exact words in quotation marks. “I’m tired,” she said.
- Reported speech — the meaning, re-worded, usually introduced by said, told, asked, etc. She said she was tired.
Reporting verbs like say, tell, ask, explain, mention, announce, claim, admit, deny, warn trigger the reported structure.
Tense Backshift — The Core Rule
When the reporting verb is in the past (said, told, asked), the tense of the reported content shifts one step back. This is the rule that drives everything.
- Present Simple → Past Simple:
- “I live in Paris.” → She said she lived in Paris.
- Present Continuous → Past Continuous:
- “I’m working.” → He said he was working.
- Present Perfect → Past Perfect:
- “I’ve finished.” → She said she had finished.
- Past Simple → Past Perfect:
- “I met her yesterday.” → He said he had met her the day before.
- Past Continuous → Past Perfect Continuous:
- “I was reading.” → She said she had been reading.
- Will → Would:
- “I will call tomorrow.” → He said he would call the next day.
- Can → Could:
- “I can help.” → She said she could help.
- May → Might:
- “It may rain.” → He said it might rain.
- Must → Had to (for obligation):
- “I must leave.” → She said she had to leave.
Past Perfect, would, could, might, should, and ought to don’t shift further back — there’s nothing further back to shift to.
Pronoun Shifts
Pronouns change perspective to match the reporter, not the original speaker.
- “I am tired,” Anna said. → Anna said she was tired.
- “We finished our work,” they announced. → They announced they had finished their work.
- “You are late,” he told me. → He told me I was late.
- “My book is missing,” she said. → She said her book was missing.
Time & Place Expression Shifts
Because the reporting moment is usually later than the original speech, time and place words shift too.
- now → then
- today → that day
- tonight → that night
- yesterday → the day before / the previous day
- tomorrow → the next day / the following day
- next week → the following week
- last week → the week before
- ago → before / previously
- here → there
- this → that / these → those
Example combined shift: “I met him here yesterday.” → She said she had met him there the day before.
Reporting Questions
Question structure changes in two big ways: no question mark, and no inversion (subject comes before verb, like in a statement).
- Yes/No questions — introduced by if or whether:
- Wh- questions — keep the question word (what, where, when, why, how, who):
- Common reporting verbs for questions: ask, wonder, inquire, want to know.
Reporting Commands, Requests, and Advice
Commands and requests use verb + object + infinitive pattern. The verb choice signals the kind of speech act.
- Commands / orders: tell, order
- Requests: ask
- “Please close the door.” → She asked me to close the door.
- Advice / suggestion: advise, suggest, encourage, warn
- “You should see a doctor.” → He advised me to see a doctor.
- “Don’t go there.” → She warned me not to go there.
- Note: suggest takes gerund or that-clause, not infinitive: She suggested going to the park / She suggested that we go to the park.
- Negative commands: insert not before the infinitive.
- “Don’t be late.” → He told me not to be late.
When NOT to Backshift
The backshift rule has real exceptions — situations where the reported content stays in its original tense.
- Universal truths / still-true facts: if the statement is still true at the time of reporting, no backshift needed.
- Reporting verb in present: if you’re using says, is saying, has said, there’s no backshift because no time has passed.
- “I’m tired,” she says. → She says she is tired. (Not was.)
- Past Perfect doesn’t shift (already as far back as it goes).
- Modal verbs would, could, might, should, ought to don’t shift further.
Say vs Tell — Common Confusion
- Say — no direct object (no person who hears it). “She said (that) she was tired.” ✓ “She said me…” ✗
- Tell — takes a direct object (who is told). “She told me (that) she was tired.” ✓ “She told she was tired.” ✗ (missing recipient)
- Fixed expressions with tell (no object needed): tell a story, tell the truth, tell a lie, tell the time.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
- Keeping direct question structure: ✗ He asked where did I live → ✓ He asked where I lived. No inversion, no auxiliary do.
- Forgetting to shift pronouns: ✗ She said I am tired (when reporting Anna) → ✓ She said she was tired.
- Wrong verb — say vs tell: ✗ She told that she was leaving → ✓ She said that she was leaving or She told me that she was leaving.
- Backshifting a universal truth: ✗ He said water boiled at 100°C → ✓ He said water boils at 100°C. It’s still true.
- Using that where it’s not possible: ✗ He asked that I was hungry → ✓ He asked if I was hungry. That works for statements, if/whether for yes-no questions.
- Keeping “tomorrow/yesterday” unchanged: ✗ He said he would call tomorrow (when tomorrow has passed) → ✓ He said he would call the next day.
- Suggest + infinitive: ✗ She suggested me to go → ✓ She suggested going or She suggested that I go. Suggest never takes infinitive with object.
Why Mastering This Pays Off
Reported speech shows up everywhere once you notice it: news articles (“The President said the plan would proceed…”), academic writing (“The study found that…”), everyday conversation (“She told me you were coming”), and fiction. Get the backshift, pronoun, and time-expression shifts right, and your writing instantly sounds more polished and professional.
For related grammar, review modal verbs (which backshift in specific patterns: will→would, can→could), tenses (the full 12 you need to shift between), and infinitive vs gerund (reporting verbs like advise, suggest, encourage follow specific verb-pattern rules). Browse every reporting verb’s full forms in our verb database.