REPORTED SPEECH EXERCISES - ESL worksheet by elisabeteguerreiro - Free Printable

Let’s go step by step to solve the “Reported Speech” exercises.

We are converting direct speech (what someone actually said) into reported speech (telling what they said, without quoting them directly).

Rules to remember:
- Change pronouns if needed (I → he/she, we → they, etc.)
- Change tenses back one step (present → past, past → past perfect, will → would, can → could, etc.)
- Change time/place words if needed (today → that day, here → there, now → then, etc.)
- Remove quotation marks and use “that” (optional in many cases)
- For questions: change word order to statement form, use “if/whether” for yes/no questions, keep question word for wh-questions.

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Exercise 1: Direct → Reported

1. She said, “I am going to visit my grandmother tomorrow.”
→ She said (that) she was going to visit her grandmother the next day.
*(“am” → “was”, “tomorrow” → “the next day”)*

2. He said, “I have finished my homework.”
→ He said (that) he had finished his homework.
*(“have finished” → “had finished”)*

3. They said, “We will travel to Paris next week.”
→ They said (that) they would travel to Paris the following week.
*(“will” → “would”, “next week” → “the following week”)*

4. My friend said, “I can help you with your project.”
→ My friend said (that) he/she could help me with my project.
*(“can” → “could”, “you” → “me”, “your” → “my” — assuming speaker is talking about themselves)*

5. The teacher said, “You must finish this test today.”
→ The teacher said (that) I/we had to finish that test that day.
*(“must” → “had to”, “this” → “that”, “today” → “that day” — depending on context; if student is reporting, likely “I” or “we”)*
*Note: Since it’s a general exercise, we’ll assume the reporter is the student being addressed → “I”*

6. He said, “I didn’t see the movie yesterday.”
→ He said (that) he hadn’t seen the movie the day before.
*(“didn’t see” → “hadn’t seen”, “yesterday” → “the day before”)*

7. She said, “I am reading a book right now.”
→ She said (that) she was reading a book at that moment.
*(“am reading” → “was reading”, “right now” → “at that moment”)*

8. They said, “We have never been to Japan.”
→ They said (that) they had never been to Japan.
*(“have never been” → “had never been”)*

9. He said, “I want to buy a new car.”
→ He said (that) he wanted to buy a new car.
*(“want” → “wanted”)*

10. She said, “I will call you later.”
→ She said (that) she would call me later.
*(“will” → “would”, “you” → “me”)*

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Exercise 2: Questions → Reported Questions

For questions:
- Yes/No questions → use “if” or “whether”
- Wh-questions → keep the question word, but change to statement word order
- Tense changes same as above

1. He asked, “Are you coming to the party?”
→ He asked if I was coming to the party.
*(“are you” → “if I was”, present continuous → past continuous)*

2. She asked, “Where do you live?”
→ She asked where I lived.
*(“do you live” → “I lived” — simple present → simple past)*

3. They asked, “Did you finish your assignment?”
→ They asked if I had finished my assignment.
*(“did you finish” → “if I had finished” — simple past → past perfect)*

4. He asked, “What time does the train leave?”
→ He asked what time the train left.
*(“does...leave” → “left” — present simple → past simple)*

5. She asked, “Can you help me with this?”
→ She asked if I could help her with that.
*(“can you” → “if I could”, “me” → “her”, “this” → “that”)*

6. He asked, “Why did you say that?”
→ He asked why I had said that.
*(“did you say” → “I had said” — past simple → past perfect)*

7. They asked, “Will you join us for dinner?”
→ They asked if I would join them for dinner.
*(“will you” → “if I would”, “us” → “them”)*

8. She asked, “How long have you studied English?”
→ She asked how long I had studied English.
*(“have you studied” → “I had studied” — present perfect → past perfect)*

9. He asked, “Who told you the news?”
→ He asked who had told me the news.
*(“told you” → “had told me” — past simple → past perfect, because action happened before asking)*

10. She asked, “Is it raining outside?”
→ She asked if it was raining outside.
*(“is it raining” → “if it was raining” — present continuous → past continuous)*

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Final Answer:

Exercise 1:
1. She said (that) she was going to visit her grandmother the next day.
2. He said (that) he had finished his homework.
3. They said (that) they would travel to Paris the following week.
4. My friend said (that) he/she could help me with my project.
5. The teacher said (that) I had to finish that test that day.
6. He said (that) he hadn’t seen the movie the day before.
7. She said (that) she was reading a book at that moment.
8. They said (that) they had never been to Japan.
9. He said (that) he wanted to buy a new car.
10. She said (that) she would call me later.

Exercise 2:
1. He asked if I was coming to the party.
2. She asked where I lived.
3. They asked if I had finished my assignment.
4. He asked what time the train left.
5. She asked if I could help her with that.
6. He asked why I had said that.
7. They asked if I would join them for dinner.
8. She asked how long I had studied English.
9. He asked who had told me the news.
10. She asked if it was raining outside.