Reported Speech | 1st Year Bac Lesson

Reported speech is how we tell someone what another person said, without using their exact words or quotation marks. When we report speech, the verb tense usually moves one step back into the past.

Direct: “I support this cause,” she said.
Reported: She said that she supported that cause.

SIMPLE PRESENT → SIMPLE PAST
“I work for an NGO.” → He said he worked for an NGO.

SIMPLE PAST → PAST PERFECT
“I signed the petition.” → She said she had signed the petition.

PRESENT CONTINUOUS → PAST CONTINUOUS
“I am fighting for equality.” → He said he was fighting for equality.

WILL → WOULD
“I will support this campaign.” → She said she would support the campaign.

Pronouns and time/place words also often need to change, to match the new speaker’s point of view.

“I will help you tomorrow,” he said.
→ He said he would help me the next day.

Common changes: today → that day, tomorrow → the next day, yesterday → the day before, this → that, here → there

Reported questions don’t use a question mark, and the word order changes back to normal statement order (subject before verb).

“Do you support this law?” → She asked if I supported that law.
“What do you think about this issue?” → He asked what I thought about that issue.

Don’t keep the question word order in reported questions.

❌ “She asked did I support the law.”
✅ “She asked if I supported the law.”