Reported Speech

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Reported or Indirect Speech

We use reported/indirect speech and direct speech to relate what a person has said.

Direct speech: He said, 'I have lost my umbrella.'

Remarks thus repeated are placed between inverted commas, and a comma or colon is placed immediately before the remark. Direct speech is found in conversations in books, in plays, and in quotations.

Reported speech: He said (that) he had lost his umbrella.

There is no comma after say in reported speech, that can usually be omitted after say and tell + object. It should be kept after other verbs: complain, explain, object, point out, protest, etc. Reported speech is normally used when conversation is reported verbally, though direct speech is sometimes employed here to give a more dramatic effect.

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When we turn direct speech into reported speech, some charges are usually necessary. These are most easily studied by considering statements, questions, and commands separately.