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Reported speech - indirect speech

Posted: Sun Sep 25, 2011 7:08 am
by DevDev
Hi,

Reported speech - indirect speech

We can use this form, when we want to explain about an past event to the third-person.

We have a set of rules to convert the tenses and use them.

a) In reality, I find people don't follow this strictly, they just express the 'past event'
to the third person with the actual tense used with the second person itself.

For example, He told me that he is going for a movie...

It is ideal to say that 'He told me that he was going for a movie...'

b) They just re-produce the actual statement used with the second person to the third person.

'I have told him that I am not going to consider it.'

It is correct to say,

'I have told him that I was not going to consider it.'

c) People describe the past event in the present tense itself.

'I am attending a meeting and felt that it is boring'

It is correct to say,

'I was attending a meeting and felt that it was boring'

d) Sometimes, I find people convert the reported speech in their own
statement, instead of using 'told me that'...

Please give me more details and examples about this reported speech,
how to go about this in the real-time practical situations, thank you.

Re: Reported speech - indirect speech

Posted: Sat Oct 08, 2011 11:50 am
by DevDev
Hi,

Can Josef or someone help me on this, as I need more guidance on this Indirect or Reported Speech, so please help me. Thank you.