Direct and Indirect Speech: Examples

Direct speech presents someone’s words as a quotation. Indirect speech reports the message, with pronouns, time references and tense chosen for the new context.

When we want to tell someone what another person said, we have two choices: quote their exact words (direct) or report in our own words (indirect). Let's learn both! 🗣️

Direct Speech: Exact Words

Direct speech uses the EXACT words someone said, inside quotation marks.

She said, "I am happy."

💡 Exact words in quotation marks

Tom asked, "Where is my book?"

💡 Direct question with exact words

Mom said, "Clean your room!"

💡 Direct command with exact words

Indirect Speech: Reported Words

Indirect speech reports what someone said WITHOUT quotation marks. We change pronouns and tenses!

She said that she was happy.

💡 No quotes, "I am" → "she was"

Tom asked where his book was.

💡 No question mark, "my" → "his"

Mom told me to clean my room.

💡 Command → "to + verb"

Tense Changes in Indirect Speech

Direct Speech	Indirect Speech
Present Simple: "I work"	Past Simple: she said she worked
Present Continuous: "I am working"	Past Continuous: she said she was working
Past Simple: "I worked"	Past Perfect: she said she had worked
Will: "I will go"	Would: she said she would go
Can: "I can swim"	Could: she said she could swim

Time and Place Changes

Direct	Indirect
today	that day
tomorrow	the next day
yesterday	the day before
here	there
this	that
now	then

Continue learning

Past Perfect: Rules and Examples · English Question Words: Meanings and Examples

Practice in the 30 Days English Challenge: Day 29: Reported Speech: Share What Someone Said