Tense changes in reported speech: table
When said / told is in the past, each tense moves one step into the past.
| Direct speech | Reported speech |
|---|---|
| Present Simple: “I like it.” | Past Simple: She said she liked it. |
| Present Continuous: “I’m working.” | Past Continuous: He said he was working. |
| Present Perfect: “I’ve finished.” | Past Perfect: She said she had finished. |
| Past Simple: “I saw him.” | Past Perfect: He said he had seen him. |
| will: “I’ll call you.” | would: She said she would call me. |
| can: “I can swim.” | could: He said he could swim. |
| must: “I must go.” | had to: She said she had to go. |
| may: “It may rain.” | might: He said it might rain. |
The Past Perfect, could, would, should and might don’t change. And if the reporting verb is present (says, has said), there is no backshift: She says she is tired.
Changes to time and place words
| Direct speech | Reported speech |
|---|---|
| now | then |
| today | that day |
| yesterday | the day before / the previous day |
| tomorrow | the next day / the following day |
| last week | the week before |
| next week | the following week |
| ago | before |
| here | there |
| this / these | that / those |
“I’ll do it tomorrow.” → He said he would do it the next day.
Said or told?
Told always needs a person: told me, told Anna. Said has no person, or uses to: said (to me).
She said (that) she was busy.
She told me (that) she was busy.
Reported questions
Reported questions use normal word order (subject + verb), no do / did and no question mark. Yes/no questions take if or whether; wh- questions keep the question word. Direct questions are covered in question forms.
| Direct question | Reported question |
|---|---|
| “Do you like jazz?” | He asked if I liked jazz. |
| “Are you ready?” | She asked whether we were ready. |
| “Where do you live?” | She asked where I lived. |
| “What did you buy?” | He asked what I had bought. |
Reported requests and commands
asked / told + person + to + verb; negative: not to.
“Please wait.” → She asked me to wait.
“Don’t be late!” → He told us not to be late.
Common mistakes
What learners of English often say. On the left — the mistake, on the right — the correct version.
Wrong:
She said me that she was tired.Right: She told me that she was tired.
With a person: told me (or said to me).
Wrong:
He said that he is busy.Right: He said that he was busy.
After said, backshift the tense.
Wrong:
She asked where did I live.Right: She asked where I lived.
Reported questions: normal word order, no did.
Wrong:
He asked me do I like coffee.Right: He asked me if I liked coffee.
Yes/no questions use if / whether.
Wrong:
She told me don’t worry.Right: She told me not to worry.
Negative commands: not to + verb.
Check yourself
Quiz: Reported speech
12 questions with an explanation after every answer. Free, no sign-up.
She said she was tired.