Reported Speech: He Said (That)…

B1 Grammar

1. Simple explanation

Sometimes you say a person's exact words. That is called direct speech — 'exact words' means the words the person really said, written inside quotation marks: Anna said, 'I am tired.' More often, you tell another person later what someone said, in your own sentence, with no quotation marks. That is called reported speech (also called indirect speech): Anna said that she was tired. In reported speech, three things usually change: the person-words (I → he/she), the small time-words (now → then, tomorrow → the next day), and the verb — the verb usually moves one step back into the past. That step back is called backshift.

2. Detailed explanation

Start from zero. Speech means talking — the words a person says. A report is telling someone now about something that was said before, like a news report on TV. So reported speech means: you tell someone now what another person said before. Direct speech copies the speaker's exact words inside quotation marks: Omar said, 'I will help you.' Reported speech puts the message inside your own sentence, with no quotation marks: Omar said that he would help me. The word 'that' joins the two parts and is usually optional.

The biggest change is called backshift: the verb — the action word — moves one step back in time. Why? Because the words were said in the past and you report them later, the verb steps deeper into the past too. Present becomes past: am/is → was, are → were, have → had, will → would, can → could. A past verb often steps back once more, to the past perfect — 'had' plus the third form of the verb, like 'done' in 'had done.' Take one sentence apart, word by word. Direct: 'I am busy,' she said. Reported: 'She said that she was busy.' I (the speaker herself) becomes she, because now we talk about her; am steps back to was; busy never changes. One more: 'I will call you tomorrow' → 'He said that he would call me the next day' — you→me, will→would, tomorrow→the next day.

Two verbs carry the message: say and tell. Say names no listener: 'He said that he was tired.' Tell must have the person right after it: 'He told me that he was tired.' So the pattern is: say + message, but tell + person + message. Reported questions stop looking like questions: use normal sentence order and drop the question mark. For yes/no questions, add if: 'Are you hungry?' becomes 'She asked if I was hungry.' Keep the question word for other questions: 'Where do you live?' becomes 'She asked where I lived' — no do, no did. Reported commands use told or asked + person + to + verb: 'Sit down!' becomes 'The teacher told us to sit down.' A negative command puts not before to: 'He told us not to run.'

Small time-words shift too, because yesterday's 'tomorrow' is not tomorrow anymore: now becomes then, today becomes that day, yesterday becomes the day before, tomorrow becomes the next day, here becomes there. One exception: when the message is still true now, stepping back is optional — 'The teacher said water boils at 100 degrees' is fine, because it is still true. Should, might, and the past perfect never change.

3. Formula / structure

Step by step — how to build a sentence:

commands and requests:

positive (statements):

reported questions:

say vs tell:

4. When to use it

• Reporting what someone said earlier: 'Dad said he would be home at six.'
• Passing on messages: 'Your boss called. She said the meeting moved to Friday.'
• News and stories: 'The pilot said the weather was getting worse.'
• Summarizing meetings and phone calls: 'He said the price was too high.'
• Reporting questions you were asked: 'She asked if I spoke Arabic.'
• Reporting instructions: 'The doctor told me to rest for a week.'

5. When NOT to use it

• Don't use quotation marks or the exact words in reported speech — that is direct speech: ✗ He said that 'I am tired' → ✓ He said that he was tired.
• Don't keep question order in a reported question: ✗ She asked where was I → ✓ She asked where I was.
• Don't use 'say' with a person right after it: ✗ He said me the news → ✓ He told me the news. / He said the news to me.
• Don't add a question mark at the end of a reported question: ✗ He asked if I was ready? → ✓ He asked if I was ready.
• Don't step the verb back when the fact is still true now — both are possible, and the present is natural: 'She said the store opens at nine' (it still does).

6. Positive examples

• He said that he was busy.
• She told me she would call at eight.
• They said they had finished the work.
• Marco said he could speak three languages.
• She asked if I needed help.
• He asked where the station was.
• The teacher told us to open our books.
• Mom told me not to touch the stove.
• He said he had never been to Asia.
• She said she was going to buy a new phone the next day.
• The guide told us that the museum opened at nine.

7. Negative examples

• He said he wasn't ready yet.
• She told me she didn't like the plan.
• They said they couldn't come to the party.
• He said he wouldn't forget my birthday.
• She said she hadn't seen the email.
• He told me he didn't want any coffee.

8. Questions

• She asked if I was hungry.
• He asked me where I lived.
• They asked what time the movie started.
• She asked him if he could drive.
• He asked why I was late.
• The officer asked to see my passport. → reported as a request: 'The officer asked me to show my passport.'

9. Short answers

• What did he say? — He said he was sorry.
• Did she agree? — She said she would think about it.
• What did the teacher ask? — She asked if we had done the homework.
• Did he give an order? — He told us to wait outside.
• What did Mom say about dinner? — She said it was ready.

10. Common mistakes

11. American English notes

12. Similar grammar — comparison

13. Natural spoken English

• 'Dad said he'll be late.'
• 'She told me she can't make it tonight.'
• 'He said he already ate.'
• 'They asked if we were coming.'
• 'The boss said we could leave early.'
• 'She asked me what I was doing this weekend.'

14. Real-life examples

• At work: 'The manager said the deadline was Friday.'
• On the phone: 'He said he would call you back in an hour.'
• At the doctor's office: 'She told me to take the medicine twice a day.'
• In the news: 'Police said the road was closed.'
• Making plans: 'Anna asked if I wanted to join them for dinner.'
• At school: 'The teacher said our essays were due on Monday.'

15. Mini dialogue

16. Summary

17. Practice exercises

Warm up with the first questions, then take the full quiz — every answer has a detailed explanation (parts 19–20 of this lesson: answer key + explanations live inside the quiz feedback).

18. The full quiz

50 questions, mixed formats, in difficulty order: easy → medium → intermediate → challenging → advanced.

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