Reported speech is what we use to report what someone has said making changes to the words that the original speaker actually used.
She told everybody that she will ‘step down’ [resign] in the coming weeks.
Reported speech is used:
- when the exact words are not important
- when the essential message can still be conveyed
- often in articles, reports and news
On the other hand direct speech is what someone exactly said.
‘I am absolutely devastated by the decision taken to close down this company with immediate effect’.
Direct speech is used:
- as the precise words are important
- to convey urgency
- dramatise
Reporting verbs
SAY and TELL are very common words that we use to report what someone has said.
say
We use say when the person who was spoken to is already known or unimportant.
..and then he said that he could not remember anything about the party because he had drank 2 bottles of wine.
tell
If we wish to draw attention specifically to the person who is being addressed or pay particular attention to something said of importance we use tell.
Do you remember them telling everybody ‘Remember my words, I will never sell the company, you will always have jobs here at this amazing company.’
We can also
Say that we are maybe unsure if what someone said is accurate:
I claimed once that I was the best player in the football team
Maybe we want to communicate someone’s perspective:
Doctors have been warning us for months that the virus is going to cause huge problems in society for a long time.
Her mum advised us to consider visiting on the Monday instead as everyone will be there.
We can also report what people say using other verbs:
The whole class was wondering when they would study the present perfect.
The police did consider the possibility of closing the beach next week as the pier collapsed.