Reported Speech
Tell someone what another person said — and learn how tenses shift back, pronouns change, and word order flips when you report statements, questions and commands.
Shift the tense. Change the type.
Four backshifts, three question types — 12 combinations showing how direct speech becomes reported speech. The note below each sentence shows the original so you can see exactly what changed.
Got the pattern? Jump to the practice →
The rules — with examples
How tenses shift in reported speech, how to report questions and commands, and what else changes.
Tense backshift table
| Direct speech | Reported speech | |
|---|---|---|
| present simple — “I am tired.” | → | past simple — She said she was tired. |
| present continuous — “I am working.” | → | past continuous — He said he was working. |
| past simple — “I finished it.” | → | past perfect — She said she had finished it. |
| will — “I will call.” | → | would — He said he would call. |
| can — “I can swim.” | → | could — She said she could swim. |
Four types of reported speech
What else changes?
I → she / he / they
you → I / he / she / they (depends on context)
we → they
my → her / his / their
now → then
today → that day
tomorrow → the next day
yesterday → the day before
When NOT to backshift
If the reporting verb is in the present tense (“She says…”), or the information is still true now, the tense does not need to change.
She says she is tired. — (present reporting verb → no backshift needed)
He said the sun rises in the east. — (permanent fact → no change)
Practise & score yourself
Ten questions — five multiple choice, five gap-fill. Instant scoring and a short explanation for every answer.
The one rule to remember
When you report what someone said, shift the tense back one step — present → past, past → past perfect, will → would. Change pronouns to match the new speaker, and in reported questions use statement word order (no inversion, no auxiliary do).