Direct and Indirect Speech Rules with Examples

Direct speech and indirect speech are the ways of conveying the words spoken by someone. In a direct speech, the words spoken by someone are repeated or quoted. However, in an indirect speech, the words spoken by someone are reported or conveyed by changing the tense. Let us understand the direct and indirect speech in detail.

Direct Speech

When we repeat or quote the exact words spoken by someone is known as a direct speech. In a direct speech, the words spoken by someone are placed between quotation mark (“ “) without making any changes.  We quote the exact words that are being said at the moment. For instance, an important announcement or a telephone conversation.

Indirect Speech

When we report the words spoken by someone and without quoting or repeating it is called as an indirect speech. In an indirect speech, the tense of the words spoken are being changed and inverted commas are not used. We use reporting verbs like ‘tell’, ‘say’ or ‘ask’ and the word ‘that’ to express the reported words.

Let us understand how to convert a speech from direct to indirect:

•    Direct Speech: She said, ‘I want some chocolates’.

•    Indirect Speech: She said that she wanted some chocolates.

•    Direct Speech: He said to me ‘Are you married’.

•    Indirect Speech: He asked me if I was married.

•    Direct Speech: She said to me, ‘I was waiting for you’.

•    Indirect Speech: She told me that she had been waiting for me.

•    Direct Speech: John said to me ‘I will call them tomorrow’.

•    Indirect Speech: John told me that he would call them the next day.

•    Direct Speech: She said to them, ‘Please wait here till I return’.

•    Indirect Speech: She requested them to wait there till she returned.

Rules for Changing Direct to Indirect Speech

It is a known fact that in a direct speech actual words are quoted with the support of inverted commas, whereas in an indirect speech, words are reported without quoting it exactly the way it is said. However, there are certain rules for changing a direct speech to an indirect speech, which are mentioned below:

Rule 1

Use conjunction ‘that’ before the indirect speech. For instance, she said that she had not finished her work.

Rule 2

Keeping in mind the gender of the subject, change the pronouns from the first and second person in direct speech to third person in indirect speech.

For example:

•    ‘I’ and ‘you’ becomes he or she    

•    ‘My’ and ‘your’ becomes his or her

•    ‘Our’ and ‘your’ becomes their

•    ‘We’ and ‘you’ becomes they

Some example sentences:

•    He said to me, ‘I hate you’ – Direct Speech

•    He said that he hates me- Indirect Speech

If the pronoun he or she indicates different person then the name of the person can be mentioned within the brackets after the pronoun.

•    Nancy said to Simon ‘I like your hair cut’. – Direct Speech

•    Nancy told Simon that she (Nancy) liked her (Simon’s) hair cut. – Indirect Speech

Rule 3

If the reporting verb is in present tense or future tense, the tense of the verb in the reported speech is not changed.

For instance:

•    She says, ‘she is leaving’. – Direct Speech

•    She says that she is leaving. – Indirect Speech

Rule 4

If the reporting verb is in the past tense, the tense of the verb in the reported speech is also changed into past tense.

For example:

•    Shall becomes should

•    May becomes might

•    Can becomes could

•    Come becomes came

•    Is coming becomes was coming

•    Is, am, are becomes was, were

Rule 5

Words stating nearness in time or place are changed into words express.

For example:

•    Here becomes there

•    Come becomes go

•    Yesterday becomes the previous day

•    These becomes those

•    Here becomes there

•    This becomes that

•    Now become then