These reported speech exercises help you tell someone what another person said. A PDF worksheet is available. Answers are also provided.
1. Exercise 1: direct to reported speech
Rewrite the sentences into reported speech. Pay attention to time, pronoun, and tense change.
Sarah said, “I didn’t know you were sick.”
Sarah said she hadn’t known I was sick.
2. "Jack is crazy," she told me.
She told me that Jack was crazy.
3. "I will always be with you," said her boyfriend.
Her boyfriend said that he would always be with her.
4. "My life is boring," he complained.
He complained that his life was boring.
5. "I was doing my job," Jimmy told Ryan.
Jimmy told Ryan that he had been doing his job.
6. "I saw your father yesterday," said Mark to me.
Mark said to me that he had seen my father the day before.
7. "He passed away a few days ago," my mother told me.
My mother told me that he had passed away a few days before.
8. "I’m going to break up with him," she told her friend.
She told her friend that she was going to break up with him.
9. "We have to finish everything today," said the boss.
The boss said that they had to finish everything that day.
10. "I need to leave now," he told Eric.
He told Eric that he needed to leave then.
2. Exercise 2: question form
Rewrite the questions into reported speech.
“Did you break my car?” he asked me.
He asked me if I had broken his car.
2. "What did you say?" she asked me.
She asked me what I had said.
3. "Will you marry me?" he asked her.
He asked her if she would marry him.
4. "Did you like the food?" the waitress asked.
The waitress asked if I had liked the food.
5. "Have you seen my keys?" Jimmy asked.
Jimmy asked me if I had seen his keys.
6. "Did you do your homework?" the teacher asked.
The teacher asked if I had done my homework.
7. "Who are you?" she asked me.
She asked me who I was.
8. "What are they doing?" he wondered.
He wondered what they were doing.
9. "Where were you last night?" she inquired.
She inquired where I had been the previous night.
10. "Do you want to train with us?" the coach asked.
The coach asked if I wanted to train with them.
3. Reported speech worksheet
In this worksheet, you will need to convert 8 sentences in direct speech into reported speech.
- 1. She said that she was tired.
- 2. He answered that John had been there two minutes before.
- 3. The boy asked if I had seen his dad.
- 4. The little girl asked who had drunk her juice.
- 5. He told me that he couldn't hear what I was saying.
- 6. He asked if I had been to Paris before.
- 7. One student asked if I was the new English teacher.
- 8. He said that he hadn't been feeling well in the previous few days.
