Statement Clauses
Changing statements to reported speech
Quoted vs. Reported Statements
| QUOTED STATEMENT | REPORTED STATEMENT | ||
|---|---|---|---|
Use a word such as said to restate something someone says. Use a comma after said. Include the quote in quotation marks. If said "interrupts" the quotation, use a comma before said. |
When we restate what someone has said, we place the quoted words within another clause. (We subordinate the clause within a main clause.) The quoted speech adjusts to the time and location of the main sentence. The pronoun, verb tense and adverbs adjust to the speaker's point of view. A subordinator marker that, is optionally included. |
||
MAIN CLAUSE She said, |
STATEMENT "It's raining here." |
MAIN CLAUSE She said |
SUBORDINATE CLAUSE: REPORTED SPEECH [that] it was raining there. |
She said, |
"It was raining here, but it's not now." |
She said |
[that] it had been raining there, but it wasn't now. |
She replied, |
"I'll meet you at this cafe tomorrow," |
She replied |
[that] she would meet me at that cafe the next day. |
She declared, |
"That umbrella is mine." |
She declared |
[that] the umbrella was hers. |
Also see Said Synonyms | Quotation Marks
Subordinating a Statement
| SENTENCE TRANSFORMATION | INDEPENDENT CLAUSE | SUBORDINATED STATEMENT |
|---|---|---|
1. Remove comma and quotes. |
My friend said, |
"It's raining here." |
2. Optionally include the relative pronoun that. |
My friend said [that] |
it is raining here. |
3. Adjust the speaker's perspective (deictics):
|
My friend said |
it was raining there. |
Synonyms for Restating
| SYNONYM | MEANING | SENTENCE |
|---|---|---|
say |
to utter words |
She said that was a good place to eat. |
state |
to say something (systematically) |
She stated she did not like politics. |
declare |
to say publicly |
She declared she was a citizen of the U.S. |
claim |
to say (take a firm position) |
She claimed she was not transporting food or drugs. |
announce |
to say publicly |
She announced she was getting married. |
Related page: Other words for said
Deictics
Adjusting perspective in a subordinated clause
Adjusting perspective (deictics)
| IDENTITY | TIME | LOCATION | POSSESSIVE PRONOUN |
|---|---|---|---|
Adjust the subject and object pronouns to the speaker's perspective (viewpoint). |
Adjust the verb tense and the adverbs for time to the speaker's perspective. |
Adjust location, direction or proximity words to the speaker's perspective. |
Adjust possessive pronouns to the speaker's perspective. |
You can show this book to my brother tonight. |
You can show this book to my brother tonight. |
You can show this book to my brother tonight. |
You can show this book to my brother tonight. |
She said I … |
She said I could show the book… that night. |
She said I could show that book... that night. |
She said I could show that book to her brother that night. |
I /me, he/ him, she/ her, they/ them, we/ us |
present / past / past perfect tenses |
here/ there, near/ far, this/ that, these/ those, come/ go, to/ from |
my/mine, your/ yours, his, her/hers, their/ theirs, our/ours |
Related page: Pop-Q - "Deictics" - indicating identity, time, or location from the perspective of one or more speakers
Adjusting Perspective Changes
| SENTENCE TRANSFORMATION | INDEPENDENT CLAUSE | SUBORDINATED STATEMENT |
|---|---|---|
1. Remove comma and quotes. |
My friend said, |
"I'll meet you at this cafe tomorrow." |
2. Optionally add the relative pronoun that. |
My friend said [that] |
I'll meet you at this cafe tomorrow. |
3. Adjust the speaker's perspective (deictics):
|
My friend said |
she would meet me at that cafe the next day. |
Restating Speech
Recounting State of Mind
| QUOTED STATEMENT | STATEMENT & STATE OF MIND |
|---|---|
When using said or tell, the restatement is usually exact. It does nothing more than report the speech. |
When using a word such as think, believe, know, etc., the restatement includes opinion about the person's cognitive or mental state as well. See Mental States for other words expressing cognitive state. Optionally, you can omit that. |
She said, "It looks like it's raining here." |
She thinks [that] it is raining there. (here, there) |
She said, "It was raining just a minute ago." |
She knows it was raining just a minute ago. |
She said, "I'll meet you at the cafe tomorrow." |
She remembers we are going to meet at the cafe tomorrow. |
She said, "That umbrella is mine." |
She believes this umbrella is hers. |
He said, "This is my last day working here." |
He understands [that] this is his last day working here. (here, there) |
Related pages It–Subj Clauses, That–Subj Clauses
Tense Agreement
Contrasting Same-time and Earlier Events
Same-time vs. Earlier-time Tense Agreement
| SAME –TIME EVENT | EARLIER EVENT |
|---|---|
Change the verb in the clause to the same time frame (tense) as the time of speaking to indicate same-time activities or events. |
Shift the verb to an earlier time frame (past perfect) to contrast the time of speaking to an earlier activity or event. |
She said that she saw me (while she was talking on her phone.) |
She said that she had seen me. (earlier that day) |
He announced he was resigning as CEO of the company. (during the event) |
He announced he had resigned as CEO of the company. (earlier that week) |
They declared they were Canadian citizens. (a permanent or general truth) |
They declared they had been Canadian citizens. (They no longer are Canadian citizens.) |
I claimed I was the winner. (during the event) |
I claimed I had been the winner. (at an earlier event) |
Related pages: Tense Adjustment | Formal vs. Informal Agreement
Advanced Point
Expressions
| EXPRESSION | REPORTED SPEECH |
|---|---|
Expressions are often "frozen". (An expression is two or more words that together take on a new meaning.) For this reason, it sounds awkward when tense, number or a pronoun is changed. |
When changing an expression to reported speech any change to tense, number or pronoun returns the phrase to its literal (word for word) meaning. It is often best to restate the expression in other words. |
"You are pulling my leg!" |
She said that we were joking. |
"You can't pull the wool over my eyes." |
He announced that we couldn't fool him. |
"Here it is." |
He shouted that he had found it. |
Practice
On the Road
- Change the direct quote to Statements.
- Compare your response to the answer by clicking the "check" button to the right.