quinta-feira, outubro 05, 2006

Berlitz Hints - Reported Speech

Reported Speech refers to a sentence reporting what someone has said.
If the reporting verb is in the past, the reported clause will be in a past form. This form is usually one step back into the past from the original. For example:
  • He said the oral test was difficult.
  • She said she watched TV every day.

If simple present, present perfect or the future is used in the reporting verb the tense is retained. For example:

  • He says the oral test is difficult.
  • She has said that she watches TV every day.

If reporting a general truth the present tense will be retained. For example:

  • The teacher said that prepositions are very important.

More examples:

  • He said, "I live in Canada." - He said he lived in Canada.
  • He said, "I am cooking lunch." - He said he was cooking lunch.
  • He said, "I have visited Paris twice." - He said he had visited Paris twice.
  • He said, "I went to Florida last week." - He said he had gone to Florida the week before.

There is much more about it. Ask your questions. We are here to help you.

Your Berlitz Team

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