Reported Speech and Noun Clauses

Reported Speech and Noun Clauses

We use noun clauses to report what someone said or told us.

Ex.1. What did your instructor say when you all arrived late to class?
He said, "You all are late." This is a direct quote.
In day-to-day conversation (spoken English) we probably use reported speech.
He said that we were late.
1. Follow the rule of sequence of tenses. Because the event you are reporting happened earlier in the day or the day before.
2. You can leave out that. He said we were late.

Ex. 2. The thief said (to me), "Give me the money."
We can change this to
He told me to give him the money.
1. We change the verb to told.
2. Told needs an object pronoun. Because I am reporting to my friend what the thief said to me, I must use the pronoun "me."
The thief told me ...
3. We change the verb give to an infinitive.
The thief told me to give ....
4. Give also requires an object pronoun. The thief is telling me to give the money to him.
The thief told me to give him the money.

Ex. 3. I said to John, "She can help you."
I told John that she could help you. In this change, we change the modal can to could. (This is following the sequence of tenses)
Be able to explain the five changes we had to make in the sentences below.
1. They said, "We can help you."
They told (1) us (2) they (3) could (4) help us (5).

Ex. 4. He said, "My mother left yesterday."
He told (1) us (2) that (3) his (4) mother had left (5) the day before.

*Note-It is also ok to say, He told us his mother left yesterday.
Today, many writers do not follow the rule of the sequence of tenses. This is a tense shift from past to “more past.” So you will be correct if you change the past tense to the past perfect, but you will also be ok if you keep the past tense in your noun clause.)

Ex. 5. He said to her, "I was studying."
He told her that he had been studying. (What is the verb change here?)
You can also keep verb the same in the noun clause -- He told her he was studying.

Ex. 6. She said to her husband, "You should have called me."
She told her husband that he should have called her.
(Don't change the modal. It remains in the present perfect)

Practice: Change the following sentences to reported speech. Follow the rule of sequence of tenses. Example: He said, "They are late." He said that they were late. When you use said (the past tense), the verb in the noun clause is also in the past form.

1. He said, "Give me the money."
2. They said, "We can help you."
3. He said to us, "Please stay."
4. He said, "My mother left yesterday."
5. He asked, “Which classes have you taken? “
6. He said to her, "We were studying."
7. She said to her husband, "You should have called.”
Answers
1. He told me to give him the money. The verb told needs an object, Give also needs and object, which is “me.”
2. The said that they could help us. Can is a modal; change can to could, but keep help in the main form.
3. He told us to please stay. You need a pronoun object after the verb told. Then add an infinitive form to the verb stay.
4. He said that his mother had left the day before or He said his mother left the day before.
5. He asked which classes they had taken.
6. He told her that they were studying. Or He told her that they had been studying.
7. She told him he should have called her.