Intermediate Grammar
Master English grammar one unit at a time. Clear notes, then 40+ interactive exercises with instant feedback — based on the topics in English Grammar in Use (Intermediate).
Reported speech 1“He said (that) he was tired — say/tell + verb one tense back” — 44 interactive questions
📖 Grammar Reference — Reported speech 1
Study the notes, then work through the six exercises.
A direct → reported
When we say later what someone told us, we usually report it in the past. Because the reporting verb (said) is past, the verb inside moves one tense back:
💡 that is optional: He said (that) he was tired. Both are correct.
B the verb moves one tense back
These are the usual changes when we report in the past:
| am / is → was | “I’m happy.” → He said he was happy. |
| are → were | “We’re ready.” → They said they were ready. |
| like / work → liked / worked | “I like it.” → She said she liked it. |
| have / has → had | “I have a car.” → He said he had a car. |
| present perfect → past perfect | “I’ve finished.” → He said he had finished. |
| will → would | “I’ll call.” → She said she would call. |
| can → could · must → had to | “I can swim.” → He said he could swim. |
💡 Pronouns change too: “I like my job” → She said she liked her job.
C say or tell?
Use tell when you mention the person (tell somebody). Use say when you don’t:
💡 Quick rule: tell + somebody, but say (with no person) — or say to somebody.
D when it’s still true
If the thing is still true now, you don’t always have to move the verb back — both are possible:
💡 In this unit we practise the backshift (one tense back) — the safe choice that is always correct.
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Original practice material inspired by the English Grammar in Use syllabus (Cambridge University Press). Example sentences and exercises are written by All English 4U.