She asked me where is the library. He said he is tired. Both are the same slip: the words are repeated exactly as they were heard, instead of being turned round for the person listening now.
1. Back From the Doctor
Rea: What did the doctor say?
Nils: He said the ankle is fine.
Rea: No scan?
Nils: He said rest, nothing else.
Rea: Cheap and simple.
2. A Message About the Keys
Pia: Did she leave a message?
Gus: She said to me that the keys are with Dan.
Pia: Which Dan?
Gus: She said to me nothing more than that.
Pia: I'll ring her.
3. The Call From HR
Vik: Did HR call?
Lin: They asked if you'd started the form.
Vik: I started it Monday.
Lin: They asked if it was signed, too.
Vik: Not yet.
4. Stopped in the Street
Ola: A woman stopped me outside.
Sef: What did she want?
Ola: She asked me where the library is.
Sef: Did you know?
Ola: I pointed. She asked me where the post box is as well.
5. Your Mother Rang
Bea: Your mother rang.
Kai: What about?
Bea: She wanted to know if you're eating.
Kai: Tell her yes.
Bea: She wanted to know what, exactly.
6. Why Mia Left
Ade: Why did Mia go home?
Rin: She said she was tired.
Ade: She looked fine at two.
Rin: She said she was up all night.
Ade: That explains it.
7. Chasing the Report
Tess: Is the report in?
Omar: He said he had finished it.
Tess: When?
Omar: Friday. He said he had sent it twice.
Tess: Nothing in my inbox.
8. Still No Call
Jonas: When is she back?
Elin: She said she'd call the next day.
Jonas: That was Tuesday.
Elin: She said the next day, and it's Friday.
Jonas: Ring her yourself.
Words to know
| said | said never takes the listener straight after it — there is no he said me He said the ankle is fine. |
| said to me | if you want the listener with said, put to in front of the person She said to me that the keys are with Dan. |
| asked if | for a yes or no question, report it with if or whether — never with did They asked if you'd started the form. |
| asked me where | after where, what or when, the words go back to normal order: where the library is She asked me where the library is. |
| wanted to know | a softer way to report a question, and it follows exactly the same word order She wanted to know if you're eating. |
| she was | when the reporting verb is in the past, a present verb usually steps back: is becomes was She said she was tired. |
| he had | a past verb steps back one further: finished becomes had finished He said he had finished it. |
| the next day | time words step back too: tomorrow becomes the next day, today becomes that day She said she'd call the next day. |
Quick practice
Each line below repeats the words exactly as they were heard, instead of turning them round. Say the whole line correctly out loud, then check the answers.
1. Not: They asked if had you started the form.
Say: _______________
2. Not: She asked me where is the library.
Say: _______________
3. Not: She wanted to know if are you eating.
Say: _______________
4. Not: She said she is tired.
Say: _______________
5. Not: He said he has finished it.
Say: _______________
6. Not: He said me the ankle is fine.
Say: _______________
Show the answers
1. They asked if you'd started the form. 2. She asked me where the library is. 3. She wanted to know if you're eating. 4. She said she was tired. 5. He said he had finished it. 6. He said the ankle is fine.
Common mistakes
Not: Put them in seperate envelopes.
Say: Put them in separate envelopes.
there is a rat in the middle of separate: sepa-rate. That is the only way to remember it.
Not: We passed the bank an hour ago, in the passed.
Say: We passed the bank an hour ago, in the past.
passed is what a verb does: we passed, she passed. past is the time or the place: in the past, walk past the bank.
Not: Noone told me.
Say: No one told me.
no one is two words in modern English. Nobody is one word, and it means exactly the same thing.
Your turn
Say these five aloud. Start each one with a past reporting verb, then let the rest of the sentence step back with it.
- Report something a friend told you this week, starting with She said or He said.
- Report a yes or no question someone asked you, using asked if.
- Report a question with where in it, using asked me where.
- Report what someone wanted, using wanted to know.
- Report a promise someone made about tomorrow, using the next day.
Quick review
Two moves, every time. First, step the verb back one: is becomes was, finished becomes had finished, will becomes would. Second, if it was a question, put the words back into normal order and drop the do. Practise on the last thing anybody said to you today.