We use Reported Speech (also called Indirect Speech) when we tell someone what another person said — without using their exact words.
➡️ Direct Speech:
Maria said, "I'm tired."
➡️ Reported Speech:
Maria said (that) she was tired.
In Portuguese, we often keep the same verb tense when reporting speech, but in English, we usually shift the tense back — this is called "Backshifting."
That's one of the biggest difficulties for Brazilian students.
When the reporting verb (say, tell, explain, ask, etc.) is in the past, the verb in the reported clause usually moves one step back in time:
| Direct Speech | Reported Speech | Explanation |
|---|---|---|
| "I am tired." | She said she was tired. | Present → Past |
| "I work here." | He said he worked there. | Present → Past |
| "I will go." | She said she would go. | Will → Would |
| "I can swim." | He said he could swim. | Can → Could |
| "I have finished." | She said she had finished. | Present Perfect → Past Perfect |
| "I saw him." | He said he had seen him. | Past Simple → Past Perfect |
| "I was studying." | She said she had been studying. | Past Continuous → Past Perfect Continuous |
🟨 In Portuguese, we often keep the same tense ("Ela disse que está cansada"), but in English, we must move one tense back.
We don't change the tense when:
The reporting verb is in the present:
The information is still true or universal:
These small words also shift when we report speech:
| Direct Speech | Reported Speech |
|---|---|
| today | that day |
| yesterday | the day before |
| tomorrow | the next day / the following day |
| now | then |
| here | there |
| this | that |
| these | those |
| last week | the week before |
| next month | the following month |
🟢 Example:
Direct: "I'll call you tomorrow."
Reported: She said she would call me the next day.
➡️ Direct: "I don't like coffee."
➡️ Reported: She said she didn't like coffee.
Tip: Use "say (that)" or "tell (someone) that."
❌ Don't say "She said me."
When we report questions, the word order changes — we don't use the question form anymore.
Wh- Questions:
➡️ Direct: "Where do you live?"
➡️ Reported: He asked where I lived.
Yes/No Questions:
➡️ Direct: "Do you like sushi?"
➡️ Reported: He asked if / whether I liked sushi.
🟡 In Portuguese, we keep the same word order ("Ele perguntou se eu gosto…"), so Brazilians often forget to change the structure in English.
We use "tell" or "ask" + object + to + verb.
➡️ Direct: "Please close the door."
➡️ Reported: He asked me to close the door.
➡️ Direct: "Don't be late!"
➡️ Reported: She told me not to be late.
| ❌ Common Mistake | ✅ Correct Form | 💬 Explanation |
|---|---|---|
| She said me she was tired. | She told me she was tired. | "Say" doesn't take an object. |
| He asked where do I live. | He asked where I lived. | No question order in reported speech. |
| She said she will go. | She said she would go. | Backshift: "will" → "would." |
| He said that he has finished. | He said he had finished. | Present Perfect → Past Perfect. |
| She told that she was angry. | She told me that she was angry. | "Tell" needs an object. |
| Direct Tense | Reported Tense | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Present Simple | Past Simple | "I work here." → He said he worked there. |
| Present Continuous | Past Continuous | "I'm studying." → She said she was studying. |
| Present Perfect | Past Perfect | "I've finished." → She said she had finished. |
| Past Simple | Past Perfect | "I went there." → He said he had gone there. |
| Will | Would | "I'll call you." → She said she would call me. |
| Can | Could | "I can help." → He said he could help. |
| May | Might | "I may go." → She said she might go. |