Reported statements: other changes

• Place and time references often change when we report what someone said in a different place or at an earlier time. Compare:

Actual words	Words reported later
Spoken outside the cinema: ‘ I’ll meet you here ’ Katesaid.	Spoken somewhere else: Kate said she’d meetus there/at the cinema.
Spoken on Sunday: I’m going to a party tonight,’ Matt said.	Spoken the following Tuesday: Matt said he was going to a partyon Sunday night

• These words/phrases often change in reported speech:

Direct speech	Reported speech
This/that (+noun)	the
this morning	that morning, on Friday morning, etc.
now	then
today, tonight	that day/night, on Friday/Friday night, etc.
yesterday	the day before, the previous day, on Friday, etc.
tomorrow	the next/following day, on Friday, etc.
last week, last Friday	the week/Friday before, the previous week/Friday
next week, next Friday	the week/Friday after, the following week/Friday
an hour ago	an hour before

Complete the reported statements. Use one word in each gap.

0 ‘I can’t understand this film,’ she said.

She said she couldn’t understand...... the...... film.

1 ‘I’m playing football this evening,’ I told Tom.

I told Tom I was playing football........................... evening.

2 She said, ‘There was an accident here last year.’

She said there had been an accident........................... the year............................

3 ‘I ordered two books three weeks ago,’ I told the shop assistant.

I told the shop assistant I’d ordered two books three weeks............................

4 On Sunday, Adam told me, ‘I’ve got an exam tomorrow.’

Adam told me he had an exam on............................

5 ‘I’ll be in your group next term,’ she said.

She said she’d be in my group the........................... term.

6 ‘I’m leaving now,’ she told us

She told us she was leaving............................

7 ‘It’s really cold today,’ Lucy told me.

Lucy told me it was really cold........................... day.

8 ‘I finished my exams last week,’ he said.

He said he had finished his exams the........................... week.

Complete the reported statements.

Nikki and Jessica met in a cafe two weeks ago. Now Nikki is reporting their conversation to a friend.

0 ‘I love the food at this cafe,’ Jessica said.

Jessica said that she loved the food...... at the café.......

1 ‘I saw Helen this afternoon,’ she told me.

She told me that she’d seen Helen............................

2 ‘I saw her yesterday,’ I said.

I said that I’d seen her............................

3 ‘My brother called two hours ago. He’s going to meet me here,’ I told her.

I told her that my brother had called two hours........................... and that he was going to meet me............................

4 ‘We’re going bowling tonight,’ I said.

I said that we were going bowling............................

5 ‘I don’t have enough money for my coffee now. I’ll pay you back next week,’ she said.

She said that she didn’t have enough money for her coffee........................... and that she’d pay me back............................

She still hasn’t paid me!