"I'm going swimming" - She said she was going swimming.
"I haven't seen the film" - She said she hadn't seen the film.
"I have been working all morning" - She said she had been working all morning.
"I was working all week" - She said she had been working all week.
"He went on holiday to Greece" - She said he had gone on holiday to Greece.
Sentences that are already in the "had done" form remain the same:
"I hadn't seen him before" - She said she hadn't seen him before.
Reporting modal verbs
Modal verbs also go back one tense.
Will becomes would.
For example: "I will see him later" - She said she would see him later.
Can becomes could.
For example: "I can swim" - She said she could swim.
May becomes might.
For example: "It may become colder over night" - He said it might become colder over night.
Direct speech using would, could, might and should all stay the same in reported speech.
"You should speak more" - He said I should speak more.
Grammar and Tenses
Reporting questions
When you report questions, the word order changes to look like a normal statement.
For example: "Can you help me?" - She asked me if I could help her.
"What's the time?" - He asked her what the time was.
Other changes
Time expressions also change in reported speech.
today - that day
tomorrow - the day after / the next day
yesterday - the day before / the previous day
Grammar and Tenses
now - then
next week - the week after
last week - the week before / the previous week
Grammar and Tenses
Other expressions that change:
here - there
this - that
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