Table of Contents
Introduction
Reported speech is used to tell someone what another person said—without quoting them directly. The tense of the verbs usually shifts back in time, especially if the reporting verb is in the past.
👉 In this post, you’ll practice reporting 10 different sentences in different tenses, including present, past, perfect, and continuous forms.
Mixed Tense Reported Speech Exercise with Answers
Rewrite each of the following direct speech sentences in the reported speech.
Assume the reporting verb is in the past (e.g., he said, she told me, etc.).
Tip to Help you Answer the exercise:
When changing direct speech into reported speech:
- Present → Past
- Past Simple → Past Perfect
- Will → Would
- Can → Could
- Must → Had to
- Present Continuous → Past Continuous
- Past Continuous → Past Perfect Continuous
But facts and universal truths may stay in the present.
More on the meaning of reported speech.
Related Pages
- Reported Speech
- Reported Speech for Requests and Commands
- Reported Speech Exercise: Requests And Commands
- Reported Speech Exercise: Questions
- Grammar Exercise: Reported Speech Exercise
- The Free Indirect Speech in English
- Reported Offers, Requests, Suggestions, and Commands Exercises
- Mastering Reporting Verbs in English
- Reporting Verbs Exercises with Answers
