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Year 11 English — Reporting a whole conversation

Report several turns of a conversation, keeping the tense shift, the pronouns and the reporting verbs consistent throughout.

Name: ________________________

  1. 1.When the words being reported state a general truth, what may happen to the tense?

    • a) It may stay in the present.
    • b) The sentence cannot be reported at all.
    • c) It must always shift back one step.
    • d) It must move into the future.

  2. 2.Put this reported conversation back into the order it must have happened.

    • Anil replied that it was blue and had his name on it.
    • The conductor asked him what the bag looked like.
    • The conductor told him to come back to the office the next morning.
    • Anil said that he had lost his bag on the bus.

  3. 3.Which is the correct reported form? The original was: "Please shut the window."

    • a) He requested me to shut the window.
    • b) He told that I shut the window.
    • c) He said that shut the window.
    • d) He said me to shut the window.

  4. 4.Complete the reported sentence with two words: She said that she ____ the next day. (Her words were: "I will come tomorrow.")

  5. 5.A teacher says to one student, "You have done well." When that student reports it later, which pronoun does "you" become?

    • a) he
    • b) I
    • c) they
    • d) you

  6. 6.Sort each reporting verb by what it usually introduces.

    Groups: A statement · A command or request

    • replied
    • begged
    • ordered
    • remarked
    • instructed
    • explained

  7. 7.Complete with one word: She said, "I am tired." → She said that she ____ tired.

  8. 8.Match each word of direct speech to what it becomes when the speech is reported.

    • today
    • tomorrow
    • yesterday
    • here
    • now
    • this
    • that
    • the next day
    • the day before
    • that day
    • there
    • then

Answer key — Year 11 English — Reporting a whole conversation

  1. 1. a) It may stay in the present.
  2. 2. 1. Anil said that he had lost his bag on the bus. 2. The conductor asked him what the bag looked like. 3. Anil replied that it was blue and had his name on it. 4. The conductor told him to come back to the office the next morning.
  3. 3. a) He requested me to shut the window.
  4. 4.
    • would come
    • would go
  5. 5. b) I
  6. 6. replied → A statement; ordered → A command or request; explained → A statement; begged → A command or request; remarked → A statement; instructed → A command or request
  7. 7. was
  8. 8. today → that day; tomorrow → the next day; yesterday → the day before; here → there; now → then; this → that