How to write direct and indirect speech?

Direct speech is when you write down exactly what someone says, using quotation marks to indicate the spoken words. For example:

Direct speech: "I am going to the store," said Sarah.

Indirect speech, on the other hand, is when you report what someone said without using their exact words. In indirect speech, you do not use quotation marks. Instead, you use reporting verbs like 'said', 'told', 'asked', etc. For example:

Indirect speech: Sarah said that she was going to the store.

When writing direct speech, remember to use quotation marks and commas to separate the spoken words from the rest of the sentence. When writing indirect speech, remember to use reporting verbs and to change the tense and pronouns as necessary to match the context of the reported speech.

Direct Speech

Direct speech is when you report exactly what someone said, using quotation marks.

- Example:
- "I love pizza," said John.

Indirect Speech

Indirect speech is when you report what someone said without using quotation marks. You change the tense of the verb and use a reporting verb, such as "say," "tell," or "ask."

- Example:
- John said that he loved pizza.

Converting Direct to Indirect Speech

Tenses:

- Present Simple -> Past Simple
- Present Continuous -> Past Continuous
- Present Perfect -> Past Perfect
- Past Simple -> Past Perfect
- Past Continuous -> Past Perfect Continuous

Pronouns:

- I -> He/She
- You -> He/She/You (formal)
- Me -> Him/Her
- My/Mine -> His/Hers
- We -> They
- Us -> Them

Other Changes:

- "Said that" becomes "said"
- "Asked that" becomes "asked"
- "Told that" becomes "told"
- "Said to" becomes "told"

Example:

- Direct: "I'm going to the store," said Mary.
- Indirect: Mary said that she was going to the store.

Converting Indirect to Direct Speech

Tenses:

- Past Simple -> Present Simple
- Past Continuous -> Present Continuous
- Past Perfect -> Present Perfect
- Past Perfect -> Past Simple
- Past Perfect Continuous -> Past Continuous

Pronouns:

- He/She -> I
- He/She/You (formal) -> You
- Him/Her -> Me
- His/Hers -> My/Mine
- They -> We
- Them -> Us

Other Changes:

- "Said" becomes "said that"
- "Asked" becomes "asked that"
- "Told" becomes "told that"
- "Told" becomes "said to"

Example:

- Indirect: John told me that he was going to the party.
- Direct: "I'm going to the party," said John to me.