Change of Speech - Verbal Ability Questions and Answers
Last Updated : 25 Jun, 2025
The "Change of Speech" means the way we speak changes depending on who we're talking to, where we are, or when we're repeating someone else's words. It’s about adjusting our language to fit the situation, like speaking more formally at work or casually with friends, quoting someone’s exact words, or summarizing what they said.
Practice Quiz
In this article, we will learn about direct and indirect speech, the difference between them, practice questions, and tips and tricks to solve them.
There are two types of speech:
1. Direct Speech
If the sentence spoken or written by the speaker is reported without any changes, it is called direct speech.
Example: Ram says, "I work hard".
2. Indirect Speech
If the narrator changes the sentence spoken or written by the speaker according to certain rules, it is called the Indirect Speech.
Example: Ram says that he works hard.
Verbal ability Questions and Answers: [Practice Here!]
Direct vs Indirect Speech
Below are some key differences between direct and indirect speech:
Parameter | Direct Speech | Indirect Speech |
|---|
Quotation Marks | Always uses quotation marks. | No quotation marks used. |
|---|
Tense Changes | The tense stays the same. | Tenses usually change (for example, present tense in direct speech changes to past tense in indirect speech). |
|---|
Pronouns | Pronouns are used exactly as originally spoken. | Pronouns may change to fit the reporting content. |
|---|
Word Order | The word order stays the same as in the original sentence. | The word order may change to fit the reporting structure. |
|---|
Important Rules for Direct and Indirect Speech
1. Tense Change
- Present simple → Past simple
- Present continuous → Past continuous
- Future → Would
Example:
- Direct: She said, "I am eating lunch."
- Indirect: She said that she was eating lunch.
2. Time Expression
The following words change in indirect speech.
- Today → that day
- Tomorrow → the next day
- Yesterday → the previous day or the day before
- tonight → that night
- Last → the previous
- here → there
- this → that
- these → those
- ago → before
- now → then
Example:
- Direct: "I will meet you tomorrow."
- Indirect: She said that she would meet me the next day.
3. Pronoun change
Pronouns change when we report someone else’s words.
Example:
- Direct: "You are my best friend," she said.
- Indirect: She said that I was her best friend.
Solved Questions on Direct to Indirect Speech
Question 1: She said, "I am reading a novel."
She said that she was reading a novel.
Question 2: He said, "I will come tomorrow."
He said that he would come the next day.
Question 3: They said, "We have finished our work."
They said that they had finished their work.
Question 4: John said, "I can help you with your project."
John said that he could help me with my project.
Question 5: She said, "I am going to the mall now."
She said that she was going to the mall then.
Question 6: The teacher said, "You must submit your assignments by Tuesday."
The teacher said that we had to submit our assignments by Tuesday.
Question 7: He said, "I saw a movie last night."
He said that he had seen a movie the night before.
Question 8: She said, "I don’t like tea."
She said that she didn’t like tea.
Question 9: He said, "I am feeling very happy today."
He said that he was feeling very happy that day.
Question 10: They said, "We are planning a trip next month."
They said that they were planning a trip the following month.
Solved Questions on Indirect to Direct Speech
Question 1: He said that he was feeling exhausted.
He said, "I am feeling exhausted."
Question 2: She said that she would call me later.
She said, "I will call you later."
Question 3: They said that they had completed the homework.
They said, "We have completed the homework."
Question 4: The manager said that the meeting was postponed.
The manager said, "The meeting is postponed."
Question 5: He said that he couldn’t attend the party.
He said, "I cannot attend the party."
Question 6: She said that she was not coming to school today.
She said, "I am not coming to school today."
Question 7: John said that he had bought a new boat.
John said, "I have bought a new boat."
Question 8: The teacher said that we should revise for the exam.
The teacher said, "You should revise for the exam."
Question 9: They said that they were watching a movie at that time.
They said, "We are watching a movie now."
Question 10: He said that he would help me with my work.
He said, "I will help you with your work."
Tips and Tricks
Here are some useful tricks to help you solve direct and indirect speech questions smoothly:
1. Change of Pronoun
Change of Pronoun trickPronouns are changed according to the SON rule: Subject Object No change
- First-person pronouns changes to subject of the reporting verb.
- Second-person pronouns changes to the object of the reporting verb.
- Third-person pronouns remains unchanged.
Example:
- Direct: He(sub.) says, "I (1st Person) work hard."
Here, "I" changes to "he" according to subject. - Indirect: He says that he works hard.
- Direct: He says to me(obj.), "You (2nd Person) work hard."
Here, "You" changes to "I" according to the object. - Indirect: He tells me that I work hard.
- Direct: He says to me, "She works hard."
Here, "She" is the 3rd person, so there will be "no change." - Indirect: He tells me that he works hard.
2. Remove Quotation Marks in Indirect Speech
3. Adjust the time and place words
- Today → that day
- Tomorrow → the next day
- Yesterday → the previous day or the day before
- tonight → that night
4. Use Reporting Verbs Correctly
- Say/Said remain unchanged in indirect speech.
- Say to change into "tell".
- "Says to" changes into "told".
Note: "To" is not used after "tell" and "told".
5. Change Question and Commands Properly
- Change "said to" into asked, questioned, inquired, or interrogated when reporting questions.
- The question mark(?) should be changed into a " full stop" in indirect speech.
- For yes/no questions, use if or whether in indirect speech.
- For "wh-" questions, do not use auxiliary verbs or change the verb tense unnecessarily.
6. Use Modal Verbs Carefully
- shall/will → should/would
- may → might
- can → could
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