Class 12 English | Unit 9: Ecology and Environment
Grammar Exercise Solution with Rule Explanation
Topic: Reported Speech (Indirect Speech)
Before we solve the grammar exercises, let’s review the rules of Reported Speech in a clear and student-friendly way.
📘 Reported Speech (Indirect Speech): Easy Rules, Clear Charts & Smart Examples
Reported Speech—also called Indirect Speech—is used when we repeat someone’s message without using their exact words.
This guide explains every rule with examples, charts, and tips to help Class 12 students prepare for exams.
🌟 What Is Reported Speech?
Reported Speech means expressing other people’s words in your own way.
Direct: “I am hungry,” said Rina.
Indirect: Rina said (that) she was hungry.
💡 Why Do We Use Reported Speech?
We use reported speech to:
✔ summarize long conversations
✔ make writing formal
✔ report news
✔ avoid quoting everything word-for-word
✔ make communication clear and concise
✨ Main Rules of Reported Speech
1️⃣ Remove Quotation Marks
Direct speech uses “ ”.
Indirect speech removes quotation marks and usually adds that.
Direct: “I like football.”
Indirect: He said (that) he liked football.
2️⃣ Pronoun Change (Point of View Shift)
Pronouns change depending on who originally spoke and who is reporting it now.
🔵 Pronoun Change Table
| Direct Speech | Meaning | Indirect Speech |
|---|---|---|
| “I am tired,” said Rina. | Rina talks about herself | Rina said she was tired. |
| “We need help,” they said. | They refer to their group | They said they needed help. |
| Rina to me: “You are smart.” | Talking to me | Rina told me I was smart. |
| Rina to Ram: “You are late.” | Talking to Ram | Rina told Ram he was late. |
| “This is my pen,” he said. | His pen | He said that pen was his. |
| “These are our books,” they said. | Their books | They said those were their books. |
✨ Quick Tip:
Ask yourself: Who is talking now, and about whom?
Then choose the correct pronoun.
3️⃣ Tense Change (Backshift Rule)
If the reporting verb is in the past (said, told, asked), the tense usually moves one step back.
📌 Tense Backshift Chart
| Direct Tense | Indirect Tense | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Present Simple | Past Simple | “I eat rice.” → He said he ate rice. |
| Present Continuous | Past Continuous | “I am reading.” → She said she was reading. |
| Present Perfect | Past Perfect | “I have finished.” → He said he had finished. |
| Present Perfect Continuous | Past Perfect Continuous | “I have been working.” → She said she had been working. |
| Past Simple | Past Perfect | “I bought a car.” → He said he had bought a car. |
| Past Continuous | Past Perfect Continuous | “I was eating.” → She said she had been eating. |
| Will | Would | “I will go.” → He said he would go. |
| Can | Could | “I can swim.” → She said she could swim. |
| May | Might | “I may come.” → He said he might come. |
| Must | Had to | “I must leave.” → She said she had to leave. |
⛔ When Tense Does NOT Change
-
If the reporting verb is in the present:
He says, “I am busy.” → He says he is busy. -
Universal truths and facts remain the same:
“Water boils at 100°C.” → He said water boils at 100°C.
4️⃣ Time & Place Change
| Direct | Indirect |
|---|---|
| today | that day |
| tomorrow | the next day |
| yesterday | the previous day |
| now | then |
| here | there |
| this | that |
| these | those |
Example:
“I will finish it tomorrow.” → He said he would finish it the next day.
5️⃣ Reporting Questions
✔ Yes/No Questions → if / whether
Direct: “Do you like music?”
Indirect: He asked if I liked music.
✔ WH-Questions → keep WH-word
Direct: “Where do you live?”
Indirect: She asked where I lived.
❌ No question mark
❌ No do/does/did
✔ Normal sentence structure
6️⃣ Reporting Orders, Requests & Advice
🔹 Commands (Order)
Use told + to + verb
“Open the window.” → He told me to open the window.
🔹 Requests
Use asked + to + verb
“Please wait.” → She asked me to wait.
🔹 Negative Commands
Use told + not to + verb
“Don’t touch this.” → He told me not to touch that.
📘 Fully Worked Examples
-
“I am learning English.”
→ She said she was learning English. -
“You should take rest.”
→ He advised me to take rest. -
“Why are you shouting?”
→ He asked why I was shouting. -
“We will meet here tomorrow.”
→ They said they would meet there the next day.
🎯 Quick Revision Tips
✔ Remove quotation marks
✔ Change pronouns
✔ Backshift tense
✔ Change time/place words
✔ Use if/whether for yes/no questions
✔ Use to + verb for commands
📝 Conclusion
When you understand pronoun change, tense backshift, time/place shift, and reporting verbs, Reported Speech becomes very easy.
These rules and charts will help you solve Class 12 grammar exercises with confidence.
B. Match the Beginnings with the Correct Endings
| a–h | Correct Match |
|---|---|
| a. I’m going to Pokhara on holiday. | vi. You said you were going on business. |
| b. He’s a lawyer. | iii. You told me he was a teacher. |
| c. She’s had a baby girl. | i. You said she’d had a boy. |
| d. I haven’t seen Binesh for ages. | viii. You told me you’d seen him the previous week. |
| e. I love these new boots. | v. You said you hated them. |
| f. I only cheated in one exam. | ii. You admitted you cheated in all your exams. |
| g. She doesn’t speak Hindi or Chinese. | iv. You told me she was fluent in both. |
| h. He works in Kathmandu. | vii. You told me his office was in Biratnagar. |
C. Change the Following into Indirect Speech
a. The principal said, “You can phone from my office, Rita.”
➡️ The principal allowed Rita to phone from his office.
b. “You must not neglect your duty,” said the teacher.
➡️ The teacher told the student not to neglect his duty.
c. The student said, “Sir, please grant me leave for two days.”
➡️ The student asked the teacher to grant him leave for two days.
d. I said to her, “Go to school or you will be fined.”
➡️ I ordered her to go to school to avoid the fine.
e. The headmaster said, “Don’t make any noise, boys.”
➡️ The headmaster forbade the boys to make any noise.
f. “Work hard if you want to rise in life,” said the old man.
➡️ The old man advised us to work hard to rise in life.
g. He said, “Goodbye, my friends!”
➡️ He bade his friends goodbye.
h. She said to me, “Have a pleasant journey ahead.”
➡️ She told me to have a pleasant journey ahead.
i. “Don’t give me the book, please,” said Sharmila.
➡️ Sharmila requested not to give her the book.
j. “Where have you been these days?” she spoke on the phone.
➡️ She asked on the phone where he had been those days.
k. The teacher said, “Have you submitted your assignments, students?”
➡️ The teacher asked the students if they had submitted their assignments.
D. Complete the Indirect Speech Paragraph
Dinesh told you yesterday:
“I’ve just got engaged… I hope you’ll come to the wedding.”
Indirect Version:
He said he had just got engaged. He told me that they were getting married next month. He said they were going to Pokhara for their honeymoon. He mentioned that it was going to be very expensive. He said that his friend was a photographer and he would take the photos for them. He added that they would be having the reception in his parents’ garden. He said his mother was baking the cake for them and his sister’s band was playing free for them. He said he hoped I would come to the wedding.