Reporting verbs are important in reported speech, whether it is direct or indirect. There are several rules of grammar to follow when dealing with reporting verbs. But don't worry - this is the second of two High English quizzes which will familiarise you with the correct grammar to use with reporting verbs when writing reported speech.
Generally, the reporting verbs tell their own tale and set the mood in sentences. In addition, there is a change in the tense when reporting speech. When a person is speaking and another person is reporting what the person has spoken, generally present tense is changed into past tense. Look at these examples where the first sentence in direct speech is rewritten in indirect speech:
‘She said, “What did you bring for Christmas?”’
‘She asked him what he had brought for Christmas.’