English Direct and Indirect Speech

In Indirect speech, commands and requests statement carry words like told, asked, requested, ordered followed by an infinitive.

Direct: The principal said, "Turn off the lights."

Indirect: The principal told us to turn off the lights.

Direct: Reema said, "Please help me."

Indirect: Reema requested me to help her.

In indirect speech, questions are changed to statements without any question mark. If the question starts with a WH-word, it remains as is. If it is a Yes/No question, we use if or whether.

For example:

Direct: Maya asked, "Where are you going?"

Indirect: Maya asked where I was going.

Direct: Pinto asked, "Do you like coffee?"

Indirect: Pinto asked if I liked coffee.

In Indirect Speech, pronouns change according to the perspective of the speaker and listener.

Direct: Pinky said to me, "I will help you."

Indirect: Pinky told me that she would help me.

Here, 'I' becomes 'she', and 'you' becomes 'me'.

Sentences with Direct speech reports the exact words of the speaker, as spoken by him/her, within quotation marks, while indirect sentences conveys the meaning of the message without quotation marks.

For example:

Direct: She said, "I am happy."

Indirect: She said that she was happy.

Class 10 students should have a basic understanding of direct and indirect speech. Some of the common rules are given below:

• Basic conversion rules

• Sentence types: statements, questions, commands

In order to master the topic applicants are advised to practice through CBSE/ICSE board sample papers

The direct and indirect speech or narration refers to reporting a speaker's words. Some of the popular key rules include:

• Tense shift (present to past)

• Changing personal pronouns

• Using proper reporting verbs

Adjusting time expressions (e.g., “now”? “then”)
However, these rules differ for assertive, interrogative, imperative, and exclamatory sentences.

To convert Direct Speech to Indirect one must follow the steps given below:

• Remove quotation marks.

• Use a reporting verb like said or asked.

• Change the tense (if necessary). 

Example:
Direct: Rohit said, “I will go now.”
Indirect: Rohit said that he would go then.

The basic rules of direct and indirect narration involve changing the pronouns, tense, and time expressions. For example, in indirect speech, present tense often changes to past, and words like "today" become "that day". Always remove quotation marks and use a reporting verb like “said”, “told”, or “asked”.