Direct and Indirect Speech
ICSE · Class 8 · English Language: Grammar and Composition
Summary of Direct and Indirect Speech for ICSE Class 8 English Language: Grammar and Composition. Key concepts, important points, and chapter overview.
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Overview
Direct speech reproduces the exact words of a speaker and is marked by inverted commas. Indirect speech reports those words in the reporter’s own language. The chapter explains how tenses, pronouns, and words showing time or place change when speech is reported, and it also shows how statements, que
Key Concepts
Direct speech gives the exact words
Direct speech gives the exact words of the speaker and is set off by inverted commas.
Indirect speech expresses the same message
Indirect speech expresses the same message in the reporter’s own words, usually without inverted commas.
If the reporting verb is
If the reporting verb is in the past tense, the tense of the reported speech usually changes to a corresponding past tense. If the reporting verb is i
First person pronouns change according
First person pronouns change according to the speaker, second person pronouns change according to the person being addressed, and third person pronoun
Words like this
Words like this, here, now, today, yesterday, tomorrow, last week, and next week change to words showing distance, such as that, there, then, that day
Learning Objectives
- Understand the difference between direct speech and indirect speech.
- Learn how tenses change when the reporting verb is in the past tense.
- Use the correct changes in personal pronouns and possessives.
- Change words showing nearness of time and place into words showing remoteness.
- Report statements, questions, commands, requests, exclamations, and wishes correctly.
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