Understanding Narration: Direct vs. Indirect Speech

Narration in grammar refers to the way we report what someone has said. There are two primary ways to do this:

Direct Speech / Direct Narration: This reports the exact words spoken by someone. The words are placed within quotation marks.

· Formula: Reporting Verb + ” , ” + “Reported Speech”
· Example: She said, “I am happy.”

Indirect Speech / Indirect Narration: This reports what someone said without quoting their exact words. Quotation marks are removed, and changes are made to pronouns, tenses, and time expressions.

· Formula: Reporting Verb + Connective (that/if/whether/to) + Reported Speech (with changes)
· Example: She said that she was happy.

Part 1: Rules for Assertive Sentences (Statements)

Formula: Subject + Reporting Verb (said/told) + that + Subject + Verb (with tense change) + Other words (with changes)

Key Rules:

1. Remove commas and quotation marks, and add the conjunction ‘that’.
2. Change the reporting verb ‘said to’ to ‘told’ if an object is present; otherwise, keep ‘said’.
3. Change pronouns according to the subject or object of the reporting verb (First person changes according to subject, second person changes according to object, third person remains the same).
4. Change the tense of the reported speech if the reporting verb is in the past tense.

 Examples of Assertive Sentences:

Example 1

Direct: He said, “I write a letter.”
Direct Hindi: उसने कहा, “मैं पत्र लिखता हूँ।”
Indirect: He said that he wrote a letter.
Indirect Hindi: उसने कहा कि वह पत्र लिखता है।
Rule: Pronoun ‘I’ changes to ‘he’. Present Simple (‘write’) changes to Past Simple (‘wrote’).

Example 2

Direct: She said to me, “You are my friend.”
Direct Hindi: उसने मुझसे कहा, “तुम मेरे दोस्त हो।”
Indirect: She told me that I was her friend.
Indirect Hindi: उसने मुझसे कहा कि मैं उसका दोस्त हूँ।
Rule: ‘Said to’ changes to ‘told’. ‘You’ (second person) changes according to object ‘me’ to ‘I’. ‘Are’ changes to ‘was’.

Example 3

Direct: They said, “We will win the match.”
Direct Hindi: उन्होंने कहा, “हम मैच जीतेंगे।”
Indirect: They said that they would win the match.
Indirect Hindi: उन्होंने कहा कि वे मैच जीतेंगे।
Rule: Pronoun ‘We’ changes to ‘they’. ‘Will’ changes to ‘would’.

Example 4

Direct: Mohan said, “I am reading a book.”
Direct Hindi: मोहन ने कहा, “मैं किताब पढ़ रहा हूँ।”
Indirect: Mohan said that he was reading a book.
Indirect Hindi: मोहन ने कहा कि वह किताब पढ़ रहा है।
Rule: ‘I’ changes to ‘he’. Present Continuous (‘am reading’) changes to Past Continuous (‘was reading’).

Example 5

Direct: The teacher said to the students, “The earth revolves around the sun.”
Direct Hindi: अध्यापक ने छात्रों से कहा, “पृथ्वी सूर्य के चारों ओर घूमती है।”
Indirect: The teacher told the students that the earth revolves around the sun.
Indirect Hindi: अध्यापक ने छात्रों से कहा कि पृथ्वी सूर्य के चारों ओर घूमती है।
Rule: Universal truth (revolves) does not change tense even when the reporting verb is in the past.

Example 6

Direct: My friend said, “I have finished my work.”
Direct Hindi: मेरे दोस्त ने कहा, “मैंने अपना काम पूरा कर लिया है।”
Indirect: My friend said that he had finished his work.
Direct Hindi: मेरे दोस्त ने कहा कि उसने अपना काम पूरा कर लिया था।
Rule: ‘I’ changes to ‘he’. Present Perfect (‘have finished’) changes to Past Perfect (‘had finished’).

Example 7

Direct: Sita said to Ram, “I do not know the answer.”

Direct Hindi: सीता ने राम से कहा, “मैं उत्तर नहीं जानती हूँ।”

Indirect: Sita told Ram that she did not know the answer.

Indirect Hindi: सीता ने राम से कहा कि वह उत्तर नहीं जानती है।

Rule: ‘Said to’ changes to ‘told’. ‘I’ changes to ‘she’. Present Simple negative (‘do not know’) changes to Past Simple negative (‘did not know’).

Example 8

Direct: He said to her, “I bought a car yesterday.”

Direct Hindi: उसने उससे कहा, “मैंने कल एक कार खरीदी थी।”

Indirect: He told her that he had bought a car the previous day.

Indirect Hindi: उसने उससे कहा कि उसने एक दिन पहले एक कार खरीदी थी।

Rule: ‘Said to’ changes to ‘told’. ‘I’ changes to ‘he’. Past Simple (‘bought’) changes to Past Perfect (‘had bought’). ‘Yesterday’ changes to ‘the previous day’.

Example 9

Direct: The boys said, “We were playing football.”

Direct Hindi: लड़कों ने कहा, “हम फुटबॉल खेल रहे थे।”

Indirect: The boys said that they had been playing football.

Indirect Hindi: लड़कों ने कहा कि वे फुटबॉल खेल रहे थे।

Rule: ‘We’ changes to ‘they’. Past Continuous (‘were playing’) changes to Past Perfect Continuous (‘had been playing’).

Example 10

Direct: John said, “I will have reached home by noon.”

Direct Hindi: जॉन ने कहा, “मैं दोपहर तक घर पहुँच चुका होऊँगा।”

Indirect: John said that he would have reached home by noon.

Indirect Hindi: जॉन ने कहा कि वह दोपहर तक घर पहुँच चुका होगा।

Rule: ‘I’ changes to ‘he’. Future Perfect (‘will have reached’) changes to ‘would have reached’.

Part 2: Rules for Interrogative Sentences (Questions)

Formula: Subject + Reporting Verb (asked/enquired) + if/whether (for yes/no questions) or Question Word (for wh-questions) + Subject + Verb (with tense change) + Other words (with changes)

Key Rules:

1. Remove commas and quotation marks. Use a connective.

2. For yes/no questions (starting with helping verbs), use ‘if’ or ‘whether’.

3. For wh-questions (starting with what, when, where, who, why, how), use the same question word as the connective.

4. Change the reporting verb ‘said to’ to ‘asked’, ‘inquired’, ‘wanted to know’, etc.

5. The sentence structure becomes statement form (Subject + Verb), not question form.

6. Change tenses, pronouns, and time expressions as per standard rules.

Examples of Interrogative Sentences:

Example 1 (Yes/No Type)

Direct: He said to me, “Are you coming?”

Direct Hindi: उसने मुझसे कहा, “क्या तुम आ रहे हो?”

Indirect: He asked me if I was coming.

Indirect Hindi: उसने मुझसे पूछा कि क्या मैं आ रहा था।

Rule: ‘Said to’ changes to ‘asked’. ‘If’ is used as a connective. Question form (‘are you’) changes to statement form (‘I was’).

Example 2 (Wh- Type)

Direct: Mother said to me, “Why are you crying?”

Direct Hindi: माँ ने मुझसे कहा, “तुम क्यों रो रहे हो?”

Indirect: Mother asked me why I was crying.

Indirect Hindi: माँ ने मुझसे पूछा कि मैं क्यों रो रहा था।

Rule: ‘Said to’ changes to ‘asked’. The question word ‘why’ becomes the connective. Question form changes to statement form.

Example 3 (Yes/No Type)

Direct: She said, “Will you help me?”

Direct Hindi: उसने कहा, “क्या तुम मेरी मदद करोगे?”

Indirect: She asked if I would help her.

Indirect Hindi: उसने पूछा कि क्या मैं उसकी मदद करूँगा।

Rule: ‘Said’ changes to ‘asked’. ‘If’ is used. ‘Will’ changes to ‘would’. ‘Me’ changes to ‘her’.

Example 4 (Wh- Type)

Direct: The policeman said to the man, “Where do you live?”

Direct Hindi: पुलिस वाले ने उस आदमी से कहा, “तुम कहाँ रहते हो?”

Indirect: The policeman asked the man where he lived.

Indirect Hindi: पुलिस वाले ने उस आदमी से पूछा कि वह कहाँ रहता था।

Rule: ‘Said to’ changes to ‘asked’. ‘Where’ is the connective. ‘Do you live’ changes to ‘he lived’.

Example 5 (Yes/No Type)

Direct: The doctor said to the patient, “Are you feeling better?”

Direct Hindi: डॉक्टर ने मरीज से कहा, “क्या आप बेहतर महसूस कर रहे हैं?”

Indirect: The doctor asked the patient if he was feeling better.

Indirect Hindi: डॉक्टर ने मरीज से पूछा कि क्या वह बेहतर महसूस कर रहा था।

Rule: ‘Said to’ changes to ‘asked’. ‘If’ is used. ‘Are you’ changes to ‘he was’.

Example 6 (Wh- Type)

Direct: My father said to me, “When will you return?”

Direct Hindi: मेरे पिता ने मुझसे कहा, “तुम कब लौटोगे?”

Indirect: My father asked me when I would return.

Indirect Hindi: मेरे पिता ने मुझसे पूछा कि मैं कब लौटूंगा।

Rule: ‘Said to’ changes to ‘asked’. ‘When’ is the connective. ‘Will you’ changes to ‘I would’.

Example 7 (Yes/No Type)

Direct: Rahul said to me, “Did you see the movie?”

Direct Hindi: राहुल ने मुझसे कहा, “क्या तुमने फिल्म देखी?”

Indirect: Rahul asked me whether I had seen the movie.

Indirect Hindi: राहुल ने मुझसे पूछा कि क्या मैंने फिल्म देखी थी।

Rule: ‘Said to’ changes to ‘asked’. ‘Whether’ is used (more formal). Past Simple (‘did see’) changes to Past Perfect (‘had seen’).

Example 8 (Wh- Type)

Direct: She said to them, “Who is knocking at the door?”

Direct Hindi: उसने उनसे कहा, “दरवाजे पर कौन खटखटा रहा है?”

Indirect: She asked them who was knocking at the door.

Indirect Hindi: उसने उनसे पूछा कि दरवाजे पर कौन खटखटा रहा था।

Rule: ‘Said to’ changes to ‘asked’. ‘Who’ is the connective. ‘Is knocking’ changes to ‘was knocking’.

Example 9 (Yes/No Type)

Direct: The child said to his mother, “Can I have a chocolate?”

Direct Hindi: बच्चे ने अपनी माँ से कहा, “क्या मुझे चॉकलेट मिल सकती है?”

Indirect: The child asked his mother if he could have a chocolate.

Indirect Hindi: बच्चे ने अपनी माँ से पूछा कि क्या उसे चॉकलेट मिल सकती है।

Rule: ‘Said to’ changes to ‘asked’. ‘If’ is used. ‘Can’ changes to ‘could’. ‘I’ changes to ‘he’.

Example 10 (Wh- Type)

Direct: The teacher said to the boy, “How have you solved this sum?”

Direct Hindi: अध्यापक ने लड़के से कहा, “तुमने यह सवाल कैसे हल किया है?”

Indirect: The teacher asked the boy how he had solved that sum.

Indirect Hindi: अध्यापक ने लड़के से पूछा कि उसने वह सवाल कैसे हल किया था।

Rule: ‘Said to’ changes to ‘asked’. ‘How’ is the connective. Present Perfect (‘have solved’) changes to Past Perfect (‘had solved’). ‘This’ changes to ‘that’.

Part 3: Rules for Imperative Sentences (Commands, Requests, Advice)

Formula: Subject + Reporting Verb (ordered/requested/advised) + to + Verb (infinitive) + Other words (with changes)

Key Rules:

1. Remove commas and quotation marks.

2. Change the reporting verb ‘said to’ according to the mood of the sentence (ordered, commanded, requested, begged, advised, forbade, proposed, suggested, etc.).

3. Remove the imperative verb and replace it with ‘to’ + the base form of the verb (infinitive).

4. For negative imperatives (do not), use ‘not to’ + verb.

5. If the sentence is a suggestion with ‘let us’, use ‘proposed’ or ‘suggested’ + ‘that’ + ‘we should’.

 Examples of Imperative Sentences:

Example 1 (Command)

Direct: The captain said to the soldiers, “March forward.”

Direct Hindi: कप्तान ने सैनिकों से कहा, “आगे बढ़ो।”

Indirect: The captain ordered the soldiers to march forward.

Indirect Hindi: कप्तान ने सैनिकों को आगे बढ़ने का आदेश दिया।

Rule: ‘Said to’ changes to ‘ordered’. The imperative ‘march’ becomes ‘to march’.

Example 2 (Request)

Direct: He said to me, “Please help me.”

Direct Hindi: उसने मुझसे कहा, “कृपया मेरी मदद करो।”

Indirect: He requested me to help him.

Indirect Hindi: उसने मुझसे उसकी मदद करने का अनुरोध किया।

Rule: ‘Said to’ changes to ‘requested’ due to ‘please’. ‘Help’ becomes ‘to help’. ‘Me’ changes to ‘him’.

Example 3 (Advice)

Direct: Father said to him, “Work hard.”

Direct Hindi: पिता ने उससे कहा, “मेहनत करो।”

Indirect: Father advised him to work hard.

Indirect Hindi: पिता ने उसे मेहनत करने की सलाह दी।

Rule: ‘Said to’ changes to ‘advised’. ‘Work’ becomes ‘to work’.

Example 4 (Negative Command)

Direct: The teacher said to the boys, “Do not make a noise.”

Direct Hindi: अध्यापक ने लड़कों से कहा, “शोर मत करो।”

Indirect: The teacher forbade the boys to make a noise.

Indirect Hindi: अध्यापक ने लड़कों को शोर करने से मना किया।

Rule: ‘Said to’ changes to ‘forbade’. The negative ‘do not make’ becomes ‘to make’ after ‘forbade’. (Or ‘ordered the boys not to make’).

Example 5 (Begging)

Direct: The beggar said to the lady, “Give me some food.”

Direct Hindi: भिखारी ने महिला से कहा, “मुझे कुछ खाना दे दो।”

Indirect: The beggar begged the lady to give him some food.

Indirect Hindi: भिखारी ने महिला से उसे कुछ खाना देने की भीख माँगी।

Rule: ‘Said to’ changes to ‘begged’. ‘Give’ becomes ‘to give’. ‘Me’ changes to ‘him’.

Example 6 (Suggestion with Let us)

Direct: Raju said, “Let us go for a picnic.”

Direct Hindi: राजू ने कहा, “चलो पिकनिक पर चलते हैं।”

Indirect: Raju suggested that they should go for a picnic.

Indirect Hindi: राजू ने सुझाव दिया कि उन्हें पिकनिक पर जाना चाहिए।

Rule: ‘Said’ changes to ‘suggested’. ‘Let us’ changes to ‘that they should’.

Example 7 (Proposal)

Direct: He said, “Let me do it.”

Direct Hindi: उसने कहा, “मुझे यह करने दो।”

Indirect: He proposed that he might be allowed to do it.

Indirect Hindi: उसने प्रस्ताव रखा कि उसे यह करने की अनुमति दी जाए।

Rule: ‘Let me’ changes to ‘that he might be allowed to’.

Example 8 (Negative Advice)

Direct: The doctor said to him, “Do not smoke.”

Direct Hindi: डॉक्टर ने उससे कहा, “धूम्रपान मत करो।”

Indirect: The doctor advised him not to smoke.

Indirect Hindi: डॉक्टर ने उसे धूम्रपान न करने की सलाह दी।

Rule: ‘Said to’ changes to ‘advised’. Negative imperative ‘do not smoke’ becomes ‘not to smoke’.

Example 9 (Command with Object)

Direct: The king said to the servant, “Bring me water.”

Direct Hindi: राजा ने नौकर से कहा, “मेरे लिए पानी लाओ।”

Indirect: The king ordered the servant to bring him water.

Indirect Hindi: राजा ने नौकर को उसके लिए पानी लाने का आदेश दिया।

Rule: ‘Said to’ changes to ‘ordered’. ‘Bring’ becomes ‘to bring’. ‘Me’ changes to ‘him’.

Example 10 (Request with Politeness)

Direct: She said to her father, “Please buy me a new dress.”

Direct Hindi: उसने अपने पिता से कहा, “कृपया मुझे एक नई पोशाक दिला दीजिए।”

Indirect: She requested her father to buy her a new dress.

Indirect Hindi: उसने अपने पिता से उसके लिए एक नई पोशाक दिलाने का अनुरोध किया।

Rule: ‘Said to’ changes to ‘requested’. ‘Buy’ becomes ‘to buy’. ‘Me’ changes to ‘her’.

Part 4: Rules for Exclamatory Sentences (Emotions like Joy, Sorrow, Surprise)

Formula: Subject + Reporting Verb (exclaimed with joy/sorrow/surprise) + that + Subject + Verb (with tense change) + Other words (with changes)

Key Rules:

1. Remove commas, quotation marks, and interjections (like Alas, Hurrah, Wow, Oh).

2. Change the reporting verb ‘said’ to ‘exclaimed’ and add a word expressing the emotion (with joy, with sorrow, in surprise, etc.).

3. Use ‘that’ as the connective (except for optative sentences, which use ‘prayed that’).

4. Change the exclamatory sentence into an assertive (statement) sentence.

5. Change ‘what’ or ‘how’ to ‘very’ or ‘great’ as needed.

10 Examples of Exclamatory Sentences:

Example 1 (Joy)

Direct: He said, “Hurrah! We have won the match.”

Direct Hindi: उसने कहा, “वाह! हम मैच जीत गए।”

Indirect: He exclaimed with joy that they had won the match.

Indirect Hindi: उसने खुशी से कहा कि वे मैच जीत गए थे।

Rule: ‘Said’ changes to ‘exclaimed with joy’. ‘Hurrah’ is removed. ‘We’ changes to ‘they’. Present Perfect (‘have won’) changes to Past Perfect (‘had won’).

Example 2 (Sorrow)

Direct: She said, “Alas! I have lost my purse.”

Direct Hindi: उसने कहा, “हाय! मैंने अपना पर्स खो दिया।”

Indirect: She exclaimed with sorrow that she had lost her purse.

Indirect Hindi: उसने दुःख से कहा कि उसने अपना पर्स खो दिया था।

Rule: ‘Said’ changes to ‘exclaimed with sorrow’. ‘Alas’ is removed. ‘I’ changes to ‘she’. Present Perfect (‘have lost’) changes to Past Perfect (‘had lost’).

Example 3 (Surprise)

Direct: The boy said, “Wow! What a beautiful picture it is!”

Direct Hindi: लड़के ने कहा, “वाह! यह कितनी सुंदर तस्वीर है!”

Indirect: The boy exclaimed in surprise that it was a very beautiful picture.

Indirect Hindi: लड़के ने आश्चर्य से कहा कि वह बहुत सुंदर तस्वीर थी।

Rule: ‘Said’ changes to ‘exclaimed in surprise’. ‘Wow’ and ‘what’ are removed. ‘It is’ changes to ‘it was’. ‘Beautiful’ is qualified with ‘very’.

Example 4 (Praise/Admiration)

Direct: Rohan said, “How intelligent the boy is!”

Direct Hindi: रोहन ने कहा, “लड़का कितना बुद्धिमान है!”

Indirect: Rohan exclaimed with admiration that the boy was very intelligent.

Indirect Hindi: रोहन ने प्रशंसा से कहा कि लड़का बहुत बुद्धिमान था।

Rule: ‘Said’ changes to ‘exclaimed with admiration’. ‘How’ is removed. ‘Is’ changes to ‘was’. ‘Intelligent’ is qualified with ‘very’.

Example 5 (Optative/Wish)

Direct: The old man said to me, “May you live long!”

Direct Hindi: बूढ़े व्यक्ति ने मुझसे कहा, “तुम दीर्घायु हो!”

Indirect: The old man prayed that I might live long.

Indirect Hindi: बूढ़े व्यक्ति ने प्रार्थना की कि मैं दीर्घायु होऊँ।

Rule: Optative sentences use ‘prayed’ as the reporting verb. ‘May’ changes to ‘might’. ‘You’ changes to ‘I’.

Example 6 (Sorrow with Goodbye)

Direct: She said, “Alas! He is dead.”

Direct Hindi: उसने कहा, “हाय! वह मर गया।”

Indirect: She exclaimed with sorrow that he was dead.

Indirect Hindi: उसने दुःख से कहा कि वह मर गया था।

Rule: ‘Said’ changes to ‘exclaimed with sorrow’. ‘Alas’ is removed. ‘Is’ changes to ‘was’.

Example 7 (Surprise at Size/Quantity)

Direct: They said, “What a large house it is!”

Direct Hindi: उन्होंने कहा, “यह कितना बड़ा घर है!”

Indirect: They exclaimed in surprise that it was a very large house.

Indirect Hindi: उन्होंने आश्चर्य से कहा कि वह बहुत बड़ा घर था।

Rule: ‘Said’ changes to ‘exclaimed in surprise’. ‘What’ is removed. ‘It is’ changes to ‘it was’. ‘Large’ is qualified with ‘very’.

Example 8 (Joy with Good News)

Direct: My mother said, “Hurrah! I have baked a cake.”

Direct Hindi: मेरी माँ ने कहा, “वाह! मैंने केक बेक किया है।”

Indirect: My mother exclaimed with joy that she had baked a cake.

Indirect Hindi: मेरी माँ ने खुशी से कहा कि उसने केक बेक किया था।

Rule: ‘Said’ changes to ‘exclaimed with joy’. ‘Hurrah’ is removed. ‘I’ changes to ‘she’. Present Perfect (‘have baked’) changes to Past Perfect (‘had baked’).

Example 9 (Curse/Imprecation)

Direct: The saint said, “Curse on you!”

Direct Hindi: संत ने कहा, “तुम पर अभिशाप!”

Indirect: The saint cursed him.

Indirect Hindi: संत ने उसे श्राप दिया।

Rule: Exclamations without a full verb structure are often converted into a simple sentence using an appropriate reporting verb like ‘cursed’.

Example 10 (Welcome/Greeting)

Direct: They said, “Good morning, Sir!”

Direct Hindi: उन्होंने कहा, “सुप्रभात, महोदय!”

Indirect: They respectfully wished him good morning.

Indirect Hindi: उन्होंने आदरपूर्वक उन्हें सुप्रभात कहा।

Rule: Greetings are reported using verbs like ‘wished’, ‘greeted’, ‘welcomed’, ‘bade’, etc.