But he told me...

Pre-intermediate (A2) 40 minutes
ESL Reported Speech Activity preview, Pre-intermediate A2, asking and answering questions, forming sentences, true or false, guessing, group work

ESL Reported Speech Activity - Grammar and Speaking: Asking and Answering Questions, Forming Sentences, True or False, Guessing - Group Work

In this entertaining reported speech speaking activity, students interview each other giving true or false answers and then use reported speech to compare what...

ESL Reported Speech Activity - Grammar and Speaking: Asking and Answering Questions, Forming Sentences, True or False, Guessing - Group Work In this entertaining reported speech speaking activity, students interview each other giving true or false answers and then use reported speech to compare what the interviewees said. First, students read ten questions on the worksheet and write one true answer and two false answers for each question. Next, students use the questions to interview three people in their group. Students note down the interviewees' answers on the worksheet and ask follow-up questions, especially if they suspect they are being given a false answer. Each time an interviewee answers a question, they give either a true answer or one of their false answers, varying the answer they give each student. When everyone has finished, students compare what different people told them using reported speech and decide which of the answers are true. Finally, the interviewees reveal their true answers.

Double Trouble

Pre-intermediate (A2) 20 minutes
ESL Direct and Indirect Speech Game preview, Pre-intermediate A2, pelmanism, reforming sentences, group work

ESL Direct and Indirect Speech Game - Grammar and Speaking: Pelmanism, Reforming Sentences, Controlled Practice - Group Work

In this free direct and indirect speech game, students change direct speech into reported speech. Players take turns turning over a direct speech card and...

ESL Direct and Indirect Speech Game - Grammar and Speaking: Pelmanism, Reforming Sentences, Controlled Practice - Group Work In this free direct and indirect speech game, students change direct speech into reported speech. Players take turns turning over a direct speech card and reading what's on the card, e.g. "I like pizza", she said. The player then changes the direct speech into reported speech, e.g. 'She said that she liked pizza.' Next, the player tries to find the sentence by turning over one of the reported speech cards. If the player turns over the corresponding card, the student keeps the pair of cards and has another turn. If the two cards don't match or the player's sentence is not the same as what's on the reported speech card, the player turns the two cards back over. The student with the most pairs of cards at the end of the game wins.

Oh Really?

Pre-intermediate (A2) 35 minutes
ESL Reported Speech Game preview, Pre-intermediate A2, reading and responding to statements, forming sentences, group work

ESL Reported Speech Game - Grammar and Speaking: Reading and Responding to Statements, Forming Sentences, Controlled Practice

In this fun reported speech game, students have to try to remember what their classmates said. Students begin by reviewing expressions to show interest and surprise...

ESL Reported Speech Game - Grammar and Speaking: Reading and Responding to Statements, Forming Sentences, Controlled Practice In this fun reported speech game, students have to try to remember what their classmates said. Students begin by reviewing expressions to show interest and surprise, e.g. 'Oh really?' 'Wow', etc. Next, tell the students that they are going to tell each other something interesting or surprising and that they have to try to remember what each person said. The students memorize the sentence on their card and then stand up and walk around the class, saying their sentences to each other. Students use an expression to show interest or surprise each time they hear a sentence. When the students have all spoken to each other, they write down what their classmates told them using reported speech, e.g. 'Claire said that she was going to get married next month.' The student with the most correct sentences is the winner.

You said...

Pre-intermediate (A2) 25 minutes
ESL Reported Speech Game preview, Pre-intermediate A2, miming, guessing, forming sentences, group and pair work

ESL Reported Speech Game - Grammar and Speaking: Miming, Guessing, Forming Sentences - Group and Pair Work

Here is an amusing reported speech game to play in class. In the activity, students play a miming game where they guess what their classmates were told to do using reported speech. One student begins...

ESL Reported Speech Game - Grammar and Speaking: Miming, Guessing, Forming Sentences - Group and Pair Work Here is an amusing reported speech game to play in class. In the activity, students play a miming game where they guess what their classmates were told to do using reported speech. One student begins by picking up an imperative card and whispering the command on the card to their partner. Their partner mimes the command to the other pair of students. The other pair watches the mime and tries to guess what the student told their partner to do. The pair then uses reported speech to say what they think the command was, e.g. 'He said to close the door.' The pair has one minute to guess what the student told their partner to do. If they manage to do this and make a suitable sentence with reported speech, they score a point. The pairs then swap roles and the process is repeated. The pair with the most points at the end of the game wins.

Report This

Intermediate (B1) 25 minutes
ESL Reported Speech Activity preview, Intermediate B1, asking and answering questions, forming sentences, pair work

ESL Reported Speech Activity - Grammar and Speaking: Asking and Answering Questions, Forming Sentences - Pair Work

In this productive reported speech speaking activity, students interview a partner and then report the questions and answers from the interview to a new partner. In pairs, students take turns asking their...

ESL Reported Speech Activity - Grammar and Speaking: Asking and Answering Questions, Forming Sentences - Pair Work In this productive reported speech speaking activity, students interview a partner and then report the questions and answers from the interview to a new partner. In pairs, students take turns asking their partner the questions on the worksheet, noting down each answer under the question. Next, students report the questions and answers from the interview to a new partner using reported speech, e.g. 'I asked Sam how he came to class today and he said that he came to class by car.' Afterwards, students give feedback to the class on any interesting answers using reported speech.

Reporting Modal Verbs

Intermediate (B1) 30 minutes
ESL Reporting Modal Verbs Worksheet preview, Intermediate B1, identifying, matching, gap-fill, rewriting sentences, writing a paragraph

ESL Reporting Modal Verbs Worksheet - Grammar Exercises: Identifying, Matching, Gap-fill, Rewriting Sentences, Writing a Paragraph

In this useful reported speech worksheet, students learn the indirect form of four modal verbs (could, might, would and had to) and practice using them in...

ESL Reporting Modal Verbs Worksheet - Grammar Exercises: Identifying, Matching, Gap-fill, Rewriting Sentences, Writing a Paragraph In this useful reported speech worksheet, students learn the indirect form of four modal verbs (could, might, would and had to) and practice using them in reported speech. First, students read a short dialogue and underline all the modal verbs. Students then write the modal verbs in the order that they are found in the dialogue and match them to their indirect forms. After that, students complete reported speech with the indirect form of the modal verbs in brackets. Next, students change direct speech into reported speech. Lastly, students think about a time when someone influenced them to do something new and report what was said using at least four reporting modal verbs in their response.

Run and Report

Intermediate (B1) 25 minutes
ESL Reported Speech Activity preview, Intermediate B1, running dictation, rewriting sentences, pair work

ESL Reported Speech Activity - Reading, Speaking and Grammar: Running Dictation, Rewriting Sentences - Pair Work

Here is a lively reported speech running dictation activity in which students change two phone dialogues into reported speech. One student is the reader and the other is the writer. The readers run to...

ESL Reported Speech Activity - Reading, Speaking and Grammar: Running Dictation, Rewriting Sentences - Pair Work Here is a lively reported speech running dictation activity in which students change two phone dialogues into reported speech. One student is the reader and the other is the writer. The readers run to the dialogues, read a line, remember it, run back, and say it to their partner who writes it down. When a pair gets halfway through, the two students swap roles. Next, students race to read the two dialogues and change them into reported speech. The first pair of students to successfully change the conversations into reported speech wins.

Somebody told me that...

Intermediate (B1) 40 minutes
ESL Reported Speech Activities preview, Intermediate B1, speaking, asking and answering questions, forming sentences, guessing, group work

ESL Reported Speech Activities - Speaking Activity: Asking and Answering Questions - Grammar Game: Forming Sentences, Guessing - Group Work

In this creative set of reported speech activities, students ask and answer yes/no questions in a 'Find Someone Who' activity and then play a guessing game...

ESL Reported Speech Activities - Speaking Activity: Asking and Answering Questions - Grammar Game: Forming Sentences, Guessing - Group Work In this creative set of reported speech activities, students ask and answer yes/no questions in a 'Find Someone Who' activity and then play a guessing game where they report back the information they found out. First, students go around asking questions to their classmates. When a classmate answers 'yes' to a question, the student writes down their name and asks a follow-up question to gain more information, noting down the answer. In groups, students then take turns reporting back the information they found out about their classmates using reported speech. Students do this without saying the classmate's name. Instead, they use the phrase 'Somebody told me that...' The other students in the group guess who said each thing, scoring one point for each correct guess. When the correct person has been guessed, the student reports back the additional information. The student with the most points at the end of the game wins.

Telephone Messages

Intermediate (B1) 25 minutes
ESL Reported Speech Game preview, Intermediate B1, asking and answering questions from prompts, group work

ESL Reported Speech Game - Grammar and Speaking: Asking and Answering Questions, Freer Practice - Group Work

In this free reported speech game, students relay telephone messages to each other using reported speech. In groups, each student is given five question cards and five telephone message cards. Students...

ESL Reported Speech Game - Grammar and Speaking: Asking and Answering Questions, Freer Practice - Group Work In this free reported speech game, students relay telephone messages to each other using reported speech. In groups, each student is given five question cards and five telephone message cards. Students then take turns to choose a question card and ask a group member if they have a message from the person or place indicated on the card, e.g. 'Have you got a message for me from the bank?' If the group member says yes, they relay the message using reported speech and then give the message card to the student. If the group member says no, the student has to wait until their next turn to ask the other group member. The first student to collect all their message cards wins the game.

Trip Around the World

Intermediate (B1) 45 minutes
ESL Reported Speech Activity preview, Intermediate B1, writing questions and answers, role-play, interview, writing a short article, group and pair work

ESL Reported Speech Activity - Grammar, Speaking and Writing: Writing Questions and Answers, Role-play, Interview, Writing a Short Article - Group and Pair Work

In this engaging reported speech activity, students role-play an interview between a traveller and a journalist and then write a short magazine article about...

ESL Reported Speech Activity - Grammar, Speaking and Writing: Writing Questions and Answers, Role-play, Interview, Writing a Short Article - Group and Pair Work In this engaging reported speech activity, students role-play an interview between a traveller and a journalist and then write a short magazine article about the interview using reported speech. In groups, the travellers think of answers to questions about their trip and write them on their worksheet. The travellers also think of two more things they can say about their trip. The journalists write questions from prompts on their worksheet and create two questions of their own at the end. When everyone is ready, each journalist pairs up with a traveller. Each journalist then interviews a traveller using their questions, noting down their answers. After the interview, the journalist and traveller work together to write a short magazine article in reported speech, based on what the traveller said in the interview. Finally, pairs read their articles to the class.

What did they say?

Intermediate (B1) 45 minutes
ESL Reported Speech Game preview, Intermediate B1, asking and answering questions from prompts, writing sentences, group work

ESL Reported Speech Game - Grammar and Speaking: Asking and Answering Questions, Writing Sentences, Controlled and Freer Practice - Group Work

In this rewarding reported speech game, students report back answers to questions and race to complete sentences about what people said. First, students...

ESL Reported Speech Game - Grammar and Speaking: Asking and Answering Questions, Writing Sentences, Controlled and Freer Practice - Group Work In this rewarding reported speech game, students report back answers to questions and race to complete sentences about what people said. First, students write down the name of a student who is not in their group at the beginning of each sentence on their worksheet. Next, a student from each group reads a question and memorizes it. The student then looks at the name at the beginning of the first sentence on their worksheet (e.g. Sophia) and goes to the group where the person is located to ask them the question. The student then returns and reports back the answer to the group using reported speech, e.g. 'Sophia said that she had been studying English for five years.' Everyone in the group then writes down what the student said on their own worksheet. When all the group members have written the sentence, the next student asks the second question to the person whose name is written at the beginning of the second sentence, and so on. The first group to complete their worksheets with grammatically correct sentences wins the game.

What did you ask me?

Intermediate (B1) 40 minutes
ESL Reported Speech Activity preview, Intermediate B1, asking and answering questions, writing sentences, pair work

ESL Reported Speech Activity - Grammar, Speaking and Writing: Asking and Answering Questions, Writing Sentences - Pair Work

In this enjoyable reported speech speaking activity, students practice reporting questions they were asked and answers they received. First, students go around...

ESL Reported Speech Activity - Grammar, Speaking and Writing: Asking and Answering Questions, Writing Sentences - Pair Work In this enjoyable reported speech speaking activity, students practice reporting questions they were asked and answers they received. First, students go around the class, asking each classmate a question and making a note of the answers on the worksheet. Students also try to remember each question they were asked, without writing it down. Next, in pairs, students try to remember and write down in reported speech the questions they were asked, e.g. 'Ryan asked what month I was born.' When the pairs have finished, check the answers with the class by asking students what questions they can remember, e.g. 'What did Ryan ask you?' Then, check the correct answer with the student who asked the question. Finally, students summarize the answers they received and report them back to the class using reported speech, e.g. 'Five people said they were born in July. Four people said they were born in October, etc.'

I asked you not to...

Upper-intermediate (B2) 45 minutes
ESL Reported Speech Game preview, Upper-intermediate B2, forming sentences from prompts, group work

ESL Reported Speech Game - Grammar: Forming Sentences - Group Work

In this compelling reported speech game, students practice reporting negative requests using 'not to'. In groups, students take turns swapping one card with another player. Next, the student tries to form a sentence that reports a negative request...

ESL Reported Speech Game - Grammar: Forming Sentences from Prompts - Group Work In this compelling reported speech game, students practice reporting negative requests using 'not to'. In groups, students take turns swapping one card with another player. Next, the student tries to form a sentence that reports a negative request with 'not' using three cards from their hand, comprising of two noun cards and one verb card, e.g. 'An employee at my company begged our manager not to fire him because of his mistake.' If the other players judge the sentence as correct, the student places the three cards on the desk and writes the sentence on a piece of paper. It's then the next student's turn to play. If the student is unable to form a correct sentence, play passes to the next student. The first student to get rid of all their cards wins the game.

Infinitive Clauses Practice

Upper-intermediate (B2) 25 minutes
ESL Infinitive Clauses Worksheet preview, Upper-intermediate B2, binary choice, gap-fill, matching, unscrambling, rewriting sentences

ESL Infinitive Clauses Worksheet - Grammar Exercises: Binary Choice, Gap-fill, Matching, Unscrambling, Rewriting Sentences

Here is a comprehensive infinitive clauses worksheet to help students practice using infinitive clauses with reporting verbs. First, students read about the use of reporting verbs in infinitive clause sentences...

ESL Infinitive Clauses Worksheet - Grammar Exercises: Binary Choice, Gap-fill, Matching, Unscrambling, Rewriting Sentences Here is a comprehensive infinitive clauses worksheet to help students practice using infinitive clauses with reporting verbs. First, students read about the use of reporting verbs in infinitive clause sentences. Next, students underline the correct reporting verb in each sentence and then choose a suitable verb for each sentence and write it in its infinitive form. After that, students match sentence halves together to make infinitive clause sentences. Students then put words in the correct order to make infinitive clause sentences. Finally, students change direct speech to reported speech, using one of the reporting verbs provided plus an infinitive.

Listening In

Upper-intermediate (B2) 25 minutes
ESL Reported Speech Game preview, Upper-intermediate B2, sentence completion, guessing, group and pair work

ESL Reported Speech Game - Grammar: Sentence Completion, Guessing - Group and Pair Work

In this imaginative reported speech game, students use reporting verbs to write statements about what was said in different situations and then read them to a partner, who guesses each situation...

ESL Reported Speech Game - Grammar: Sentence Completion, Guessing - Group and Pair Work In this imaginative reported speech game, students use reporting verbs to write statements about what was said in different situations and then read them to a partner, who guesses each situation. First, in two groups, students read each situation and complete statements reporting what was said. Next, students pair up with someone from the other group and take turns reading each set of reported statements to their partner, who has three chances to guess the situation. For each correct guess, students put a tick. The student with the most correct guesses at the end of the game wins.

Understanding Reported Speech

Reported speech is the way English speakers pass on what someone else said without repeating their exact words, typically shifting the verb tense back one step so that 'I am tired' becomes 'She said she was tired.' Students who skip the tense shift produce sentences that sound wrong to any fluent reader, and in job applications, academic writing, or any formal context, that error signals a clear gap in language control.

This page covers reported speech across Pre-intermediate (A2), Intermediate (B1), and Upper-intermediate (B2) levels, with 15 activities, games, and worksheets including running dictations, role-plays, card games, and writing tasks, with two free downloads.

The table below shows how verb tenses shift when moving from direct speech to reported speech; note that pronouns and time expressions such as 'now' and 'today' also change to match the reporting context.

Direct Speech TenseReported Speech TenseDirect ExampleReported Example
Present Simple Past Simple 'I like pizza.' 'She said she liked pizza.'
Present Continuous Past Continuous 'I am working.' 'He said he was working.'
Past Simple Past Perfect 'I finished it.' 'She said she had finished it.'
Present Perfect Past Perfect 'I have seen it.' 'He said he had seen it.'
Future (will) Conditional (would) 'I will call you.' 'She said she would call me.'
Can Could 'I can help.' 'He said he could help.'
May Might 'I may be late.' 'She said she might be late.'
Must Had to 'I must leave.' 'He said he had to leave.'

When to Use Reported Speech

Passing on second-hand information: A speaker uses reported speech when passing on what someone else said to a person who was not present, which is the natural structure for updating a colleague after a meeting, as in 'The manager said that the deadline had been moved to Friday.'

Quoting written sources: Writers use reported speech to summarise what a document, report, or message said without reproducing it word for word, keeping academic and professional writing concise, as in 'The report stated that sales had increased by twelve percent.'

Relaying instructions: A speaker uses reported speech to pass on a request or instruction from someone in authority to someone who needs to act on it, as in 'The doctor told me to take two tablets twice a day.'

3-Step Framework for Teaching Reported Speech

1. Nail the Tense Shift with a Card Game: Start with a card-matching game that turns the tense shift into a hands-on challenge from the first minute. One player turns over a direct speech card and reads the sentence aloud, for example 'I like pizza', she said, then converts it into reported speech before flipping a card to find the matching reported speech version. Getting the tense right is the only way to keep the pair of cards, so accuracy has an immediate payoff and errors are self-correcting.

2. Build Speed with a Running Dictation: Add physical energy to the practice with a running dictation that forces students to hold a direct speech sentence in their head long enough to report it back. One student runs to a posted phone dialogue, reads a line, memorises it, runs back, and tells their partner, who writes it down. Once the pair works halfway through, they swap roles, then race to convert both phone dialogues into reported speech.

3. Make It Real with a Role-Play and Writing Task: Push students to use reported speech for a genuine communicative purpose by having them take the roles of travellers and journalists. The traveller prepares answers about their trip, the journalist prepares and conducts a live interview, and then the two work together to write a short magazine article in reported speech based on what the traveller said in the interview. When there is a real audience and a real text to produce, reported speech stops feeling like a grammar exercise.

Common Mistakes with Reported Speech

Confusing 'said' and 'told': Students often use 'said' where 'told' is needed, not realising that 'told' must be followed by a person while 'said' stands alone or is followed by 'that.' Wrong: 'She said me that she was tired.' Correct: 'She told me that she was tired.'

Keeping the original pronoun unchanged: Students often copy the pronoun from the direct speech without adjusting it for the new speaker's perspective, producing a sentence that refers to the wrong person. Wrong: 'He said that I was going to be late.' Correct: 'He said that he was going to be late.'

Common Questions About Teaching Reported Speech

What is a free reported speech game for intermediate students?

The free game Telephone Messages at B1 level gives each student five question cards and five message cards. Students ask group members if they have a particular message and receive it only if the group member delivers it correctly in reported speech. The first student to collect all their message cards wins.

What intermediate worksheet covers modal verbs in reported speech?

The worksheet Reporting Modal Verbs at B1 level covers the indirect forms of four modal verbs: could, might, would, and had to. Students read a short dialogue, match each modal to its reported form, and convert direct speech sentences. The final task asks them to write a paragraph about a time someone influenced them to do something new.

What activity can I use to practice reported speech at intermediate level?

Reported speech becomes memorable when students have a real reason to report accurately. The activity Somebody told me that... at B1 level has students report back what classmates said without naming them, using the phrase 'Somebody told me that...' The rest of the group score a point for each correct guess about who said each thing.

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