Section 2 - Report structures

IDevice Icon That-clauses and wh-clauses
We use that-clauses to report statements:
Jo suggested that I should go to see the film.
  • We can also use that-clauses to report statements which include wh-clauses:
She remembered that what was strange was that the caller refused to leave his name.
She claimed that whether we stayed or not made no difference to her.

IDevice Icon wh-clauses

We use wh-clauses to report questions with wh-words (why, when, etc.):
The department manager asked me when I was thinking of leaving.
Our neighbours wanted to know where we were going on holiday.


Watch out! 

The word order is normally subject-verb, not verb-subject as in direct questions. Three is no question mark:

He asked me how did I manage it? - INCORRECT
He asked me how I managed it. - CORRECT


IDevice Icon if-clauses
We use if-clauses to report yes / no questions:
My mother just rang to check if I was coming.

We can also use if/whether in that-clauses to report conditionals, or statements which talk about alternatives:
She said that if we were staying, she'd have to make up the spare bed.

IDevice Icon Infinitive and -ing forms in reporting
We can report statements, orders and questions with verbs followed by a to-infinitive, with and without an object:
She promised / offered to come with us.
She advised me / warned us not to go with them.
  • We can also use report verbs followed by -ing. Sometimes we need a preposition:

He admitted / recalled her taking the money.
We apologised for / accused her of taking the money.

  • Note we can use a number of structures:

He agreed that it was a good idea / to marry her / with me / to her marrying him.
I advise you to go home / that your rent is due.
I advise taking the pills / against going there.


IDevice Icon Impersonal reports
We can report what people generally say or think using passive report verbs. There are two structures - It + that-clause, or subject + to-infinitive:
It's reputed that he's worth £100 million.
He's reputed to be worth £10 million.
  • Here are report verbs we use in the same way: know, rumour, report, say, believe, suppose, feel
  • Some verbs, e.g. suspect and hint, can't be used with a to-infinitive structure:
He is suspected of being guilty of cheating.
It's been hinted that he's worth even more.
  • Here are examples of report verbs we can use only in the structure It + that-clause: suggest, learn, accept, announce, argue, hope

IDevice Icon Summarising in reported speech

When we report what people generally say or think, we commonly summarise the original statement. The aim is to report the meaning, not the exact words:

Original  Report 
'I don't know. Maybe I'll give up work for a while. I'm fed up with this job anyway. What I really want to do is to travel overseas a bit. A year, maybe.'  Anyway, she said she was thinking of leaving her job and going abroad, possibly for a year. 


IDevice Icon Adding personal comments
When reporting, we may add details and give our reaction, e.g. by using a particular report verb. In this example, these interpretations are in bold:
She was going on about leaving, which I thought was strange.
She even said something about travelling, which in my opinion would be a complete waste of time.

iDevice icon Check!
Add the missing word in each of these examples.
a. Sylvia said she hadn't got enough time.
b. We enquired or not they were staying.
c. She asked I would stay long.
d. The firemen told us leave the building.
e. My father asked me I intended to do.
  

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