reported speech using whether

• Grammar & vocab

How to use “whether” and “if”

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Munnazah Nadeem. - November 19, 2015, 6:05 pm Reply

It really quenched my thirst for having the use if whether and if clause…

Prabha - January 21, 2017, 12:53 pm Reply

Thanks for clarifying the difference .in the use of whether and if

Kusum - March 12, 2018, 6:53 am Reply

Thanks for clearing difference between if and whether

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Reported Speech – Rules, Examples & Worksheet

| Candace Osmond

Candace Osmond

Candace Osmond studied Advanced Writing & Editing Essentials at MHC. She’s been an International and USA TODAY Bestselling Author for over a decade. And she’s worked as an Editor for several mid-sized publications. Candace has a keen eye for content editing and a high degree of expertise in Fiction.

They say gossip is a natural part of human life. That’s why language has evolved to develop grammatical rules about the “he said” and “she said” statements. We call them reported speech.

Every time we use reported speech in English, we are talking about something said by someone else in the past. Thinking about it brings me back to high school, when reported speech was the main form of language!

Learn all about the definition, rules, and examples of reported speech as I go over everything. I also included a worksheet at the end of the article so you can test your knowledge of the topic.

What Does Reported Speech Mean?

Reported speech is a term we use when telling someone what another person said. You can do this while speaking or writing.

There are two kinds of reported speech you can use: direct speech and indirect speech. I’ll break each down for you.

A direct speech sentence mentions the exact words the other person said. For example:

• Kryz said, “These are all my necklaces.”

Indirect speech changes the original speaker’s words. For example:

• Kryz said those were all her necklaces.

When we tell someone what another individual said, we use reporting verbs like told, asked, convinced, persuaded, and said. We also change the first-person figure in the quotation into the third-person speaker.

Reported Speech Examples

We usually talk about the past every time we use reported speech. That’s because the time of speaking is already done. For example:

• Direct speech: The employer asked me, “Do you have experience with people in the corporate setting?”

Indirect speech: The employer asked me if I had experience with people in the corporate setting.

• Direct speech: “I’m working on my thesis,” I told James.

Indirect speech: I told James that I was working on my thesis.

Reported Speech Structure

A speech report has two parts: the reporting clause and the reported clause. Read the example below:

• Harry said, “You need to help me.”

The reporting clause here is William said. Meanwhile, the reported clause is the 2nd clause, which is I need your help.

What are the 4 Types of Reported Speech?

Aside from direct and indirect, reported speech can also be divided into four. The four types of reported speech are similar to the kinds of sentences: imperative, interrogative, exclamatory, and declarative.

Reported Speech Rules

The rules for reported speech can be complex. But with enough practice, you’ll be able to master them all.

Choose Whether to Use That or If

The most common conjunction in reported speech is that. You can say, “My aunt says she’s outside,” or “My aunt says that she’s outside.”

Use if when you’re reporting a yes-no question. For example:

• Direct speech: “Are you coming with us?”

Indirect speech: She asked if she was coming with them.

Verb Tense Changes

Change the reporting verb into its past form if the statement is irrelevant now. Remember that some of these words are irregular verbs, meaning they don’t follow the typical -d or -ed pattern. For example:

• Direct speech: I dislike fried chicken.

Reported speech: She said she disliked fried chicken.

Note how the main verb in the reported statement is also in the past tense verb form.

Use the simple present tense in your indirect speech if the initial words remain relevant at the time of reporting. This verb tense also works if the report is something someone would repeat. For example:

• Slater says they’re opening a restaurant soon.
• Maya says she likes dogs.

This rule proves that the choice of verb tense is not a black-and-white question. The reporter needs to analyze the context of the action.

Move the tense backward when the reporting verb is in the past tense. That means:

• Present simple becomes past simple.
• Present perfect becomes past perfect.
• Present continuous becomes past continuous.
• Past simple becomes past perfect.
• Past continuous becomes past perfect continuous.

Here are some examples:

• The singer has left the building. (present perfect)

He said that the singers had left the building. (past perfect)

• Her sister gave her new shows. (past simple)
• She said that her sister had given her new shoes. (past perfect)

If the original speaker is discussing the future, change the tense of the reporting verb into the past form. There’ll also be a change in the auxiliary verbs.

• Will or shall becomes would.
• Will be becomes would be.
• Will have been becomes would have been.
• Will have becomes would have.

For example:

• Direct speech: “I will be there in a moment.”

Indirect speech: She said that she would be there in a moment.

Do not change the verb tenses in indirect speech when the sentence has a time clause. This rule applies when the introductory verb is in the future, present, and present perfect. Here are other conditions where you must not change the tense:

• If the sentence is a fact or generally true.
• If the sentence’s verb is in the unreal past (using second or third conditional).
• If the original speaker reports something right away.
• Do not change had better, would, used to, could, might, etc.

Changes in Place and Time Reference

Changing the place and time adverb when using indirect speech is essential. For example, now becomes then and today becomes that day. Here are more transformations in adverbs of time and places.

• This – that.
• These – those.
• Now – then.
• Here – there.
• Tomorrow – the next/following day.
• Two weeks ago – two weeks before.
• Yesterday – the day before.

Here are some examples.

• Direct speech: “I am baking cookies now.”

Indirect speech: He said he was baking cookies then.

• Direct speech: “Myra went here yesterday.”

Indirect speech: She said Myra went there the day before.

• Direct speech: “I will go to the market tomorrow.”

Indirect speech: She said she would go to the market the next day.

Using Modals

If the direct speech contains a modal verb, make sure to change them accordingly.

• Will becomes would
• Can becomes could
• Shall becomes should or would.
• Direct speech: “Will you come to the ball with me?”

Indirect speech: He asked if he would come to the ball with me.

• Direct speech: “Gina can inspect the room tomorrow because she’s free.”

Indirect speech: He said Gina could inspect the room the next day because she’s free.

However, sometimes, the modal verb should does not change grammatically. For example:

• Direct speech: “He should go to the park.”

Indirect speech: She said that he should go to the park.

Imperative Sentences

To change an imperative sentence into a reported indirect sentence, use to for imperative and not to for negative sentences. Never use the word that in your indirect speech. Another rule is to remove the word please . Instead, say request or say. For example:

• “Please don’t interrupt the event,” said the host.

The host requested them not to interrupt the event.

• Jonah told her, “Be careful.”
• Jonah ordered her to be careful.

Reported Questions

When reporting a direct question, I would use verbs like inquire, wonder, ask, etc. Remember that we don’t use a question mark or exclamation mark for reports of questions. Below is an example I made of how to change question forms.

• Incorrect: He asked me where I live?

Correct: He asked me where I live.

Here’s another example. The first sentence uses direct speech in a present simple question form, while the second is the reported speech.

• Where do you live?

She asked me where I live.

Wrapping Up Reported Speech

My guide has shown you an explanation of reported statements in English. Do you have a better grasp on how to use it now?

Reported speech refers to something that someone else said. It contains a subject, reporting verb, and a reported cause.

Don’t forget my rules for using reported speech. Practice the correct verb tense, modal verbs, time expressions, and place references.

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• Parts of Speech and Sentence Structure
• Sentence Structure – Forms of Sentences
• Indirect Speech
• Indirect Questions (if, whether)

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Indirect Questions

Mark and his granny.

• When he rang the bell at her door, she asked from the inside: "Who is there?"
• Mark answered : "It's me, Mark!" And he asked : "Do you want to let me in?" She opened the door and hugged him.
• "Are you hungry?", she asked . He replied : "I am starving." They went inside. She had cooked a huge meal.
• "Do you like potatoes and fish?", she asked .
• "I like fish", said Mark. "I do not really like potatoes." His grandmother sighed.
• "Would you prefer fries?", she asked unwillingly.
• "I would love that!", Mark screamed .
• When he rang the bell at her door, she asked from the inside who was there.
• Mark answered that it was him and he asked whether she wanted to let him in. She opened the door and hugged him.
• She asked whether he was hungry and he replied that he was starving. They went inside. She had cooked a huge meal.
• She asked him whether he liked fish and potatoes.
• Mark answered that he liked fish but that he did not really like potatoes. His grandmother sighed.
• Unwillingly she asked him whether he preferred fries.
• Mark screamed that he would love that.

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Reported Speech in English

“Reported speech” might sound fancy, but it isn’t that complicated.

It’s just how you talk about what someone said.

Luckily, it’s pretty simple to learn the basics in English, beginning with the two types of reported speech: direct (reporting the exact words someone said) and indirect (reporting what someone said without using their exact words ).

Read this post to learn how to report speech, with tips and tricks for each, plenty of examples and a resources section that tells you about real world resources you can use to practice reporting speech.

How to Report Direct Speech

How to report indirect speech, reporting questions in indirect speech, verb tenses in indirect reported speech, simple present, present continuous, present perfect, present perfect continuous, simple past, past continuous, past perfect, past perfect continuous, simple future, future continuous, future perfect, future perfect continuous, authentic resources for practicing reported speech, novels and short stories, native english videos, celebrity profiles.

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Direct speech refers to the exact words that a person says. You can “report” direct speech in a few different ways.

To see how this works, let’s pretend that I (Elisabeth) told some people that I liked green onions.

Here are some different ways that those people could explain what I said:

Direct speech: “I like green onions,” Elisabeth said.

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Direct speech: “I like green onions,” she told me. — In this sentence, we replace my name (Elisabeth) with the pronoun she.

In all of these examples, the part that was said is between quotation marks and is followed by a noun (“she” or “Elisabeth”) and a verb. Each of these verbs (“to say,” “to tell [someone],” “to explain”) are ways to describe someone talking. You can use any verb that refers to speech in this way.

You can also put the noun and verb before what was said.

Direct speech: Elisabeth said, “I like spaghetti.”

The example above would be much more likely to be said out loud than the first set of examples.

Here’s a conversation that might happen between two people:

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1: Did you ask her if she liked coffee?

2: Yeah, I asked her.

1: What did she say?

2. She said, “Yeah, I like coffee.” ( Direct speech )

Usually, reporting of direct speech is something you see in writing. It doesn’t happen as often when people are talking to each other. 

Direct reported speech often happens in the past. However, there are all kinds of stories, including journalism pieces, profiles and fiction, where you might see speech reported in the present as well.

This is sometimes done when the author of the piece wants you to feel that you’re experiencing events in the present moment.

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For example, a profile of Kristen Stewart in Vanity Fair  has a funny moment that describes how the actress isn’t a very good swimmer:

Direct speech: “I don’t want to enter the water, ever,” she says. “If everyone’s going in the ocean, I’m like, no.”

Here, the speech is reported as though it’s in the present tense (“she says”) instead of in the past (“she said”).

In writing of all kinds, direct reported speech is often split into two or more parts, as it is above.

Here’s an example from Lewis Carroll’s “ Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland ,” where the speech is even more split up:

Direct speech: “I won’t indeed!” said Alice, in a great hurry to change the subject of conversation. “Are you—are you fond—of—of dogs?” The Mouse did not answer, so Alice went on eagerly: “There is such a nice little dog near our house I should like to show you!”

Reporting indirect speech is what happens when you explain what someone said without using their exact words.

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Let’s start with an example of direct reported speech like those used above.

Direct speech: Elisabeth said, “I like coffee.”

As indirect reported speech, it looks like this:

Indirect speech: Elisabeth said she liked coffee.

You can see that the subject (“I”) has been changed to “she,” to show who is being spoken about. If I’m reporting the direct speech of someone else, and this person says “I,” I’d repeat their sentence exactly as they said it. If I’m reporting this person’s speech indirectly to someone else, however, I’d speak about them in the third person—using “she,” “he” or “they.”

You may also notice that the tense changes here: If “I like coffee” is what she said, this can become “She liked coffee” in indirect speech.

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However, you might just as often hear someone say something like, “She said she likes coffee.” Since people’s likes and preferences tend to change over time and not right away, it makes sense to keep them in the present tense.

Indirect speech often uses the word “that” before what was said:

Indirect speech: She said that she liked coffee.

There’s no real difference between “She said she liked coffee” and “She said that she liked coffee.” However, using “that” can help make the different parts of the sentence clearer.

Let’s look at a few other examples:

Indirect speech: I said I was going outside today.

Indirect speech: They told me that they wanted to order pizza.

Indirect speech: He mentioned it was raining.

Indirect speech: She said that her father was coming over for dinner.

You can see an example of reporting indirect speech in the funny video “ Cell Phone Crashing .” In this video, a traveler in an airport sits down next to another traveler talking on his cell phone. The first traveler pretends to be talking to someone on his phone, but he appears to be responding to the second traveler’s conversation, which leads to this exchange:

Woman: “Are you answering what I’m saying?”

Man “No, no… I’m on the phone with somebody, sorry. I don’t mean to be rude.” (Direct speech)

Woman: “What was that?”

Man: “I just said I was on the phone with somebody.” (Indirect speech)

When reporting questions in indirect speech, you can use words like “whether” or “if” with verbs that show questioning, such as “to ask” or “to wonder.”

Direct speech: She asked, “Is that a new restaurant?”

Indirect speech: She asked if that was a new restaurant. 

In any case where you’re reporting a question, you can say that someone was “wondering” or “wanted to know” something. Notice that these verbs don’t directly show that someone asked a question. They don’t describe an action that happened at a single point in time. But you can usually assume that someone was wondering or wanted to know what they asked.

Indirect speech: She was wondering if that was a new restaurant.

Indirect speech: She wanted to know whether that was a new restaurant.

It can be tricky to know how to use tenses when reporting indirect speech. Let’s break it down, tense by tense.

Sometimes, indirect speech “ backshifts ,” or moves one tense further back into the past. We already saw this in the example from above:

Direct speech: She said, “I like coffee.”

Indirect speech: She said she liked coffee.

Also as mentioned above, backshifting doesn’t always happen. This might seem confusing, but it isn’t that difficult to understand once you start using reported speech regularly.

What tense you use in indirect reported speech often just depends on when what you’re reporting happened or was true.

Let’s look at some examples of how direct speech in certain tenses commonly changes (or doesn’t) when it’s reported as indirect speech.

To learn about all the English tenses (or for a quick review), check out this post .

Direct speech: I said, “I play video games.”

Indirect speech: I said that I played video games (simple past) or I said that I play video games  (simple present).

Backshifting into the past or staying in the present here can change the meaning slightly. If you use the first example, it’s unclear whether or not you still play video games; all we know is that you said you played them in the past.

If you use the second example, though, you probably still play video games (unless you were lying for some reason).

However, the difference in meaning is so small, you can use either one and you won’t have a problem.

Direct speech: I said, “I’m playing video games.”

Indirect speech: I said that I was playing video games (past continuous) or I said that I’m playing video games (present continuous).

In this case, you’d likely use the first example if you were telling a story about something that happened in the past.

You could use the second example to repeat or stress what you just said. For example:

Hey, want to go for a walk?

Direct speech: No, I’m playing video games.

But it’s such a nice day!

Indirect speech: I said that I’m playing video games!

Direct speech: Marie said, “I have read that book.”

Indirect speech: Marie said that she had read that book (past perfect) or Marie said that she has read that book (present perfect).

The past perfect is used a lot in writing and other kinds of narration. This is because it helps point out an exact moment in time when something was true.

The past perfect isn’t quite as useful in conversation, where people are usually more interested in what’s true now. So, in a lot of cases, people would use the second example above when speaking.

Direct speech: She said, “I have been watching that show.”

Indirect speech: She said that she had been watching that show (past perfect continuous) or She said that she has been watching that show (present perfect continuous).

These examples are similar to the others above. You could use the first example whether or not this person was still watching the show, but if you used the second example, it’d probably seem like you either knew or guessed that she was still watching it.

Direct speech: You told me, “I charged my phone.”

Indirect speech: You told me that you had charged your phone (past perfect) or You told me that you charged your phone (simple past).

Here, most people would probably just use the second example, because it’s simpler, and gets across the same meaning.

Direct speech: You told me, “I was charging my phone.”

Indirect speech: You told me that you had been charging your phone (past perfect continuous) or You told me that you were charging your phone (past continuous).

Here, the difference is between whether you had been charging your phone before or were charging your phone at the time. However, a lot of people would still use the second example in either situation.

Direct speech: They explained, “We had bathed the cat on Wednesday.”

Indirect speech: They explained that they had bathed the cat on Wednesday. (past perfect)

Once we start reporting the past perfect tenses, we don’t backshift because there are no tenses to backshift to.

So in this case, it’s simple. The tense stays exactly as is. However, many people might simplify even more and use the simple past, saying, “They explained that they bathed the cat on Wednesday.”

Direct speech: They said, “The cat had been going outside and getting dirty for a long time!”

Indirect speech: They said that the cat had been going outside and getting dirty for a long time. (past perfect continuous)

Again, we don’t shift the tense back here; we leave it like it is. And again, a lot of people would report this speech as, “They said the cat was going outside and getting dirty for a long time.” It’s just a simpler way to say almost the same thing.

Direct speech: I told you, “I will be here no matter what.”

Indirect speech: I told you that I would be here no matter what. (present conditional)

At this point, we don’t just have to think about tenses, but grammatical mood, too. However, the idea is still pretty simple. We use the conditional (with “would”) to show that at the time the words were spoken, the future was uncertain.

In this case, you could also say, “I told you that I will be here no matter what,” but only if you “being here” is still something that you expect to happen in the future.

What matters here is what’s intended. Since this example shows a person reporting their own speech, it’s more likely that they’d want to stress the truth of their own intention, and so they might be more likely to use “will” than “would.”

But if you were reporting someone else’s words, you might be more likely to say something like, “She told me that she would be here no matter what.”

Direct speech: I said, “I’ll be waiting for your call.”

Indirect speech: I said that I would be waiting for your call. (conditional continuous)

These are similar to the above examples, but apply to a continuous or ongoing action.

Direct speech: She said, “I will have learned a lot about myself.”

Indirect speech: She said that she would have learned a lot about herself (conditional perfect) or She said that she will have learned a lot about herself (future perfect).

In this case, using the conditional (as in the first example) suggests that maybe a certain event didn’t happen, or something didn’t turn out as expected.

However, that might not always be the case, especially if this was a sentence that was written in an article or a work of fiction. The second example, however, suggests that the future that’s being talked about still hasn’t happened yet.

Direct speech: She said, “By next Tuesday, I will have been staying inside every day for the past month.”

Indirect speech: She said that by next Tuesday, she would have been staying inside every day for the past month (perfect continuous conditional) or She said that by next Tuesday, she will have been staying inside every day for the past month (past perfect continuous).

Again, in this case, the first example might suggest that the event didn’t happen. Maybe the person didn’t stay inside until next Tuesday! However, this could also just be a way of explaining that at the time she said this in the past, it was uncertain whether she really would stay inside for as long as she thought.

The second example, on the other hand, would only be used if next Tuesday hadn’t happened yet.

Let’s take a look at where you can find resources for practicing reporting speech in the real world.

One of the most common uses for reported speech is in fiction. You’ll find plenty of reported speech in novels and short stories . Look for books that have long sections of text with dialogue marked by quotation marks (“…”). Once you understand the different kinds of reported speech, you can look for it in your reading and use it in your own writing.

Writing your own stories is a great way to get even better at understanding reported speech.

One of the best ways to practice any aspect of English is to watch native English videos. By watching English speakers use the language, you can understand how reported speech is used in real world situations.

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Celebrity profiles, which you can find in print magazines and online, can help you find and practice reported speech, too. Celebrity profiles are stories that focus on a famous person. They often include some kind of interview. The writer will usually spend some time describing the person and then mention things that they say; this is when they use reported speech.

Because many of these profiles are written in the present tense, they can help you get used to the basics of reported speech without having to worry too much about different verb tenses.

While the above may seem really complicated, it isn’t that difficult to start using reported speech.

Mastering it may be a little difficult, but the truth is that many, many people who speak English as a first language struggle with it, too!

Reported speech is flexible, and even if you make mistakes, there’s a good chance that no one will notice.

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Reported Speech

Perfect english grammar.

Reported Statements

Here's how it works:

We use a 'reporting verb' like 'say' or 'tell'. ( Click here for more about using 'say' and 'tell' .) If this verb is in the present tense, it's easy. We just put 'she says' and then the sentence:

• Direct speech: I like ice cream.
• Reported speech: She says (that) she likes ice cream.

We don't need to change the tense, though probably we do need to change the 'person' from 'I' to 'she', for example. We also may need to change words like 'my' and 'your'. (As I'm sure you know, often, we can choose if we want to use 'that' or not in English. I've put it in brackets () to show that it's optional. It's exactly the same if you use 'that' or if you don't use 'that'.)

But , if the reporting verb is in the past tense, then usually we change the tenses in the reported speech:

• Reported speech: She said (that) she liked ice cream.

* doesn't change.

• Direct speech: The sky is blue.
• Reported speech: She said (that) the sky is/was blue.

Click here for a mixed tense exercise about practise reported statements. Click here for a list of all the reported speech exercises.

Reported Questions

So now you have no problem with making reported speech from positive and negative sentences. But how about questions?

• Direct speech: Where do you live?
• Reported speech: She asked me where I lived.
• Direct speech: Where is Julie?
• Reported speech: She asked me where Julie was.

• Direct speech: Do you like chocolate?
• Reported speech: She asked me if I liked chocolate.

Click here to practise reported 'wh' questions. Click here to practise reported 'yes / no' questions. Reported Requests

There's more! What if someone asks you to do something (in a polite way)? For example:

• Direct speech: Close the window, please
• Or: Could you close the window please?
• Or: Would you mind closing the window please?
• Reported speech: She asked me to close the window.

• Direct speech: Please don't be late.
• Reported speech: She asked us not to be late.

Reported Orders

• Direct speech: Sit down!
• Reported speech: She told me to sit down.

• Click here for an exercise to practise reported requests and orders.

• Click here for an exercise about using 'say' and 'tell'.
• Click here for a list of all the reported speech exercises.

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What is Reported Speech and how to use it? with Examples

Published by

Olivia Drake

Reported speech and indirect speech are two terms that refer to the same concept, which is the act of expressing what someone else has said.

On this page:

Reported speech is different from direct speech because it does not use the speaker’s exact words. Instead, the reporting verb is used to introduce the reported speech, and the tense and pronouns are changed to reflect the shift in perspective. There are two main types of reported speech: statements and questions.

1. Reported Statements: In reported statements, the reporting verb is usually “said.” The tense in the reported speech changes from the present simple to the past simple, and any pronouns referring to the speaker or listener are changed to reflect the shift in perspective. For example, “I am going to the store,” becomes “He said that he was going to the store.”

2. Reported Questions: In reported questions, the reporting verb is usually “asked.” The tense in the reported speech changes from the present simple to the past simple, and the word order changes from a question to a statement. For example, “What time is it?” becomes “She asked what time it was.”

It’s important to note that the tense shift in reported speech depends on the context and the time of the reported speech. Here are a few more examples:

• Direct speech: “I will call you later.”Reported speech: He said that he would call me later.
• Direct speech: “Did you finish your homework?”Reported speech: She asked if I had finished my homework.
• Direct speech: “I love pizza.”Reported speech: They said that they loved pizza.

When do we use reported speech?

Reported speech is used to report what someone else has said, thought, or written. It is often used in situations where you want to relate what someone else has said without quoting them directly.

Reported speech can be used in a variety of contexts, such as in news reports, academic writing, and everyday conversation. Some common situations where reported speech is used include:

News reports:  Journalists often use reported speech to quote what someone said in an interview or press conference.

Business and professional communication:  In professional settings, reported speech can be used to summarize what was discussed in a meeting or to report feedback from a customer.

Conversational English:  In everyday conversations, reported speech is used to relate what someone else said. For example, “She told me that she was running late.”

Narration:  In written narratives or storytelling, reported speech can be used to convey what a character said or thought.

How to make reported speech?

1. Change the pronouns and adverbs of time and place: In reported speech, you need to change the pronouns, adverbs of time and place to reflect the new speaker or point of view. Here’s an example:

Direct speech: “I’m going to the store now,” she said. Reported speech: She said she was going to the store then.

In this example, the pronoun “I” is changed to “she” and the adverb “now” is changed to “then.”

2. Change the tense: In reported speech, you usually need to change the tense of the verb to reflect the change from direct to indirect speech. Here’s an example:

Direct speech: “I will meet you at the park tomorrow,” he said. Reported speech: He said he would meet me at the park the next day.

In this example, the present tense “will” is changed to the past tense “would.”

3. Change reporting verbs: In reported speech, you can use different reporting verbs such as “say,” “tell,” “ask,” or “inquire” depending on the context of the speech. Here’s an example:

Direct speech: “Did you finish your homework?” she asked. Reported speech: She asked if I had finished my homework.

In this example, the reporting verb “asked” is changed to “said” and “did” is changed to “had.”

Overall, when making reported speech, it’s important to pay attention to the verb tense and the changes in pronouns, adverbs, and reporting verbs to convey the original speaker’s message accurately.

How do I change the pronouns and adverbs in reported speech?

1. Changing Pronouns: In reported speech, the pronouns in the original statement must be changed to reflect the perspective of the new speaker. Generally, the first person pronouns (I, me, my, mine, we, us, our, ours) are changed according to the subject of the reporting verb, while the second and third person pronouns (you, your, yours, he, him, his, she, her, hers, it, its, they, them, their, theirs) are changed according to the object of the reporting verb. For example:

Direct speech: “I love chocolate.” Reported speech: She said she loved chocolate.

Direct speech: “You should study harder.” Reported speech: He advised me to study harder.

Direct speech: “She is reading a book.” Reported speech: They noticed that she was reading a book.

2. Changing Adverbs: In reported speech, the adverbs and adverbial phrases that indicate time or place may need to be changed to reflect the perspective of the new speaker. For example:

Direct speech: “I’m going to the cinema tonight.” Reported speech: She said she was going to the cinema that night.

Direct speech: “He is here.” Reported speech: She said he was there.

Note that the adverb “now” usually changes to “then” or is omitted altogether in reported speech, depending on the context.

It’s important to keep in mind that the changes made to pronouns and adverbs in reported speech depend on the context and the perspective of the new speaker. With practice, you can become more comfortable with making these changes in reported speech.

How do I change the tense in reported speech?

In reported speech, the tense of the reported verb usually changes to reflect the change from direct to indirect speech. Here are some guidelines on how to change the tense in reported speech:

Present simple in direct speech changes to past simple in reported speech. For example: Direct speech: “I like pizza.” Reported speech: She said she liked pizza.

Present continuous in direct speech changes to past continuous in reported speech. For example: Direct speech: “I am studying for my exam.” Reported speech: He said he was studying for his exam.

Present perfect in direct speech changes to past perfect in reported speech. For example: Direct speech: “I have finished my work.” Reported speech: She said she had finished her work.

Past simple in direct speech changes to past perfect in reported speech. For example: Direct speech: “I visited my grandparents last weekend.” Reported speech: She said she had visited her grandparents the previous weekend.

Will in direct speech changes to would in reported speech. For example: Direct speech: “I will help you with your project.” Reported speech: He said he would help me with my project.

Can in direct speech changes to could in reported speech. For example: Direct speech: “I can speak French.” Reported speech: She said she could speak French.

Remember that the tense changes in reported speech depend on the tense of the verb in the direct speech, and the tense you use in reported speech should match the time frame of the new speaker’s perspective. With practice, you can become more comfortable with changing the tense in reported speech.

Do I always need to use a reporting verb in reported speech?

No, you do not always need to use a reporting verb in reported speech. However, using a reporting verb can help to clarify who is speaking and add more context to the reported speech.

In some cases, the reported speech can be introduced by phrases such as “I heard that” or “It seems that” without using a reporting verb. For example:

Direct speech: “I’m going to the cinema tonight.” Reported speech with a reporting verb: She said she was going to the cinema tonight. Reported speech without a reporting verb: It seems that she’s going to the cinema tonight.

However, it’s important to note that using a reporting verb can help to make the reported speech more formal and accurate. When using reported speech in academic writing or journalism, it’s generally recommended to use a reporting verb to make the reporting more clear and credible.

Some common reporting verbs include say, tell, explain, ask, suggest, and advise. For example:

Direct speech: “I think we should invest in renewable energy.” Reported speech with a reporting verb: She suggested that they invest in renewable energy.

Overall, while using a reporting verb is not always required, it can be helpful to make the reported speech more clear and accurate

How to use reported speech to report questions and commands?

1. Reporting Questions: When reporting questions, you need to use an introductory phrase such as “asked” or “wondered” followed by the question word (if applicable), subject, and verb. You also need to change the word order to make it a statement. Here’s an example:

Direct speech: “What time is the meeting?” Reported speech: She asked what time the meeting was.

Note that the question mark is not used in reported speech.

2. Reporting Commands: When reporting commands, you need to use an introductory phrase such as “ordered” or “told” followed by the person, to + infinitive, and any additional information. Here’s an example:

Direct speech: “Clean your room!” Reported speech: She ordered me to clean my room.

Note that the exclamation mark is not used in reported speech.

In both cases, the tense of the reported verb should be changed accordingly. For example, present simple changes to past simple, and future changes to conditional. Here are some examples:

Direct speech: “Will you go to the party with me?”Reported speech: She asked if I would go to the party with her. Direct speech: “Please bring me a glass of water.”Reported speech: She requested that I bring her a glass of water.

Remember that when using reported speech to report questions and commands, the introductory phrases and verb tenses are important to convey the intended meaning accurately.

How to make questions in reported speech?

To make questions in reported speech, you need to use an introductory phrase such as “asked” or “wondered” followed by the question word (if applicable), subject, and verb. You also need to change the word order to make it a statement. Here are the steps to make questions in reported speech:

Identify the reporting verb: The first step is to identify the reporting verb in the sentence. Common reporting verbs used to report questions include “asked,” “inquired,” “wondered,” and “wanted to know.”

Change the tense and pronouns: Next, you need to change the tense and pronouns in the sentence to reflect the shift from direct to reported speech. The tense of the verb is usually shifted back one tense (e.g. from present simple to past simple) in reported speech. The pronouns should also be changed as necessary to reflect the shift in perspective from the original speaker to the reporting speaker.

Use an appropriate question word: If the original question contained a question word (e.g. who, what, where, when, why, how), you should use the same question word in the reported question. If the original question did not contain a question word, you can use “if” or “whether” to introduce the reported question.

Change the word order: In reported speech, the word order of the question changes from the inverted form to a normal statement form. The subject usually comes before the verb, unless the original question started with a question word.

Here are some examples of reported questions:

Direct speech: “Did you finish your homework?”Reported speech: He wanted to know if I had finished my homework. Direct speech: “Where are you going?”Reported speech: She wondered where I was going.

Remember that when making questions in reported speech, the introductory phrases and verb tenses are important to convey the intended meaning accurately.

Here you can find more examples of direct and indirect questions

What is the difference between reported speech an indirect speech?

In reported or indirect speech, you are retelling or reporting what someone said using your own words. The tense of the reported speech is usually shifted back one tense from the tense used in the original statement. For example, if someone said, “I am going to the store,” in reported speech you would say, “He/she said that he/she was going to the store.”

The main difference between reported speech and indirect speech is that reported speech usually refers to spoken language, while indirect speech can refer to both spoken and written language. Additionally, indirect speech is a broader term that includes reported speech as well as other ways of expressing what someone else has said, such as paraphrasing or summarizing.

Examples of direct speech to reported

• Direct speech: “I am hungry,” she said. Reported speech: She said she was hungry.
• Direct speech: “Can you pass the salt, please?” he asked. Reported speech: He asked her to pass the salt.
• Direct speech: “I will meet you at the cinema,” he said. Reported speech: He said he would meet her at the cinema.
• Direct speech: “I have been working on this project for hours,” she said. Reported speech: She said she had been working on the project for hours.
• Direct speech: “What time does the train leave?” he asked. Reported speech: He asked what time the train left.
• Direct speech: “I love playing the piano,” she said. Reported speech: She said she loved playing the piano.
• Direct speech: “I am going to the grocery store,” he said. Reported speech: He said he was going to the grocery store.
• Direct speech: “Did you finish your homework?” the teacher asked. Reported speech: The teacher asked if he had finished his homework.
• Direct speech: “I want to go to the beach,” she said. Reported speech: She said she wanted to go to the beach.
• Direct speech: “Do you need help with that?” he asked. Reported speech: He asked if she needed help with that.
• Direct speech: “I can’t come to the party,” he said. Reported speech: He said he couldn’t come to the party.
• Direct speech: “Please don’t leave me,” she said. Reported speech: She begged him not to leave her.
• Direct speech: “I have never been to London before,” he said. Reported speech: He said he had never been to London before.
• Direct speech: “Where did you put my phone?” she asked. Reported speech: She asked where she had put her phone.
• Direct speech: “I’m sorry for being late,” he said. Reported speech: He apologized for being late.
• Direct speech: “I need some help with this math problem,” she said. Reported speech: She said she needed some help with the math problem.
• Direct speech: “I am going to study abroad next year,” he said. Reported speech: He said he was going to study abroad the following year.
• Direct speech: “Can you give me a ride to the airport?” she asked. Reported speech: She asked him to give her a ride to the airport.
• Direct speech: “I don’t know how to fix this,” he said. Reported speech: He said he didn’t know how to fix it.
• Direct speech: “I hate it when it rains,” she said. Reported speech: She said she hated it when it rained.

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Reported Speech (Indirect Speech)

Exercises on reported speech.

If we report what another person has said, we usually do not use the speaker’s exact words (direct speech), but reported (indirect) speech. Therefore, you need to learn how to transform direct speech into reported speech. The structure is a little different depending on whether you want to transform a statement, question or request.

When transforming statements, check whether you have to change:

• present tense verbs (3rd person singular)
• place and time expressions
• tenses (backshift)

→ more on statements in reported speech

When transforming questions, check whether you have to change:

Also note that you have to:

• transform the question into an indirect question
• use the interrogative or if / whether

→ more on questions in reported speech

→ more on requests in reported speech

Additional Information and Exeptions

Apart from the above mentioned basic rules, there are further aspects that you should keep in mind, for example:

• main clauses connected with and / but
• tense of the introductory clause
• reported speech for difficult tenses
• exeptions for backshift
• requests with must , should , ought to and let’s

→ more on additional information and exeptions in reported speech

Statements in Reported Speech

• no backshift – change of pronouns
• no backshift – change of pronouns and places
• with backshift
• with backshift and change of place and time expressions

Questions in Reported Speech

Requests in reported speech.

• Exercise 1 – requests (positive)
• Exercise 2 – requests (negative)
• Exercise 3 – requests (mixed)

Mixed Exercises on Reported Speech

• Exercise on reported speech with and without backshift

Grammar in Texts

• „ The Canterville Ghost “ (highlight direct speech and reported speech)

If and Whether Use in Indirect Reported Speech

In this confused words guide we are going to look at how to use if and whether in Indirect speech sentences. We will further look at differences with the help of examples.

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We will move ahead with today’s session, working out when to use If and when to use whether.

Check When To Use If & Whether

You might have observed that in an informal or Indirect speech the words ‘If’ and ‘whether’ can be used interchangeably but while in the case of formal writing such as technical writing, or documentation at work you need to be very careful as to when to use ‘if’ and ‘whether’. It is always a good idea to make a distinction between the two because they have different meanings.

If you go for the formal guidelines of English Grammar, you would notice that when you are using any conditional statement or sentence then you need to use ‘if’. Whereas ‘whether’ can be used when you wish to show alternative possibilities. You will be able to understand this by a few examples.

• Mary didn’t know whether Aardvark would arrive on Friday.
• Mary didn’t know if Aardvark would arrive on Friday.

This is the example that shows the two words cannot be used interchangeably.

It is because the sentences bring out different meaning when two different words are used. Here you would feel like using ‘whether’ would be more suitable than using ‘if’.

Examples of Final Pair ‘if-whether’

• Call Martha if you are going to arrive on Friday.
• Call Martha whether or not you are going to arrive on Friday.

In the first, you can see that a condition is raised.

Call Martha if you are going to arrive on Friday which means Aardvark only needs to call if he is coming. But in the next sentence, you can see that ‘whether’ is used.

Call Martha whether or not you are going to arrive on Friday which means Aardvark needs to call either way.

So to summarize it all, use whether when you have two discrete choices or mean “regardless of whether,” and use if for conditional sentences.

Now let’s see some examples which will help you know the difference and application of both the words.

• She is not sure whether she will be attending the party.
• He is not sure if I will be attending the party.
• (Here, in the example, the yes/no question is “Am I attending the party?”)Janice wondered whether she had unplugged the iron.
• Mona wondered if she had unplugged the iron.

Conclusion:

With this blog post, you will be able to make out what is the basic difference between the two words and they should be used to make the sentence meaningful. A slight change in the words can change the entire meaning of the sentence. If you have any doubts regarding the topic and usage of the words you can directly comment us and we will get back to you with perfect answers.

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The Reported Speech

Table of Contents

What is reported speech.

Reported speech is also referred to as indirect speech or indirect discourse .

Direct speech vs reported speech

1. We use direct speech to quote a speaker’s exact words. We put their words within quotation marks. We add a reporting verb such as “he said” or “she asked” before or after the quote.

Different types of reported speech

A. reporting statements, 1- pronouns.

3. Modal verbs

4- Place, demonstratives, and time expressions

B. Reporting Questions

C. Reporting requests/commands

D. Other transformations

Main clauses connected with and/but, punctuation rules of the reported speech, can we omit that in the reported speech, list of reporting verbs.

What’s the difference between if and whether?

If and whether are often interchangeable, but not always.

Whether always refers to two possible alternatives, while if expresses several possibilities or a condition.

A good general rule is to use whether when you only have two choices and use if in conditional sentences .

Read on for a detailed explanation of when to use if and when to use whether . Once you’ve mastered the difference, test out your knowledge in the free interactive exercises.

The cake is so tasty that Henry and Isabella would like to eat it all!

If they eat the whole cake, there won’t be any left to share with their friends later.

But Henry and Isabella don’t know if their friends are coming or not.

They can’t decide whether to save some cake.

If or whether?

Whether and if both indicate uncertainty. We use both words in reported speech and indirect questions . Sometimes these words are interchangeable:

However, sometimes if and whether have different meanings:

If/whether … or not

When talking about two possibilities, we can add ‘or not’ to the end of the clause. This is not necessary, it is just for emphasis.

Likewise, we can add ‘or not’ directly to whether . Again, this is generally redundant, but it is used in spoken English.

The only time ‘or not’ is not redundant is when whether or not means regardless or no matter if. We cannot use if in the same way.

Indirect Questions

We can use if and whether in indirect questions . Whether can be more formal than if , and, as shown above, only expresses two possibilities.

For more information about indirect questions, go to our page dedicated to indirect speech in English grammar .

• Use if in conditional sentences.

For more information about conditional sentences see if clauses .

Only Whether

• Use whether before infinitives with to .
• Use whether after prepositions.

For more information about prepositions or infinitives with to, go to our page on prepositions or the infinitive/gerund section.

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Understanding the Distinction: 'Whether' vs. 'If'

By: Richard Flynn | Category: English Grammar | Topic: Conjunctions

Last Updated: 31st Mar. 2024

Explore the differences between the usage of 'whether' and 'if' in English language.

There are subtle differences in the way we use ' whether ' and ' if '. At times, it might seem as if we can use them interchangeably, but there are specific situations when one is more appropriate than the other.

1. When both choices are given, we generally use whether rather than if :

When we find ourselves considering two options or alternatives, the word 'whether' tends to be the preferred choice. While 'if' can also be used in such situations, 'whether' is more commonly employed. For example:

I don't know whether/if  she's coming or not.

In this instance, using 'if' would still convey the intended meaning, but it's less common tnan using 'whether'.

2. Before an infinitive with to we use whether :

When we encounter an infinitive with 'to,' such as in the expression of our intentions or decisions, 'whether' becomes the appropriate selection. For example:

I don't know whether  to accept their offer or not.

If would not be used here. Instead, 'whether' conveys the sense of deliberation or hesitation surrounding the decision.

3. We can use whether after a preposition :

In certain instances, we employ 'whether' after a preposition to articulate a question or concern. For example:

It's a question of whether we can agree on everything.

If would not be used here. Instead, we use 'whether' to highlight the inquiry or uncertainty about reaching a consensus.

4. Both whether and if can be used in indirect speech to introduce a yes/no question :

Both 'whether' and 'if' can be used in indirect speech to introduce a yes/no question. For example:

Did they say whether/if they were going to be late?

Here, both 'whether' and 'if' can be used.

5. After some verbs, we use whether :

Certain verbs are commonly followed by 'whether' to express doubt or contemplation. For example:

I doubt whether they'll make it. We discussed whether it was the correct decision.

If  would not be used here.

Check the usage on Google below, or look up the definitions on Dictionary.com:

Google.com  results:  Of whether | Of if | Whether to | If to Dictionary.com definitions: Whether | If

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'If' vs. 'Whether': Similar But Different

What to Know If and whether are often interchangeable, but have distinct uses. For clarity, it is best to use whether in reference to a choice or alternatives ("we're going whether it rains or not") and if when establishing a condition ("we will go if it doesn't rain").

In English grammar, a conjunction is a word that joins together sentences, clauses, phrases, or words. If and whether are referred to as subordinating conjunctions , which means that they are elements that form sentences into word groups called, well, subordinate clauses . As such, they have similar function, which sometimes causes hesitation on which to use. Grammarians have ruled that if and whether have distinct uses; however, they are interchangeable in their shared senses referring to the uncertainty of future happenings. That ruling is consistent with the lawlessness of English, which leads to confusion (and which we will clarify).

Though English will still remain chaotic, whether we clarify this issue or not.

If starts a subordinate clause of a conditional sentence—a sentence that states a relation between cause and effect, makes a prediction, or speculates about what might happen. The bare bones: a subordinate clause is a clause that does not form a sentence by itself and is connected to a main clause , which is a complete sentence. The if clause states what must occur before something else, which is stated in the main clause. It can be at the beginning or end of a conditional sentence.

If it doesn't rain, we will go. = We will go if it doesn't rain. Please contact us if you have any further questions.

The main clause of a conditional sentence may begin with the adverb then . This often occurs in science contexts especially in statements of logic or proofs where then is used to emphasize a relation between cause and effect: "If you eat the whole pint of ice cream, then you will be satisfied"; "If line segment p , q and r are equal, then the triangle is an equilateral." Then , in general cases, is not a necessary coupling with if .

Whether is a conjunction that usually starts a subordinate clause that expresses an indirect question involving two stated or implied possibilities or alternatives. And this is where the confusion starts: if can also be used in this sense.

I'm unsure if/whether my answer is correct. [Is my answer correct?] He called the restaurant to see if/whether they take reservations. [Do they take reservations?] She wondered if/whether his story was true. [Was his story true?] They doubt if/whether the team will win. [Will the team win?] I don't know if/whether the mail has arrived. [Did the mail arrive?]

As to why this interchange is the case, we don't have an answer. If we did, we would gladly share with you.

There is a grammatical hint that calls for whether instead of if . Whether is the one that precedes an infinitive , which is the verb form in the collocation "to + simple verb," as in "I am wondering whether to change our reservations." Whether , in this case, refers to the making of a choice, whereas if states a condition, as in "If the contestant spells the word wrong, he or she will be eliminated."

Readers might be familiar with the phrase whether or not , meaning "in any case," "without regard to or in spite of other considerations," or "whatever else is done or is the case"—for example "we are going whether or not you decide to come along." The "or not" of the phrase does not need to immediately follow "whether," but it often does: hence, "The parade will go on whether it rains or not."

There are no ifs , ands , and buts , if and whether are used interchangeably as function words to indicate an indirect question involving stated or implied alternatives and have their own uses. But (so there is a but ), for clarity, it is best to use whether rather than if when referring to choice or alternatives and reserve if as the word to introduce a condition.

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Reported speech

Reported speech is how we represent the speech of other people or what we ourselves say. There are two main types of reported speech: direct speech and indirect speech.

Direct speech repeats the exact words the person used, or how we remember their words:

Barbara said, “I didn’t realise it was midnight.”

In indirect speech, the original speaker’s words are changed.

Barbara said she hadn’t realised it was midnight .

In this example, I becomes she and the verb tense reflects the fact that time has passed since the words were spoken: didn’t realise becomes hadn’t realised .

Indirect speech focuses more on the content of what someone said rather than their exact words:

“I’m sorry,” said Mark. (direct)

Mark apologised . (indirect: report of a speech act)

In a similar way, we can report what people wrote or thought:

‘I will love you forever,’ he wrote, and then posted the note through Alice’s door. (direct report of what someone wrote)

He wrote that he would love her forever , and then posted the note through Alice’s door. (indirect report of what someone wrote)

I need a new direction in life , she thought. (direct report of someone’s thoughts)

She thought that she needed a new direction in life . (indirect report of someone’s thoughts)

Reported speech: direct speech

Reported speech: indirect speech

Reported speech: reporting and reported clauses

Speech reports consist of two parts: the reporting clause and the reported clause. The reporting clause includes a verb such as say, tell, ask, reply, shout , usually in the past simple, and the reported clause includes what the original speaker said.

Reported speech: punctuation

Direct speech.

In direct speech we usually put a comma between the reporting clause and the reported clause. The words of the original speaker are enclosed in inverted commas, either single (‘…’) or double (“…”). If the reported clause comes first, we put the comma inside the inverted commas:

“ I couldn’t sleep last night, ” he said.

Rita said, ‘ I don’t need you any more. ’

If the direct speech is a question or exclamation, we use a question mark or exclamation mark, not a comma:

‘Is there a reason for this ? ’ she asked.

“I hate you ! ” he shouted.

We sometimes use a colon (:) between the reporting clause and the reported clause when the reporting clause is first:

The officer replied: ‘It is not possible to see the General. He’s busy.’

Punctuation

Indirect speech

In indirect speech it is more common for the reporting clause to come first. When the reporting clause is first, we don’t put a comma between the reporting clause and the reported clause. When the reporting clause comes after the reported clause, we use a comma to separate the two parts:

She told me they had left her without any money.

Not: She told me, they had left her without any money .

Nobody had gone in or out during the previous hour, he informed us.

We don’t use question marks or exclamation marks in indirect reports of questions and exclamations:

He asked me why I was so upset.

Not: He asked me why I was so upset?

Reported speech: reporting verbs

Say and tell.

We can use say and tell to report statements in direct speech, but say is more common. We don’t always mention the person being spoken to with say , but if we do mention them, we use a prepositional phrase with to ( to me, to Lorna ):

‘I’ll give you a ring tomorrow,’ she said .

‘Try to stay calm,’ she said to us in a low voice.

Not: ‘Try to stay calm,’ she said us in a low voice .

With tell , we always mention the person being spoken to; we use an indirect object (underlined):

‘Enjoy yourselves,’ he told them .

Not: ‘Enjoy yourselves,’ he told .

In indirect speech, say and tell are both common as reporting verbs. We don’t use an indirect object with say , but we always use an indirect object (underlined) with tell :

He said he was moving to New Zealand.

Not: He said me he was moving to New Zealand .

He told me he was moving to New Zealand.

Not: He told he was moving to New Zealand .

We use say , but not tell , to report questions:

‘Are you going now?’ she said .

Not: ‘Are you going now?’ she told me .

We use say , not tell , to report greetings, congratulations and other wishes:

‘Happy birthday!’ she said .

Not: Happy birthday!’ she told me .

Everyone said good luck to me as I went into the interview.

Not: Everyone told me good luck …

Say or tell ?

Other reporting verbs

The reporting verbs in this list are more common in indirect reports, in both speaking and writing:

Simon admitted that he had forgotten to email Andrea.

Louis always maintains that there is royal blood in his family.

The builder pointed out that the roof was in very poor condition.

Most of the verbs in the list are used in direct speech reports in written texts such as novels and newspaper reports. In ordinary conversation, we don’t use them in direct speech. The reporting clause usually comes second, but can sometimes come first:

‘Who is that person?’ she asked .

‘It was my fault,’ he confessed .

‘There is no cause for alarm,’ the Minister insisted .

Verb patterns: verb + that -clause

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Fakes and forgeries (Things that are not what they seem to be)

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Reported Speech using Asked, If, and Whether

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Help your students report questions that have been asked by using reported speech and if or whether. Students practice rewriting quoted (direct) speech into reported (indirect) speech. Open and closed questions are also reviewed.

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Trump declares ‘I love Milwaukee’ after reportedly using the word ‘horrible’ for the RNC host city

Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump speaks at a campaign event Tuesday, June 18, 2024, in Racine, Wis. (AP Photo/Jeffrey Phelps)

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People wait in line to enter the venue where Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump will speak at a campaign event Tuesday, June 18, 2024, in Racine, Wis. (AP Photo/Jeffrey Phelps)

People line up to enter a venue to see Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump speak at a campaign event Tuesday, June 18, 2024 in Racine, Wis. (AP Photo/Jeffrey Phelps)

Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump walks to the podium at a campaign event Tuesday, June 18, 2024, in Racine, Wis. (AP Photo/Jeffrey Phelps)

Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump walks off the stage after speaking at a campaign event Tuesday, June 18, 2024, in Racine, Wis. (AP Photo/Jeffrey Phelps)

RACINE, Wisconsin (AP) — Former President Donald Trump on Tuesday repeatedly praised Milwaukee just weeks before it hosts the Republican National Convention, playing cleanup after he reportedly used the word “horrible” in talking about swing-state Wisconsin’s largest city.

“I love Milwaukee,” Trump told the crowd in nearby Racine, Wisconsin. He was reported to have used the word in a closed-door meeting with Republicans in the U.S. House. Several of his allies who were in the meeting later suggested he was talking about crime and voter fraud.

Wisconsin is one of a handful of battleground states likely to determine this year’s presidential race. It was one of the so-called Democratic “blue wall” states that Trump narrowly won in 2016, paving the way for his surprise victory. Biden flipped the state back in 2020, and both campaigns are targeting it heavily this year.

Trump’s Tuesday event in downtown Racine had the feel of a small town Fourth of July celebration. Before the presumptive GOP nominee’s arrival, country music blared from speakers as Trump and American flags waved near a harbor overlooking Lake Michigan. Families gathered under trees, trying to avoid the 83-degree heat while eating tacos and sipping lemonade.

“Wisconsin is Trump country” was written across a large sign as supporters began to gather on the grass, wearing red, white and blue.

What to know about the 2024 Election

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In a separate television interview, Trump also denied reports on Tuesday that, during the convention, he was planning to stay overnight in Chicago, Milwaukee’s rival 90 miles to the south, where Trump also has a downtown skyscraper along the Chicago River.

Trump, in his speech, hammered Biden on immigration and the border, including an announcement Tuesday that his administration will in the coming months allow certain spouses of U.S. citizens without legal status to apply for permanent residency and eventually citizenship.

The move, which could offer relief to potentially hundreds of thousands of immigrants without legal status in the U.S., came after Biden announced his own aggressive crackdown on the southern border earlier this month, enraging advocates and many Democratic lawmakers.

Trump has frequently described the record number of immigrants crossing the U.S.-Mexico border illegally as an “invasion,” suggesting without evidence that Biden is abetting illegal border crossings to help Democrats win elections.

“Our country is under invasion. We should not be talking amnesty. We should be talking about stopping the invasion instead,” Trump said, calling the plan “an attack on American democracy.”

The crowd responded with chants of “Send them back!”

Trump also denied having called Milwaukee “horrible” during a closed-door meeting with Republican members of Congress in Washington last week, blaming “radical left lunatics” who “lie, lie, lie.”

Trump spokesperson Steven Cheung last week did not deny that Trump had used the word, but said he had been taken out of context and “was talking about how terrible crime and voter fraud are.”

Several congressmen who support Trump and attended the meeting also said he was referring to crime and voter fraud, which he falsely alleges marred the 2020 election in the state.

Trump frequently denounces Democratic-led cities as unsafe, even as the latest FBI statistics show violent crime is down across the nation, and repeats falsehoods about his 2020 loss.

Trump repeatedly slammed Democratic Sen. Tammy Baldwin as a “radical” who “100% voted with Biden” amid cheers from the crowd. He thanked her likely opponent, Eric Hovde, who faces nominal opposition in the Republican primary on Aug. 13, for speaking at the rally, calling him the “dynamo” Wisconsin needs.

“Eric will defeat your radical leftist Senator,” he said.

Hovde called on the crowd to “fire Joe Biden and Tammy Baldwin.”

The likely contest between Baldwin and Hovde is expected to be one of the most competitive and expensive Senate races in the country as Democrats cling to a 51-49 majority in the Senate.

Hours before Trump took the stage, a line of hundreds of supporters snaked around the block between rows of hawkers selling Trump T-shirts, hats, signs and flags.

Most of the roughly a dozen Trump supporters interviewed said they were focused on the economy.

Among the supporters waiting was Emmanuel McKinstry, a 58-year-old businessman in Racine, who said, “Economy is #1 for me.”

McKinstry said small Black-owned businesses like his were booming in Racine under Trump’s administration.

“Everything was more affordable under Trump,” he said. “But inflation has ballooned under Biden, and it’s businesses that are suffering.”

He said he’s also concerned about crime in Racine after losing two brothers to gun violence.

Dimple Navratil, 58, from Bombay, India, has lived in Racine for 25 years, running a small gift shop downtown called Dimple’s Imports. She said she’d be speaking about her experience as a woman business owner during the rally.

“Under Trump’s presidency, small businesses were thriving,” she said. “I’m very positive that’ll happen again if he’s in office.”

Samantha Cross, 35, drove nearly two hours from Radford, Illinois, to attend the rally. With four kids, she said the cost of groceries, school supplies and clothes for her children have skyrocketed amid inflation under Biden. A few years ago, she said she could feed her family of five with about $500 a month. Now, that cost has doubled, she said.

“I’m here for the future of my kids,” she said.

And Matthew Brown, 56, said he’s struggling to afford rising rent in Racine while caring for his mother, who has dementia.

“I’m hopeful Trump is going to fix this mess — or at least try,” he said. Brown wore a shirt that said “I’m voting for the felon” in bright red, white and blue.

___ Colvin reported from New York.

RCMP official calls for debate on hate speech law after probe of controversial imam ends without charges

Adil charkaoui gave a speech calling for the deaths of 'the enemies of the people of gaza'.

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The RCMP is warning of a growing number of cases of public speech that could incite hatred and is asking whether it has the legal tools to counter the trend.

RCMP Chief Superintendent Karine Gagné told Radio-Canada that while she wouldn't comment directly on the case of controversial imam Adil Charkaoui — who gave a speech in Arabic in Montreal late last year in which he called on Allah to "kill the enemies of the people of Gaza" — she believes it may be time to revisit Canada's laws on hate speech, which date from the early 2000s.

Following an RCMP investigation, prosecutors in Quebec chose not to charge Charkaoui.

Gagné, the head of criminal investigations for the RCMP in Quebec, said international events like the war in Gaza now have swifter and more immediate impacts on local communities.

"There is an evolution when it comes to international events, the speed at which we receive information. It's instantaneous. In 2002, it wasn't like that," she said.

Federal Justice Minister Arif Virani told Radio-Canada he's also concerned about the spread of hatred in Canada and is open to changing the Criminal Code based on the opinion of experts.

On October 28, 2023, during a speech at a pro-Palestine rally in Montreal, Charkaoui denounced "Zionist aggressors" and called on Allah to "kill the enemies of the people of Gaza and to spare none of them."

The speech was denounced by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Quebec Premier François Legault, among others.

A complaint was filed with the Montreal Police Department but the RCMP quickly took over the matter.

Several sources said the RCMP took on the investigation after police authorities determined the imam's words could have raised issues related to national security and anti-terrorism law.

• Eliminating religion as a hate speech defence an idea worth exploring, says antisemitism envoy
• Crown won't file charges over controversial pro-Palestinian speeches in Montreal
• Politicians, Jewish groups outraged by Montreal imam's prayer at pro-Palestinian protest

When the RCMP investigation concluded, prosecutors determined that Charkaoui's speech did not violate Canadian laws.

In a news release, the Quebec Crown prosecutors' office said "the evidence does not establish beyond a reasonable doubt that the words spoken constitute incitement to hatred against an identifiable group within the meaning of the applicable Criminal Code provision."

Charkaoui applauded the decision on social media, saying his speech was intended to "denounce the genocide" in Gaza.

"This excellent decision was predictable," he said in an online video. "We are not going to give up, we are going to continue to defend these oppressed people."

Gagné said the country's police chiefs have seen a "resurgence of hate speech across the country" and suggested it's time to discuss changes to the law.

" Could this possibly lead to a debate on the issue? I think it's very relevant to talk about it now, in 2024," she said.

She added the RCMP "intervenes when there is a potential for an investigation that falls within our national security mandate."

Montreal's Jews 'under attack' says community leader after shots fired at schools

Police sources have told Radio-Canada that other police services worry that the Crown's decision in the Charkaoui matter could encourage hate speech elsewhere in Canada, which has been ramping up online and in person since the Israel-Hamas war began.

In March, Quebec's college of physicians imposed a $25,000 fine against a cardiologist who called for a "big cleansing" in the Gaza Strip on his Facebook account.

At a protest in Ottawa in April, in a speech that is now under police investigation, a protester praised the brutal Hamas-led attack on Israel of Oct. 7, 2023.

"October 7 is proof that we are almost free," said one protester, according to a video posted online. "Long live October 7."

The war was sparked by Hamas's surprise Oct. 7 attack in southern Israel that killed about 1,200 people, mainly Israeli civilians, and saw about 250 others taken hostage, according to Israeli tallies. About 120 hostages remain, with 43 pronounced dead.

Israel's military offensive has killed more than 36,700 Palestinians and wounded in excess of 83,000 others, according to the Gaza Health Ministry. It has also destroyed about 80 per cent of Gaza's buildings, according to the UN.

• Pro-Palestinian protesters reject U of O proposal, vow to remain at encampment
• Israeli military bombards central Gaza as Palestinian death toll in hostage rescue raid rises
• Disputes among G7 nations may prevent consensus on a path to peace in Gaza: experts

In the case of Charkaoui's speech, the legal questions revolved around sections 318 and 319 of the Criminal Code, which prohibit public incitement to hatred against "identifiable groups."

According to the legal definition, identifiable groups must be distinguished on grounds such as "colour, race, religion, national or ethnic origin."

As several experts have noted, Charkaoui's speech did not mention a religious or ethnic group but took aim at "Zionists," meaning adherents to the movement that led to the establishment of a Jewish state.

Rachad Antonius, a retired sociology professor at Université du Québec à Montréal and author of many books on the Middle East and human rights, denounced Charkaoui's speech and said he does not represent the vast majority of Canadians in the pro-Palestinian movement.

Antonius said there's still room for criticism of the Zionist movement in the public space.

A 'cry of despair'

"Anti-Zionism is a policy of opposition to the political project that is Zionism. It has nothing to do with antisemitism," he said. "This is not a form of racism. It is a way to take a stand for social justice.

"The Criminal Code is important, but we must also be able to distinguish between what constitutes hatred and what constitutes legitimate criticism. We must also distinguish between what is hatred and what is a cry of despair in the face of a horror that is happening before our eyes."

Others argue Charkaoui's speech crossed a clear line.

"We wonder where the limits are," said Eta Yudin of the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs. "Is the law being applied to its maximum? Is there something to be done to look at Sections 318 and 319 [of the Criminal Code] to see if they go far enough, so that we deal with the hatred, vitriol and toxicity that we see on the streets?"

She said that while she has no objection to political speech criticizing Israel, its government or its actions, she fears using the word "Zionist" could become a way to circumvent the definition of "identifiable group" in the law.

"When there is a big demonstration in the street [where] there is talk about 'Zionists', it's quite clear. It's frequently used as a code to say 'Zionists' instead of saying 'Jews' but really it's a way to target Jews. The majority of the global Jewish community is Zionist," she said.

The Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs has come out in support of a proposal by the Bloc Québécois calling for the abolition of the "religious exemption" in section 319 of the Criminal Code.

According to this portion of the criminal law on incitement to hatred, it's not illegal to express "an opinion on a religious subject or an opinion based on a belief in a religious text."

Shortly after the Crown announced its decision not to pursue charges against Charkaoui, Bloc Leader Yves-François Blanchet said the "tools made available to the justice system" are "inadequate."

Virani himself represents a riding in the Toronto area where tensions over the war in Gaza are running high.

"It is certain that we have had a problem with hatred for the last five years or so, but especially now, during the last eight months," Virani told Radio-Canada. "We see that hatred circulates extremely quickly ... within seconds, minutes or hours, in the digital age."

Asked to comment on requests for changes to sections of the Criminal Code related to incitement to hatred, Virani referred to Bill C-63, the federal government's proposed law on online harms, now before the House of Commons. This bill includes measures to combat hate crimes and hate speech, including longer maximum prison sentences.

Asked whether he is ready to change the definition of "identifiable group" in the Criminal Code, Virani said he's open to expert opinions.

"If they suggest amendments to target things in a different way, or to refine or clarify aspects, I'm completely comfortable listening to suggestions like that," he said.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Daniel Leblanc is a reporter with more than 20 years experience in investigative journalism and federal politics. He is a past winner of the Michener Award, the Charles Lynch Award and three National Newspaper Awards.

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Parents of westchester county kids against ‘preferred pronouns’ sue school district.

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The parents of a group of Westchester County students who don’t want to call their classmates and teachers by their “preferred pronouns’’ is suing the school district on First Amendment grounds.

The federal lawsuit — brought on behalf of three unidentified parents by the right-wing advocacy group “Parents Defending Education” last week — claims the Croton-Harmon School District’s policies “punish students for their speech and compel them to mouth support for the District’s preferred views at all times of day, whether at school or not.

“Nearly a century of Supreme Court precedent makes two things clear: Minor students have the freedom to speak, and students do not abandon this freedom at the schoolhouse gate,” the lawsuit said.

“Yet the Croton-Harmon School District, along with its officials and its board of education, has rules and regulations that punish students for engaging in protected speech.

“These speech codes deter students from expressing views about the political and social issues of the day that are outside the mainstream,” the suit continued. “They disregard decades of precedent.”

The suit, filed in federal court in White Plains, notes the plaintiff parents’ deeply conservative views, which take aim at such issues as gay marriage, surrogate pregnancies, trans people, abortion, Black Lives Matter and immigration.

It says their kids — who share these views — are afraid to talk about such topics because “they fear that sharing their beliefs will be considered ‘harassment’ ” based on the district’s policies against bullying, discrimination and gender-identity discrimination.

“For example, they fear that others will find their views ‘hostile,’ ‘ridiculing,’ or ‘demeaning’ and claim that their views “interfere with” their educational environment or their ‘mental [or] emotional … well-being,’ especially if they share those views repeatedly,” the suit said.

For example, “Parent B’s children wish to use pronouns that are consistent with a teacher’s or classmate’s biological sex rather than their ‘preferred pronouns’ — the pronouns that the classmate or teacher has decided reflects their gender identity,” the suit said.

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“Parent B’s children wish to use the biologically accurate pronouns repeatedly and at all times, including inside and outside the classroom, in the classmate’s or teacher’s presence, and when referring to the classmate or teacher outside their presence.”

On Thursday, Croton-Harmon sent a letter to district parents saying that “contrary to what the Parents Defending Education group may assert, we are proud that there is no place in our schools for hurtful and hateful rhetoric.

“We see schools as places where students feel comfortable in, and celebrated for, their own identity and are positioned to make positive contributions to our society,” the letter said.

“Speech that is harmful to students, which Parents Defending Education suggests should be permitted in its lawsuit, is not welcome in our schools, and does not align with our beliefs as a school district community.

“We know that this isn’t the first time that our incredible schools have been made targets of political agendas, and we will not allow a lawsuit, or other extraneous political factors, to distract us from the work of making that vision into a reality for all of our students, staff members, and community.”

The lawsuit’s chances at success are unclear.

But public schools have broad power to limit offensive and controversial speech on their campuses, said Bennnett Gershman, a constitutional law professor at Pace University’s Elisabeth Haub School of Law, to the Journal News.

“Schools can always regulate offensive speech,” Gershman said. “The [US] Supreme Court has made very clear that schools can regulate offensive speech. And if schools deem this speech is offensive, the schools can prohibit it.”

Without such limitations, kids would be “growing up in a cacophony of profanity and screaming and yelling,” Gershman said, adding that the courts tend to defer to school authorities when trying to determine exactly what kind of speech is abusive.

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Money blog: Taylor Swift makes £450 kebab shop order

The Money blog brings you personal finance and consumer news, plus all the latest on the economy. Let us know your thoughts on any of the stories we're covering in the comments box below.

Wednesday 19 June 2024 19:54, UK

Inflation news

• Big moment in cost of living crisis as inflation falls to 2%
• Watch : Ed Conway breaks down inflation numbers - and shows chart that tells very different story
• Interest rate cut will be delayed - markets
• One concerning figure in today's data could delay interest rate cut - economists
• Analysis : Welcome news but question marks remain

Money blog essentials

• Taylor Swift makes £450 kebab shop order
• 'One guy wanted to rent my room for a few hours to meet a friend...' What I learnt from putting my home on Airbnb
• Women in Business : 'How I went from mum with no qualifications to owner of big law firm'
• Holiday money - where to buy it, how to avoid fees, and one thing you must not do
• Best of the Money blog - an archive

Ask a question or make a comment

Couriers for delivery giant Uber Eats will now pick, pack and pay for customer orders inside supermarkets.

Co-op, Sainsbury’s and Waitrose are among the supermarkets to sign up to the scheme in the UK.

Uber global head of grocery Susan Anderson said: "It's very clear that grocery shopping trends have fundamentally changed. 

"Our busy lifestyles mean we physically go to the supermarket for a big shop less frequently and prefer to rely more on apps like Uber Eats to order fresh grocery ingredients when we want them."

 The couriers can engage with customers in real time as they shop - so they can ask shoppers what substitutions they want if items are out of stock.

The driver will then checkout using a pre-authorised payment method before delivering in the normal fashion.

It's not yet clear how much more this will cost customers. 

Wall Street's biggest bank is lifting Brussels' bonus cap for its London-based staff , weeks after rival Goldman Sachs fired the starting gun on a post-Brexit era in industry pay.

Sky News can reveal that JP Morgan Chase was in the process of notifying staff on Wednesday that it would preserve some elements of the remuneration packages introduced after the European Union's cap on variable pay came into force in 2014.

The system prevents material risk-takers (MRTs) working in lenders' operations in the EU from earning more than twice their fixed pay in variable compensation.

Sources said that JP Morgan, which employs 22,000 people in the UK, including roughly 14,000 in London, had decided to preserve a significant proportion of the fixed pay allowances used to calculate eligible employees' maximum bonuses.

You can read more of our City editor Mark Kleinman's story  here ...

McDonald's is ending its AI drive-thru trial  after customers reported errors in their orders - including bacon being added to ice cream.

The fast food chain's AI ordering system, developed by IBM, uses voice recognition to process orders and has been rolled out at more than 100 McDonald's locations in the US since 2021.

However, the technology's reliability has been called into question in recent months, with members of the public sharing videos of order mix-ups on social media.

As well as topping a dessert with bacon, the AI drive-thru assistant added $211 (£166) worth of chicken nuggets to another customer's order.

Mastercard has announced it will be changing the way customers make payments  to bring them a contactless experience at online checkouts. 

The card company has said it wants all online transactions to be "tokenised" by 2030. 

The way it will work means you will input your card details to pay for a product once and then you'll receive a "token" - a randomly generated number. 

That number can then be used to make future payments, instead of you having to type in your card details each time. 

"Contactless payments have made in-person payments seamless and ubiquitous – there’s an opportunity to bring that same experience to online checkout," it said in a statement. 

Mastercard said the move will reduce fraud, improve approval rates, and make it online checkouts "faster and safer". 

"As physical and digital experiences continue to converge, we're pushing the boundaries of what's possible," said Jorn Lambert, chief product officer at Mastercard.

"We're focused on bringing best-in-class digital services together to deliver more value, access and safety to our customers and the end-consumer." 

It's been a really difficult few years for millions of families paying for their energy. 

Many have expressed their anger and distrust in energy suppliers as a result of spiralling prices and shifting goalposts. 

But there are signs that's beginning to change.

Overall customer satisfaction is up 10% since last year, a survey of 15,030 energy customers by Uswitch.com has revealed. 

The survey found that Utility Warehouse and Octopus Energy were the best and second-best at providing customer service and for value for money. 

However, satisfaction with value for money from providers overall is still 17% lower than before the energy crisis, according to the poll.

Uswitch also announced its top five cheapest energy tariffs - see below... 

Every Wednesday we ask Michelin chefs to pick their favourite Cheap Eats where they live and when they cook at home. This week we speak to  Sofian Msetfi, executive chef at Mayfair's one-starred Ormer restaurant.

Hi Sofian - what are your picks for a meal for two for less than £40 in London?

Berenjak  in Soho and London Bridge offers a traditional Persian dining experience - I'd recommend ordering a charcoal grilled kebab for that tables plus a selection of the mezeh-style sharing plates to accommodate a budget of £40 for two. A brilliant dining experience with high-quality and fresh ingredients.  

BAO  (with locations around London) is known for its creative take on Taiwanese street food. They offer some of the best bao buns in the city which start from just £6, plus there's affordably priced small plates, allowing for a diverse tasting experience without overspending. The restaurants also have a weekday set menu with three courses for £15, which is a steal.

Secret Sandwich Shop  in Notting Hill elevates the humble sandwich to new heights – the sheer size of the Japanese Wanpaku sandwiches are incredible and so filling. It's a great find, hidden behind a secret door in Notting Hill, with the signature "Secret Sandwich" priced at £9, meaning you can each get a sandwich plus a generous selection of classic snacks and even some Japanese drinks for £40. 

What's your go-to cheap meal at home?

A braised lemon chicken with green olives. You can use chicken thighs or legs in this recipe (which are often much cheaper). It's easy and quick, everything goes in the dish together and cooks at the same time. One of my favourite tips is to use some of the olive brine from the jar when cooking as it really enhances the flavour of the dish.

We've spoken to lots of top chefs and bloggers - check out their cheap eats from around the country here...

Taylor Swift has reportedly ordered 45 large kebabs for her team ahead of her Wembley Stadium show.

The singer is set to perform in front of up to 90,000 fans on Friday in the first of eight Eras Tour shows at the London venue.

But before that, her staff will be tucking into £450-worth of chicken donor kebabs made by Kentish Delight, according to The Sun.

The takeaway restaurant is thought to be a favourite of Taylor's, having featured in the music video for End Game in 2017.

"Taylor adds garlic sauce to hers, as well as heaps of salad," a source told The Sun.

The newspaper previously reported the star bought hundreds of Greggs sausage rolls, steak bakes and bakery goods for her team when performing in Edinburgh.

Cricket salads, lab-grown steaks and azolla burgers could be staples on British menus in 30 years' time, according to the Co-op. 

Using AI and research from experts from FixOurFood and the University of York, the retailer predicted what mealtimes could look like in 2054. 

They predict a rise in urban indoor farming across Britain, which will in turn see lab-grown meat and seafood - cultivated from animal tissues to produce steaks, burgers, tuna and lobster - become more mainstream.

Another part of the report suggested climate change would result in the likes of avocados and olives being grown in Surrey by 2054 - meaning less reliance on importing vegetables. 

"By 2054, British people will have edible insects on their dinner plate, and we may see the crushing up of crickets quicker than wholegrain," project researcher Bob Doherty said. 

"We may even see the introduction of 3D-printed food. As we navigate the challenges of climate change, we'll need to embrace these innovations to ensure that we can feed a growing population sustainably."

After spending the morning reacting to the positive news on inflation (and less positive news on interest rates), we're going to start posting other personal finance and consumer news again now.

We'll still have any reaction coming in on the economy.

Our  economics and data editor Ed Conway  has been poring over this morning's data drop from the Office for National Statistics. 

"In one sense this is a watershed moment," he says, inflation having dropped to the target 2%.

But looking at the data another way - at overall inflation over the last three years rather than annual figures - the numbers tell a different story. 

By doing so, you can see there's closer to a 20% increase in prices since the start of the cost of living crisis - rather than the 2% increase we've recorded in the 12 months from May last year to May 2024. 

And this figure - basically, prices - is still going up, just slower than it was before.

Watch Ed's full analysis here... 

We have one more chart to show you in response to inflation having fallen to the target of 2% in May.

Like much of today's data, it is primarily good news - wages are going up significantly more than inflation.

For workers to whom this applies, it's rightly a cause for some cheer after a period of falling living standards and skyrocketing prices.

But for the economy, there's a flipside - high wage growth is inflationary, as businesses either have to absorb wage increases or put up prices. It also means people have more money to spend - again, when this happens prices tend to go up faster.

This chart illustrates how wage growth - after lagging behind price rises for some time - is now ahead...

May's fall in inflation cannot disguise "the worst period for living standards in modern times", Trades Union Congress (TUC) general secretary Paul Nowak has said.

Reacting to today's data, he said: "Over the last three years UK families have suffered the highest price rises in the G7 - with inflation going up more over that period than it usually does over an entire decade.

"Ministers can try to rewrite history all they like. But the Conservatives have presided over the worst period for living standards in modern times.

"Food and energy bills have surged. Rents and mortgages have skyrocketed. And real wages are still worth less than in 2008."

There are nearly 50 affiliated unions under the TUC banner with a total of about 5.5 million members.

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