Test: Direct and Indirect Speech - 1 - Class 6 MCQ

a) Report the exact words spoken by someone
Direct speech reports the exact words spoken by someone.

b) Rewrite the spoken words in our own words
Indirect speech rewrites the spoken words in our own words to convey the message.

Quotation marks are used to introduce direct speech.

• Indirect speech, also known as reported speech, is used to convey what someone else has said without quoting them directly.
• When converting direct speech into indirect speech, the tense typically shifts back one step in time.
• For instance, present tense in direct speech generally changes to past tense in indirect speech.
• This shift helps maintain clarity about when the statement was made, reflecting the change in perspective.

In indirect speech, 'said' can be replaced with asked, told, or replied.

Question words like 'what', 'where', 'when', etc. remain the same in indirect speech.

'If' and 'whether' are used to introduce a question in indirect speech.

The pronoun 'I' changes to 'he' or 'she' in indirect speech.

The pronoun 'we' changes to 'they' in indirect speech.

• Changing the tense: When changing direct speech to indirect speech, it is necessary to change the tense of the reported speech to match the context of the reporting verb.


• Removing quotation marks: In indirect speech, we do not use quotation marks to indicate that the words are being reported rather than directly quoted.


• Changing pronouns: Pronouns in the reported speech may need to be changed to reflect the perspective of the speaker in the indirect speech.


• Changing the handwriting: This is not necessary when changing direct speech to indirect speech. The physical act of writing or handwriting does not affect the grammatical structure or content of the reported speech.