Ex.89 Indirect speech: questions
Put the following into indirect speech.
1 'Why are you looking through the keyhole?' I said.
2 'Who put salt in my coffee?' he asked.
3 'Which of you knows how to make Irish stew?' said the chief cook.
4 'Why did you travel first class?' I asked him.
5 'How can I run in high-heeled shoes?' she enquired.
6 'What is your new house like?' I asked them.
7 He said, 'Where am I supposed to go now?' (Omit now.)
8 'Whose car did you borrow last night?' I said to him.
9 'What was she wearing when you saw her last?' the policeman asked me.
10 'Who owns this revolver?' said the detective.
11 'Where were you last night, Mr Jones?' he said.
12 'What else did you see?' I asked the boy.
13 'Have you done this sort of work before?' said his new employer.
14 'Can you read the last line on the chart?' the oculist asked her.
15 'Did they understand what you said to them?' he asked me.
16 'Are you being attended to, sir?' said the shop assistant.
17 'Will you go on strike when the others do?' the shop steward asked him.
18 'Do you see what I see, Mary?' said the young man.
19 'Who left the banana skin on the front doorstep?' said my mother.
20 'Have you gone completely mad?' I asked. 'Do you want to blow us all up?'
21 'Why is your house so full of antiques?' she asked. 'Was your father a collector?'
22 'Are you leaving today or tomorrow morning?' said his secretary.
23 'How far is it?' I said, 'and how long will it take me to get there?'
24 'Could I speak to Mrs Pitt?' said the caller.
'I'm afraid she's out,' said the au pair girl. 'Could I take a message?'
25 'Are you sorry for what you did?' the mother asked the little boy.
26 'Are you going to see him off at the station?' I asked her.
27 'Would you mind if I looked inside your bag. Madam?' said the policeman.
28 'If someone fell at your feet foaming at the mouth would you know what to do?' said the instructor in First Aid.
29 'Why do you think it may be dangerous?' he asked her.
30 'Do you know that the shoes you are wearing aren't a pair?' I asked him.
Ex.90 Indirect speech: commands, requests, advice expressed by object + infinitive
Indirect commands, requests, etc. are normally expressed by tell, order, ask, beg, advise, remind, warn, etc., with the person addressed and the infinitive. Change the following direct commands into indirect commands using this construction. Remember that the person addressed is often not mentioned in a direct command:
He said, 'Go away', but must be mentioned in an indirect command:
He told me (Tom/us/them, etc.) to go away.
1 'Switch off the TV,'he said to her.
2 'Shut the door, Tom,' she said.
3 'Lend me your pen for a moment,' I said to Mary.
4 'Don't watch late-night horror movies,' I warned them.
5 'Don't believe everything you hear,' he warned me.
6 'Please fill up this form,' the secretary said.
7 'Don't hurry,' I said.
8 'Don't touch that switch, Mary,' I said.
9 'Open the safe!' the raiders ordered the bank clerk.
10 'Please do as I say,' he begged me.
11 'Help your mother, Peter,' Mr Pitt said.
12 'Don't make too much noise, children,' he said.
13 'Do whatever you like,' she said to us.
14 'Don't miss your train,' she warned them.
15 'Read it before you sign it,' he said to his client.
16 'Do sing it again,' he said.
17 'Don't put your hands near the bars,' the zoo keeper warned us.
18 'Buy a new car,' I advised him.
19 'Don't drive too fast,' she begged him.
20 'Don't lean your bicycles against my windows, boys,' said the shopkeeper.
21 'Come to the cinema with me,' he asked her.
22 'Cook it in butter,' I advised her.
23 'Don't touch the gates, madam,' said the lift operator.
24 'Don't argue with me,' the teacher said to the boy.
25 'Pull as hard as you can,' he said to him.
26 'Send for the Fire Brigade,' the manager said to the porter.
27 'Don't lend her anything,'he advised us.
28 'Make a list of what you want,' she told us.
29 'Look at the paper,' he said to her.
30 'Stand clear of the doors,' a voice warned the people on the platform.
31 'See if you can find any mushrooms, children,' she said.
32 'Don't go alone,' I warned her.
33 'Pay at the cash desk,' the shop assistant said to the customer.
34 The notice said, 'Leave this space clear.'
35 'Remember to write to your mother,' I said to them.
36 'Think well before you answer,' the detective warned her.