Reported Speech 4 страница

24. "You'd better sweep up that broken glass," I said. 25. "The bathroom's empty now," she said. "Will you put the light out when you've finished?" 26. "Remember to insure your luggage," my father said. 27. "Please don't drink any more," said his wife. "Don't for­get that we have to drive home." 28. "Do go to a dentist, Tom, before your toothache gets any worse," I said.

29. "Why don't you cut your hair?" he said. "You'd find it much easier to get a job if you looked tidy." 30. "Could I have some more pudding, please?" said the boy.

50. Put the following into indirect speech.

1. "Would you please fill in this form and then join the queue by the door?" said the clerk.

2. "Could you read the last sentence again, please?" said the examiner. 3. "Could I have a new cheque book, please?" said the girl. "Could you show me your old cheque book?" said the bank

clerk. 4. Postcard: Be ready to move off at very short notice. Tom. Ann (reading it to Mary): Tom says that we ... 5. "Please, please don't tell my mother," begged the boy. 6. "Don't fire except in self-defence," said the police ser­geant. 7. "Why don't you take the rest of the day off?" said my as­sistant. 8. "Will you help me to move the piano, please?" said my aunt. 9. "Don't drive too close to the car in front," said the driving instructor. 10. "Don't smoke near the petrol pump," said the mechanic 11. "When you've chosen a book, bring it to me and I’ll stamp it," said the librarian. 12. "Show the boarding card to the man at the foot of the gangway," said the clerk. 13. "Reduce speed now," said a huge notice. (Omit now.) 14. "Could I see your ticket, please?" said the inspector. 15. "Keep an eye on your luggage," he said. "This place is full of thieves." 16. "When you have read this, pass it on to the next person on the list," he said.

17. "Why not light a fire on the bank and cook the fish at once?" suggested the fisherman.

18. "Whenever you see the number "7" on the screen, press this button," he said. 19. "Sit down and tell me what is worrying you," he said to her. 20. "Walk along the line of men," said the police sergeart "and if you recognize your attacker, just nod. Don't say am thing." 21. "Even if you feel hungry don't eat anything betwee, meals," said the dietician. 22. "Could you ring up the taxi rank and order a taxi for me?" said Tom. "Why don't you go by tube?" said Ann. "It's much quicker.' 23. "Let's buy some yeast and make our own bread," said Man "The bread we're getting now is absolutely tasteless." 24. "If you have to use the river water," said the guide, "b< it first. Don't drink it unboiled." 25. "Let's not tell anyone," said Tom, "till we are quite ce¹ tain that the report is true." 26. Tom (on phone to Ann): I've got the tickets. Meet me the air terminal at 6.30. (Imagine that you are Ann. Report this message to Man who is standing beside you: Tom says ...) 27. "Let's show that we are united," urged the shop stewan "by voting unanimously to continue the strike." 28. "Will customers please count their change," said a notice above the cashier's desk, "as mistakes cannot be rectified afterwards." 29. "Don't clap yet," warned my friend. "She hasn't finished. Singers loathe people who clap too soon," he added. 30. "Don't forget to put your name at the top of the page," he said.

51. Put the following into indirect speech.

1. Letter (from Paul to Ann): Please get me a small tent and camping equipment for two people.

Ann (telling Mary about this): Paul wants ...2. Mr White (on phone to Mr Black's secretary): Ask Mr Black to meet me at six in the bar on the ground floor. Secretary (reporting this to Mr Black): Mr White would like ... 3. "Shall I go and get a candle?" said Ann when the light went out suddenly. "I'd rather you got another bulb," said Mr Jones. "But there aren't any," said Ann, "and the shops are shut." 4. "Don't worry about a few mistakes," said Peter. "I make mistakes all the time." "Do you learn from your mistakes?" I asked. "Or do you keep making the same ones?" 5. "I'm looking for a man called Albert, who drinks in this bar," I said. "I should keep away from Albert if I were you," said the barman. "He doesn't like strangers and might turn nasty." 6. "Could I have a look at your paper for a moment?" said the man. "I just want to see the football results." "I haven't quite finished with it," I said. "Could you wait a moment?"

"I can't wait long," he said. "I'm getting off at the next stop." 7. "You woke everyone up last night," said my mother. "You must try to be quieter tonight." "We will," I promised. 8. "The soup's cold again," complained Mr Jones. "Why do I lever have hot soup?" "Because the kitchen's so far from the dining room," explain­ing his wife. "If you insist on living in a castle you must put up its disadvantages." "What about getting an ex-Olympic as an au pair girl?" said

Mr Jones. "She wouldn't stay," sighed his wife. 9. "Your licence is out of date," said the policeman. "It is," I admitted, "but I've applied for a new one." "Next time," he said severely, "apply for a new one before your current one has expired." 10. "I'll have the money for you next week. Shall I post it to you?" I said. "Could you keep it in your safe till I can come and collect it?" said Tom. "A lot of my mail has been going astray lately and I'd hate to lose one of your large cheques." 11. "Could I borrow your map again?" said Peter. "You're always borrowing it. Why don't you get one of your own?" I said. 12. "When you hear the fire bell," he said, "shut the windows and go downstairs." "And what shall we do if the stairs are blazing?" I asked. 13. "Can you hear that noise?" Ann said. "What do you think it is?" "I think it's only rats running up and down inside the wall," I said. "I think it's someone trying to get in," she said. "You'd bet­ter go and see." 14. "It's your turn to baby-sit tonight," they told Ann. "It can't be!" said Ann indignantly. "I baby-sat last night! And the night before! And I'm only supposed to do two nights a week!"

"Could you possibly do it just this once?" they said. "And we promise not to ask you to do any next week." 15. "This is the best restaurant in town," said the taxi driver "The only problem is that they expect guests to wear ties." "Then why have you brought us here?" said the tourists in

dignantly. "Don't get excited," said the taxi-driver, opening a box. "I keep ties specially for gentlemen in your predicament. What col­our would you like? They're all the same price."

16. "Shall I start tomorrow?" I said. "I'd rather you started today," said Tom. 17. "Why don't you go and see the film? It may help you to understand the book," I said. "But the film's quite different from the book," Ann pointed out. 18. "I saw the two climbers," said the helicopter pilot. "And one of them sat up and waved to me." "Which one of them waved?" I said. "I don't know," he answered. "I wasn't near enough to see them clearly." 19. "What caused the ship to sink?" I said. "She must have struck the submerged wreck," said the cox­swain of the lifeboat. "But I can't understand it, because the wreck is very clearly marked with buoys." 20. "My car won't start!" exclaimed Mary. "The battery's flat again! Could you possibly give me a push just to start me down the hill?" "Why don't you sell that car?" said Bill. "Nobody would buy it," said Peter. "What about just putting a match to it?" 21. "I've been given so many bottles of wine lately that I'll have to buy another wine rack," said Mr Jones. "Why don't you throw a party and save yourself the expense of a wine rack?" I suggested. 22. "Press button A to start the engine," he said. "But last time you told me to press button B!" I said. "That was on a slightly different type of machine," he ex­plained. 23. "Don't brake if you find yourself skidding," said Tom. "That only makes it worse. Try to steer into the skid." "I know what I should do," I said. "But when I start skidding I get so excited that I do the exact opposite." "Then stop and let me take over," said Tom. "We're just coming to an icy bit and I don't want to die just yet." 24. "I've run out of stamps," said my father. "Have you got any?" "No, but I'll go out and get you some if you like," I said. "Don't bother," he said. "I've missed the post anyway." 25. "Repairs to cars rented from us must be arranged through our office," he said. "So if anything goes wrong with the one you've hired, please ring the number printed on your card. The office is open from nine to six, Monday to Friday." "But what shall I do if something goes wrong with it outside office hours?" I said. 26. "Why didn't you signal to the tanker that she was com. ing too close?" I said.

"We did signal," said the pilot, "but she came on in and ran aground." "What's going to happen to her?" I said. "We're going to try to tow her off at the next high tide," he said. "But if we don't get her off tonight she'll be here till she breaks up, and there'll be an oil slick all along the coast."

27. "Why are you spending so long on those accounts?" I asked. "Because I can't make them balance," he said. "I seem to be £13 short; and that means that I'll have to put in £13 of my own money to make it up." "Would you like me to go through them and see if I can find a mistake?" I said. "No," he said, "but I'd like you to lend me £13." 28. "Why are you looking so depressed, Jack?" I said. "Because I've just asked Ann to marry me and she's re­fused," he said sadly.

"I think she prefers clean-shaven men," I said. "Why don't you cut your hair and shave off your beard and try again?" 29. "How did you get up that tree?" Mary asked. "I used a ladder, of course," he snapped, "but someone went off with it when I was sawing. Go and get another one and don't just stand there asking silly questions." 30. "Are you ill?" he said coldly. "No," I said.

"Did you sleep well last night?" "Yes," I said. "Then why are you sitting about when all the others are working? Go out at once and give them a hand." 31. "Will passengers with nothing do declare please go through the green door?" said a customs official. "You'd better go through the green door, Mary," said Peter, "but I'll have to go through the other one. I'll take a bit longer than you will, so wait for me at the other end." 32. (Imagine that you have received the following postcard from your brother Tom. Report it at once to the other members of the family. Begin: Tom says ... ) Don't worry about me. I wasn't badly injured and I'm being very well looked after. I'm coming back next Wednesday on the nine o'clock flight from Zurich. Could you please meet the plane? 33. "What shall I do with my wet shoes?" said the boy. "You'd better stuff them with newspaper and put them near the fire," said his mother. "But don't put them too near or they'll go hard." 34. "Let's drive on to the next village and try the hotel there," he said. "But what'll we do if that's full too?." I asked. "We'll just have to sleep in the car," he said. "It will be too late to try anywhere else." 35. "They have a rather fierce dog," safd Ann; but he's a heavy sleeper, and with any luck he won't hear you breaking in." "What'll I do if he wakes up?" I said. "If he starts growling, give him some of these biscuits," said Ann. "How do you know that he likes these particular biscuits?" "All dogs like them," Ann assured me. "It says so on the packet."

36. "If you even touch one of the pictures," warned the at­tendant, "alarm bells will ring all over the gallery and you will be arrested instantly." "Are you serious?" I said. "Try it and see," he answered with a glint in his eye.

52. Put the following into indirect speech.

Remember:

1. He said, "Let's go" usually becomes:

(a) He suggested going

though possible in certain cases are:

(b) He suggested that they should go

(c) He urged/advised them to go.

He said, "Let's not go" can be expressed by any of these constructions in the negative; but suggest + negative gerund is slightly less usual than the others and is often replaced by the (b) type of construction or by:

He was against going/against the idea/ against it.

He was opposed to the idea/He opposed the idea etc.

2. He said, "Let them go," can become:

(a) He suggested that they should go/suggested their go ing but usually it expresses an obligation and becomes:

(b) He said that they should/ought to go.

Very occasionally it expresses a command and becomes:

(c) He said that they were to go.

"Let him/them" can also express the speaker's indifference: "Everyone will laugh at you,' I said. "Let them!" he retorted. He expressed indifference/said didn't mind. 3. Let is also an ordinary verb meaning allow: "Let me go!" the boy said to the policeman. The boy asked the policeman to let him go.

1. "Let's go to the cinema," said Ann. "Yes, let's," I said. 2. The Prime Minister said, "Let us show the nation that we are worthy of their confidence." (Use urged.) 3. "Let me stay up a little longer tonight, mother," begged the child. 4. "Let's eat out tonight," said Ann. "Too expensive," ob­jected Tom. "Why don't we go back to your flat and have scrambled eggs?" 5. The police officer said, "Let's leave the wrecked car here for a bit. It may remind other drivers to be more careful." 6. "The neighbours will object!" said Ann. "Let them," said Tom. 7. "Let's go on a diet," said Ann. "All right," said Mary reluctantly. 8. "Tom made this mess. Let him clear it up," said his father. 9. "It's Mothering Sunday tomorrow," said the boy. "Let's buy Mum some flowers."

10. "Let's take a tent and camp out," said Bill. 11. "Let's give a party," said Ann. "Let's not," said her husband. 12. I said, "Let's not jump to conclusions. Let's wait till we hear confirmation of this rumour." 13. "The newspapers will say it's your fault," warned hi? colleagues.

"Let them say what they like," he said. 14. "Let the nations forget their differences and work to­gether for peace," said the preacher. 15. "Let me explain," she said. "Don't be in such a hurry." 16. "Let the children play in the garden if they want to," she told the gardener. "I'm sure they won't do any harm." 17. "Let's stay here till the storm has passed," I said. 18. "It's the government's fault. Let them do something about it," grumbled my father.

53. Put the following into indirect speech.

Remember:

must (first person)

"I must" can remain unchanged but usually becomes had to though would have to is better for an obligation which has only just arisen or is likely to arise in the future.

Reading the letter he said, "Good heavens! I must go at once!"

He said, "If she gets worse I must stay with her."

These would become respectively:

He said that he'd have to go and

He said that he'd have to stay.

"must I?" usually becomes had to.

"I must not" usually remains unchanged.

must (second and third persons)

"you/he must" usually remains unchanged.

"must you/he?" usually becomes had to.

"you/he must not" remains unchanged or becomes weren't

to/wasn't to.

must used for permanent commands or prohibitions or to ex­press advice always remains unchanged.

must used to express deduction never changes.

needn't

"I needn't" can change to didn't have to/wouldn't have

to in the same way that "I must" changes to had to/would have to, but it very often remains unchanged.

"you/he needn't" usually remains unchanged.

"need I/you/he?" remains unchanged or becomes had to.

have to

Forms with have to follow the usual rules. Remember that "had to" in direct speech will become had had to in indirect: He said, "After the lecture I had to rush home."

He said that after the lecture he had had to rush home.

1. He said, "If what you say is true I must go to the police." 2. He said, "I must be at the docks at six a.m. tomorrow." 3. "Must you make such a noise?" he asked. 4. "You mustn't come in without knocking," he told us. 5. "Your ticket will cost £5," I said. "In that case," said my nephew, "I must go to the bank to­morrow." 6. Park notice: Dogs must be kept on a lead.

7. His father said, "Tom must work harder next term." 8. "You needn't come in tomorrow," said my employer "Take the day off." 9. "I must go to the dentist tomorrow," he said. "I have an appointment." 10. Notice: Passengers must not lean out of the window. 11. He said, "There must be someone in the house; there's smoke coming from the chimney." 12. She said, "When you are a big boy you'll have to tie your own shoes." 13. "Port wine must never be shaken," my wine-merchant said. 14. "He hasn't had anything to eat since breakfast; he must be starving," she said. 15. The official said, "This passport photo isn't like you at all You must have another one taken." 16. "You mustn't play with knives, children," said their mother. 17. "I needn't get up till nine tomorrow," I said. 18. Railway regulations: Passengers must be in possession o^r a valid ticket before travelling. 19. "How did you get your bulldog up the escalator?" I said. "I carried him," said Tom. "You must be very strong," I said admiringly. 20. "You mustn't tell anyone what I've just told you," she said to me. 21. "Need I eat it all, mummy?" said the child. "Yes, dear, you must," she said. 22. "I had to drive your pigs out of my garden," she said. 23. "Sticks and umbrellas must be left at the desk," said the notice in the museum. 24. "Must you do it all tonight? Couldn't you leave some for tomorrow?" I asked her. 25. "When you go through Bayeux you must see the tapes­try," he told me. 26. He said, "You must walk faster; you are far too slow." 27. "You mustn't forget to put the stamp on or your friend will have to pay double postage," he told me. 28. "I needn't tell you how grateful I am," he said.

54. Put the following into direct speech with the appro­priate punctuation.

1. She asked if he'd like to go to the concert and I said that I was sure she would. 2. She told me to look where I was going as the road was full of holes and was very badly lit. 3. They said that while they were bathing they saw someone examining their clothes, 4. I asked if she had looked everywhere and she said that she had. 5. He suggested giving her a bottle of wine.

6. He said that the new carpet had arrived and asked where he was to put it. 7. He said two days previously an enormous load of firewood had been dumped at his front gate and that since then he hadn't been able to get his car out, 8. They offered me some more wine and I accepted. 9. He said that if I found the front door locked I was to go round to the back. 10. She asked the burglars who they were and who had let them in: They told her to sit down and keep quiet unless she wanted to get hurt. 11. He asked what the weather had been like during my holi­day and I said that it had been awful. 12. He suggested going down to the harbour and seeing if they could hire a boat. 13. He said that if I didn't like escalators I could go up the emergency staircase. I thanked him and said that I would do that. 14. He suggested that Tom and I should go ahead and get the tickets. 15. He said that he thought my electric iron was unsafe and advised me to have it seen to. 16. He said that if war broke out he would have to leave the country at once. 17. I asked him if he had enjoyed house-hunting and he said that he hadn't. 18. She said that she was surprised to see that the grandfather's clock had stopped and asked if anyone had been fiddling with it. 19. She said that she had tried to ring up her mother several times on the previous day but had not succeeded in getting through. 20. I asked her if she'd like to borrow the book but she thanked me and said that she had already read it and hadn't liked it very much. 21. He wanted to know if I was going to the dance and sug­gested that we should make up a party and go together. 22. I told her to stop making a fuss about nothing and said that she was lucky to have got a seat at all. 23. The clerk in the booking office inquired if I wanted a sin­gle or return ticket. I asked if a return was any cheaper. He said it made no difference. 24. My employer hoped I would not be offended if he told me that, in his opinion, I would do better in some other kind of job. 25. The AA man told the woman that if her wheels had gone a couple of inches nearer the edge, the car would have plunged into the ravine.

26. He said I mustn't mind if the first one wasn't any good. 27. He asked the crowd if they thought that he was a liar and the crowd shouted that they did. 28. I stopped a man in the street and asked him to help me with my car. The man asked if it would take long, explaining that he was on his way to catch a train.

55. Write the sentences in reported speech replacing the word said by one of the words at the head of the ex­ercise. Use each word once only: suggested, agreed, muttered, exclaimed, insisted, whispered, boasted, admitted, shouted, claimed, objected, protested.

1. "I can speak six languages fluently," he said. 2. "Let's go to the cinema tonight," he said.

3. "Stop that noise in the classroom," said the teacher. 4. "That car you are driving is my property," the man said. 5. "Yes, I broke the windows with my catapult," the boy said.

6. "You can't take me to prison. I know my rights," the man said. 7. "I shall always love you," said the fiancee. 8. "We don't have enough money to carry out the plan," said the treasurer.

9. "This teacher doesn't know what he's talking about," said the student. 10. "Well, it's a surprise to meet you here today!" she said. 11. "Well, yes, if the weather is bad, we can't go," he said. 12. "If you can't come today, you simply must come tomor­row," she said.

56. You went to a party last week where you were in­troduced to several people you had never met be­fore. In conversation with a friend you now talk about the party and report the various questions that different people asked you during the course of the evening.

1. Who did you come to the party with? 2. Did you come with a friend? 3. Why aren't you drinking? 4. Would you like something to drink? 5. Where do you live? 6. Do you know many people here? 7. When did you arrive? 8. What do you do for a living? 9. Did you see that marvellous documentary on TV last night? 10. Have you been watching the latest TV serial?

11. How do you like your coffee — black or white? 12. What time is it? 13. What's your telephone number? 14. Can I give you a ring tomorrow? 15. How will you get back home?

57. Match the statements with the verbs given; then re­write the sentences in reported speech: complain, gasp, declare, report, explain, promise, sneer, groan, stammer, concede, snap, announce.

1. No one ever takes my advice. 2. You don't call that a car, do you? 3. I — I didn't mean to be rude. 4. You might try minding your own business. 5. The meeting will begin at 7.30. 6. You have to push this button first and then the machine will work. 7. If you don't like new way of doing things you can get on with the job yourself. 8. I've never seen anything like it. 9. You shall have the money back by the end of the week. 10. That's the fifth time I've heard that joke.

11. I see that you were right, after all. 12. I've just seen a murder committed.

58. Write sentences in reported speech using the most suitable reporting verb for each sentence or using said/with an adverb of manner.

1. It's up to you to decide but don't come and ask me for help if you get into difficulties. 2. Don't forget to take your passport with you. 3. For Heaven's sake stop asking me stupid questions. 4. Surely you don't think your friend is serious. 5. Do as you are told and stop arguing. 6. What a fool I was not to accept the job! Still, it can't be helped now. 7. Here's a toast to bride and bridegroom. 8. Please don't say anything to him for my sake. 9. Shall I post this letter for you?

10. I've had just about enough of your insolence and you'll go to the headmaster. 11. Do you mean to say that you've lost the money on horse-racing? 12. If you are so clever why don't you try doing it yourself? 13. Of course, I could have won the race easily if I had really tried. 14. Go away! Can't you see I'm busy? 15. Give me the keys to the safe or you'll regret it.

59. A friend of yours at work sees you during the day and complains about her work. Report this to an­other friend a few days later. Begin your report as suggested at the end of the text.

"I'm fed up. We're stock-taking in our department and it's ter­rible. I've been working for six hours non-stop and I can't do any more. It wouldn't seem so bad, if it was raining — I hate having to work so hard when it's fine outside. It was just the same yesterday. I started at nine in the morning and by five in the afternoon I was dropping on my feet. I asked my boss if I could leave at half past five as I'd worked late the day before but he said I had to get the work finished. I shall be thankful when it's all over."

Mary stopped me at work the other day. She was really fed up ...

60. Consumer report.

Give the actual comments made to researchers for the Con­sumers' Association magazine Which?

We collected opinions about sleeping quilts from some 1,200 members. Members owning quilts liked them chiefly for the case of making the bed, for their warmth, and for their light weight. The two biggest grumbles were that sleeping quilts sometimes tended to"slip off the bed and were sometimes too warm or too cold. Most members who hadn't got quilts said that they were happy with the blankets they already had or liked to be tucked in firmly at night (not possible with quilts) or thought that quilts were too expensive.

(from Which? magazine, October 1980)

61. Rewrite the passage in direct speech.

When the woman returned, Mr Boggis introduced himself and straight away asked if she would like to sell her chairs.

Dear me, she said. But why on earth should she want to sell her chairs? No reason at all, except that he might be willing to give her a pretty nice price.

And how much would he give? They were definitely not for sale,

just out of curiosity, just for fun, how much would he give?