B2Reported Speech

Reporting Verbs

What is it?

Reporting verbs are used to introduce reported speech. "Said" and "told" are the most common, but English has many more specific reporting verbs that show the intention or tone of the original speech. Each reporting verb follows a specific grammatical pattern: verb + that-clause, verb + to-infinitive, verb + -ing, or verb + object + to-infinitive.

How to form it

Subject	Positive	Negative	Question
verb + that-clause	She admitted that she had made a mistake.	He denied that he had stolen it.	Did she mention that she was leaving?
verb + to-infinitive	He offered to help us.	She refused to sign the contract.	Did he agree to come?
verb + -ing	She suggested going to the cinema.	He denied taking the money.	Did she admit lying?
verb + object + to-infinitive	She warned him to be careful.	He told her not to worry.	Did she advise him to leave?

• Verb + that-clause: claim, admit, deny, explain, mention, complain, agree, promise, warn, insist.
• Verb + to-infinitive: offer, refuse, promise, agree, threaten, claim.
• Verb + -ing: admit, deny, suggest, recommend, regret.
• Verb + object + to-infinitive: tell, warn, advise, invite, encourage, remind, ask, beg, persuade.
• Some verbs can follow more than one pattern: "promise to help" or "promise that he would help".
• Backshift still applies inside the that-clause.

When to use it

1
admit + -ing or that-clause
She admitted taking the money. / She admitted that she had taken the money.
2
deny + -ing or that-clause
He denied stealing it. / He denied that he had stolen it.
3
suggest + -ing or that-clause
She suggested leaving early. / She suggested that they should leave early.
4
threaten + to-infinitive
He threatened to call the police.
5
warn + object + not to
She warned him not to touch the wire.

Common mistakes

She suggested to go to the cinema.

She suggested going to the cinema. / She suggested that they go to the cinema.

"Suggest" is followed by -ing or a that-clause, never a to-infinitive directly.

He denied to steal the car.

He denied stealing the car.

"Deny" is followed by the -ing form, not a to-infinitive.

She offered helping me.

She offered to help me.

"Offer" is followed by a to-infinitive, not the -ing form.

Quick reference

Reporting verbs show the speaker's intention, not just what was said.
Four main patterns: +that-clause, +to-inf, +-ing, +object+to-inf.
"Suggest" and "recommend" take -ing, not to-infinitive.
"Deny" and "admit" take -ing.
"Offer", "refuse", "agree", "promise" take to-infinitive.
"Warn", "advise", "tell", "remind" take object + to-infinitive.

Natural conversation example

A manager debriefs after a difficult team meeting.

Jan

What happened? How did the meeting go?

Mel

Tom admitted making a mistake in the figures.

Jan

Did he? What did Sarah say?

Mel

She denied knowing about it. Then she suggested postponing the launch.

Jan

And the director? Did he say anything?

Mel

He warned everyone not to talk to the press.

Jan

Did anyone offer to fix the problem?

Mel

Tom agreed to recheck all the data. He promised to have it done by Friday.

Practice Exercises

Complete using the correct form of the verb in brackets (that-clause, -ing, or to-infinitive).

1.
She admitted __ (take) the wrong bag.
2.
He refused __ (answer) any questions.
3.
They suggested __ (meet) earlier.
4.
She promised __ (call) me back.
5.
He denied __ (steal) the report.
6.
The manager advised us __ (keep) quiet.
7.
She offered __ (drive) us to the station.
8.
He warned them __ (not/touch) the equipment.
9.
She recommended __ (book) in advance.
10.
He agreed __ (look) into the issue.

Reported Speech (overview)All Topics Say and Tell

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