Reported Speech- Same or Different

Reported Speech- Same or Different

Write S or D on each line below if the things have the same or different meanings. If there
are more than two, they are all the same or all different. Small differences mean “different”.

 tell someone that it comes later/ tell someone to come later

 tell someone to call you back/ ask someone to call you back

 I asked for sugar/ I requested sugar

 ask someone to stay/ beg someone to stay/ demand that someone stay

 I begged for his help/ I prayed for his help

 say that it works/ tell someone that it works

 claim that is stolen/ state that it is stolen/ announce that it is stolen

 claim that it is broken/ complain that it is broken/ criticise it for being broken

 mention his interest/ declare his interest

 comment on his proposal/ remark on his proposal

 mention expenses/ touch on expenses

 suggest problems/ imply problems/ give the impression of problems

 insist on good time keeping/ stress good time keeping

 emphasise his suitability/ stress his suitability

 maintain his opinion/ confirm his opinion

 he says that it is suitable/ he said that it is suitable

 he said that he lives there/ he said that he lived there

 he said that he lived there/ he said that he had lived there

 acknowledge that something is true/ recognise that something is true

 acknowledge his guilt/ admit his guilt/ concede his guilt/ confess his guilt

 acknowledge his skill/ congratulate him on his skill/ boast of his skill

 deny having seen him/ refuse to see him

 explain the mechanism/ describe the mechanism

 It is said that he is a criminal./ He is said to be a criminal.

 It is said to be pointless./ It has been said to be pointless.

 He asked me whether I agreed to do it./ He asked me if I agreed to do it.

 advocate cuts/ support cuts/ approve of cuts/ approve cuts

 He advocated more funding./ He argued for more funding.

Written by Alex Case for UsingEnglish.com © 2019

p. 1

 He agreed to meet her./ He agreed with meeting her.

 He disagreed with investing./ He objected to investing./ He refused to invest.

 They disputed over the investment./ They disagreed with the investment.

 We discussed the topic./ We debated the topic.

 We asked about prices./ We enquired about prices.

 I checked whether he was coming./ I confirmed that he was coming.

 We forecast a blip./ We predict a blip./ We project a blip.

 We forecasted a rebound./ We speculated about a rebound.

 I have been ordered to press the button./ I have been commanded to press the button.

 I was commanded to come/ I was instructed to come/ I was reminded to come

 I was promised a 10% profit./ I was guaranteed a 10% profit

 I was accused of the crime./ I was blamed for the crime.

 allege that he did it/ accuse him of doing it

 warn him about violence/ threaten him with violence/ discourage using violence

 suggest using the subway/ recommend using the subway/ propose using the subway

 invite him to come/ urge him to come

 bring up the weakness/ point out the weakness/ bring the weakness to our attention

 indicate the leak/ refer to the leak

 persuade him to retire/ reassure him about retirement

Written by Alex Case for UsingEnglish.com © 2019

p. 2