English Grammar Direct and Indirect Speech Class 8

Today we will study an exciting topic “Reported speech”. Reported speech refers to how we have interpreted the words of the speaker. 

English Grammar

Definition of Reported Speech

In simple terms, Reported speech refers to reporting the speech of the speaker i.e. whether conveying directly the words of the speaker or indirectly conveying after altering the words of the speaker. For good understanding and idea clarity, practice questions and solved examples are provided throughout the article. Let's start our journey on this pretty topic.

The Convey of Speech

Parts of reported speech in a sentence

• Reported verb 

• Reported speech,

For example, Ram said to me,” he wants to eat pizza”.

Here in the sentence, Ram said to me is the reporting verb, 

And the sentence in inverted commas “he wants to eat pizza” is the reported speech.

The reported verb refers to the simple sentence at the starting of the sentence and reported speech refers to the sentence in inverted commas that defines someone else.

Reporting Verb

The part of the sentence which is not in the inverted commas is called the reported verb.

When we change a direct speech into indirect speech then there are 3 types/ forms of changes that take place.

• Change of person

• Change of tense and

• Change of other parts of speech

For example, Priya said to the class,” keep quiet teacher is coming”.

Here in the sentence, Priya said to the class is the reporting verb.

Reporting Speech

The part of the sentence which is under inverted commas is called reporting speech.

The second part of the sentence refers to some other person, universal facts, imaginary parts, historical facts, happening events, etc.

For example, Shyam said,” taj mahal was built by Shahjahan”

Here the sentence “taj mahal was built by Shahjahan” is the reported speech. 

Basically, there are two types of speech.

• Direct speech 

• Indirect speech

Direct Speech

Direct Speech

It refers to reporting the exact words spoken by the speaker. There is no change in the verb or the sentence.

For example, Ram said to Riya, “go to school”

Priya asked Ram, “where is her bag”

Ratan enquired Raman,” why was he not picking up her call”.

Rules of Direct Speech

1. Speech should be opened with quotations or inverted commas.

2. The word said is used to connect two sentences.

3. Reporting clause should be used at the end of the sentence.

4. At the end of the sentence full stop should be placed.

Indirect Speech

Indirect Speech

It is the speech that tells what someone has said but it does not explain the actual words spoken by the person. It just conveys the basic narration of what is being said to the third person.

For example, Ram asked Riya to go to school.

Priya asked Ram where was her bag.

Ratan enquired Raman why was he not picking up her call.

Rules of Indirect Speech

1. Past tense is used when the situation is uncertain

2. The present tense of the sentence is changed to the past tense in indirect speech. 

3. Universal facts tense remains the same.

4. The use of the word “that” connects the reported verb and reported speech.

Difference Between Direct Speech and Indirect Speech

Difficult Words Meaning

Practice Question

Rewrite the following sentence converting from direct speech to indirect speech.

1. He asked me “ what is your mother’s name”.

2. Riya said to the shopkeeper, “ what is the price of the item?”

3. Ram said, “How is the weather”.

4. Commander said to militarians, “practice well”.

5. Honey told his mother, “I am not feeling well”.

6. The Doctor said, “Health is your wealth”.

7. Traffic police said, “Don't rush”.

Answers

1. He asked me what my mother's name is.

2. Riya asked the shopkeeper what the price of the items was.

3. Ram asked how the weather was.

4. Commander ordered militarians to practice well.

5. Honey told he mother that he was not feeling well.

6. The Doctor advised that health is wealth.

7. Traffic police asked the public not to rush.

Importance of Learning Direct and Reported Speech Class 8 

Having a firm grasp on direct and reported speech in Class 8 is integral to building the foundation of English grammar for young minds.

• Knowing when and how to use direct and indirect speech can help students form grammatically correct sentences.

• The essay writing and answer composition skills of young minds improve significantly when they know the nitty-gritty of direct and indirect speech.

• Learning the rules of changing speech from direct to indirect enables students to summarise texts more aptly.

• Lastly, indirect and direct speech introduces young students to the fundamentals of quoting, which is an aspect of grammar that they will need for years on end.

Examples of Direct and Indirect Speech for Class 8 Students

• Riya said, “I am going on a long vacation.” – Direct Speech

• Riya said that she was going on a long vacation. – Indirect Speech

• The stranger asked me, “Where is your house?” – Direct Speech

• The stranger asked me where my house was. – Indirect Speech

• Rina asked Steve if he had overheard her conversation. – Indirect Speech

• Rina asked Steve, “Did you overhear my conversation?” – Direct Speech

The direct and indirect speech exercises for Class 8 with answers PDF should include simple and relatable examples like the ones stated above.

Interesting Facts about Direct and Indirect Speech for Class 8 Students

• While changing a sentence from direct to indirect speech, we use the conjunction ‘that.’

• Likewise, while changing a sentence from direct to reported speech, the tense of the verb is changed from present to past.

• Direct speech helps in defining the character of a person.

• The prolonged use of direct speech in an essay can slow its pace. However, the use of indirect speech smoothens the pace of a writeup.

• If the reported speech expresses some universal truth, then we do not have to change the tense of the sentence.

All direct and indirect worksheets with answers in Class 8 ought to be an amalgamation of examples, definitions, and interesting facts to make learning more interesting for young minds. 

Important Topics of Direct and Indirect Speech Class 8 

The 17th Chapter of the Class 8 NCERT grammar book is on direct and indirect speech. Below are the topics students will learn from this chapter. 

• Understanding direct speech

• Understanding indirect speech

• Rules for changing direct speech into indirect speech

• Exceptions to rules

Therefore, all direct and indirect speech exercises for Class 8 with answers PDF should encompass the following topics.

Learn English Grammar Direct and Indirect Speech with PDFs

Meticulously designed by the subject matter experts of Vedantu, the English grammar PDFs for Class 8 students on direct and indirect speech are the one-stop destination for all young minds keen on expanding their horizons. The PDFs include reported speech exercises for Class 8 CBSE with answers, tips and tricks to learn grammar faster, sample question papers, etc.

• The PDFs of Vedantu are downloadable from the comfort of your homes.

• They are free.

• The content is regularly updated by Vedantu’s subject matter experts.

• The PDFs contain more than 50 examples of direct and indirect speech exercises.

So, do not wait any longer and download Vedantu’s PDFs now to watch your child reach new academic zeniths.