If the verb of the principal clause is in the past tense, the tenses are changed according to the rules of the sequence of tenses.
| DIRECT SPEECH
| INDIRECT SPEECH
|
| The Present Indefinite
She said, ‘We often write letters.’
| The Past Indefinite
She said they often wrote letters.
|
| The Present Continuous
She said, ‘We are writing the letter now.’
| The Past Continuous
She said they were writing the letter then.
|
| The Present Perfect
She said, ‘We have written the letter already.’
| The Past Perfect
She said they had written the letter by that time.
|
| The Present Perfect Continuous
She said, ‘We have been writing the letter for an hour.’
| The Past Perfect Continuous
She said they had been writing the letter for an hour.
|
| The Past Indefinite
She said, ‘We wrote the letter yesterday.’
| The Past Perfect
She said they had written the letter the day before.
|
| The Past Continuous
She said, ‘We were writing the letter.’
| remains unchanged or the Past Perfect Continuous
She said were (had been) writing the letter.
|
| The Past Perfect
She said, ‘We had written the letter by that time.’
| remains unchanged
She said they had written the letter by that time.
|
| The Past Perfect Continuous
She said, ‘We had been writing the letter for an hour by that time.’
| remains unchanged
She said they had been writing the letter for an hour by that time.
|
| The Future Indefinite
She said, ‘We will write the letter tomorrow.’
| The Future Indefinite in the Past
She said they would write the letter the next day.
|
| The Future Continuous
She said, ‘We will be writing the letter at 5 tomorrow.’
| The Future Continuous in the Past
She said they would be writing the letter at 5 next day.
|
| The Future Perfect
She said, ‘We will have written the letter by that time.’
| The Future Perfect in the Past
She said they would have written the letter by that time.
|
| The Future Perfect Continuous
She said, ‘We will have been writing the letter for an hour by that time.’
| The Future Perfect Continuous in the Past
She said they would have been writing the letter for an hour by that time.
|
