Explanation of Direct Indirect Speech.pdf

Detailed explanation of Direct and Indirect Speech

1. Dnyan Prabodhini Mandal’s
SHREE MALLIKARJUN & Shri. Chetan Manju Desai College
Canacona Goa
“PREPARING FOR STATE & NATIONAL LEVEL COMPETITIVE EXAMS”
30-HOURS FREE CERTIFICATE COURSE
Organized by Departments of Mathematics, Geography & English

Direct & Indirect Speech; Active & Passive Voice
23
rd
September 2024

2. Direct Speech
In direct speech, the exact words spoken
by a person are quoted. It is usually
enclosed in quotation marks.
Example:
He said, "I am going to the store."

3. Indirect Speech
In indirect speech, the spoken words are
reported without quoting them directly.
It often involves changes in tense,
pronouns, and time expressions.
Example:
He said that he was going to the store.

4. Key Differences
Quotation Marks: Direct speech uses
quotation marks; indirect does not.
Tense Changes: Direct speech can remain in
the present tense, while indirect speech
often shifts to the past tense.
Pronoun Changes: Pronouns may need to be
adjusted according to the context in indirect
speech.

5. Examples of Changes
Direct: She said, “I will call you
tomorrow.”
Indirect: She said that she would call me
the next day.
Direct: John asked, “Are you coming?”
Indirect: John asked if I was coming.

6. Active Voice
In active voice, the subject performs the
action of the verb.
Structure: Subject + Verb + Object
Example:
The chef cooks the meal.
(The subject "the chef" performs the action
of cooking.)

7. Passive Voice
In passive voice, the subject receives the
action of the verb.
Structure: Subject + Form of "to be" + Past
Participle + (by + Agent)
Example:
The meal is cooked by the chef.
(The subject "the meal" receives the action
of being cooked.)

8. Key Rules
Identifying the Voice:
Active: Focus on who is doing the
action.
Passive: Focus on what is receiving the
action.

9. Changing from Active to Passive:
Identify the object of the active
sentence (which becomes the subject in
the passive).
Use the appropriate form of "to be"
based on the tense of the active verb.
Use the past participle form of the main
verb.

10. Optionally include the original subject
(agent) with “by”.
Tense Changes:
Maintain the tense when converting:
Present Simple: She reads the book. →
The book is read by her.
Past Simple: He wrote the letter. → The
letter was written by him.

11. Future Simple: They will complete the
project. → The project will be
completed by them.
Omitting the Agent:
In many cases, the agent (the doer of
the action) can be omitted if it is
unknown or not important.
Example: The book was read. (We don't
specify who read it.)

12. Practice
Here are a couple of examples for
practice:
Active: The teacher explains the lesson.
Passive: The lesson is explained by the
teacher.

13. Exercise 1: Change Active to Passive
Convert the following sentences from active
voice to passive voice.
The dog chased the cat.
The manager will approve the proposal.
The students completed the project on time.
The artist painted a beautiful mural.
The scientists discovered a new species.

14. Exercise 1: ANSWERS
The cat was chased by the dog.
The proposal will be approved by the manager.
The project was completed by the students on
time.
A beautiful mural was painted by the artist.
A new species was discovered by the scientists.

15. Exercise 2: Change Passive to Active
Convert the following sentences from passive
voice to active voice.
The novel was written by the famous author.
The homework was finished by the students.
The cake was baked by my grandmother.
The movie was directed by a well-known
filmmaker.
The song was sung by the choir.

16. Exercise 2:
The famous author wrote the novel.
The students finished the homework.
My grandmother baked the cake.
A well-known filmmaker directed the
movie.
The choir sang the song.

17. Exercise 3: Mixed Practice
Identify whether each sentence is in active or
passive voice and then transform it to the
opposite voice.
The report was submitted by the team.
The teacher praised the students.
A letter was sent to her by John.
The children play soccer in the park.
The pictures were taken by the
photographer.

18. Exercise 3:
Passive → The team submitted the report.
Active → The students were praised by the
teacher.
Passive → John sent a letter to her.
Active → Soccer is played by the children in
the park.
Passive → The photographer took the
pictures.