Reported Speech: Modal verbs

REPORTED SPEECH

Do you remember what modal verbs are?

Modal verbs are auxiliary verbs They "modify" the meaning of the main verb in some way They cannot function as main verbs and can't be conjugated

Now, let's remember some of them and how we can report sentences in which they are used.

Modal verb “Can”

“I can speak perfect English”, she said. She said that she could speak perfect English.

“We can work late tonight if you need us”, Michael and Ben told me. Michael and Ben told me that they could work late tonight if I need them. Michael and Ben told me that they could work late that night if I needed them.

Modal verb “Could”

“You could pass the test if you studied”, the teacher told me. The teacher told me that I could pass the test if I studied.

“I could run long distances before my accident”, Thomas said. Thomas said that he could run long distances before his accident.

Modal verb “Should”

“You should stop smoking because it’s bad for your health”, the doctor told Mika. The doctor told Mika that she should stop smoking because it’s bad for her health.

(it was)

“We should call our parents”, they said. They said that they should call their parents.

Modal verb “Must”

“You must eat all your vegetables”, my mother told my little brother. My mother told my little brother that he must eat all his vegetables.

“You must clean your bedrooms”, my father said. My father said that we had to clean our bedrooms.

THANK YOU!