Reporting Verbs

In the page about reported speech, we talked about how to change direct speech ("I love coffee") into reported speech (Seonaid
said that she loved coffee), using the verbs 'say', 'tell' and 'ask'. However, we can also use many other verbs to report what
someone said, like 'promise', 'warn', 'advise' and 'recommend'.
Some of these verbs look a bit more complicated to use than 'say' and 'tell', but it's just a question of getting to know the
verb patterns (or verb structures).
(As I'm sure you know, we can often choose if we want to use 'that' or not in English. I've put it in brackets () to show that it's
optional. The meaning is exactly the same if you use 'that' or if you don't use 'that'.)
1: SAY
Let's look first at the verbs we've already talked about. The basic verb pattern for using 'say' for reported speech is:
say + (that) + clause
 She said (that) she had already eaten.
(The direct speech for this is "I've already eaten".)
2: TELL
On the other hand, with 'tell' we need to use an object, a person who we tell the information to. See also my page about the
difference between 'say' and 'tell' here.
tell + someone + (that) + clause
 I told John (that) I had seen the new film.
(The direct speech for this is "I've seen the new film".)
When we are reporting orders, we can also use another pattern with 'tell':
tell + someone + to + infinitive
 She told the children to go to bed.
3: ASK
We use 'ask' to report questions or requests. For questions we use the pattern:
ask + someone + if / question word + clause
 I asked my boss if I could leave early.
 She asked them where the station was.
For requests we use the pattern:
ask + someone + to + infinitive
 I asked Lucy to pass me the salt.
(Remember, my first two examples with 'ask' are no longer real questions, so we use the normal sentence word order. We don't
use inversion. We say 'she asked them where the station was', NOT 'she asked them where was the station'. You can read more
about this on my page about indirect questions and on my page about reported speech.)
Other reporting verbs follow a variety of patterns. I'm afraid there aren't any rules about which verbs follow which patterns. You
need to learn each one.
4: ADVISE* (= Give someone advice. Notice the different spelling for the verb and the noun.)
Advise + someone + to + infinitive
 She advised him to see a doctor.
Advise + (that) + clause
 The staff advise that you carry water at all times.
Advise + against + verb-ing
 I'd advise against leaving early.
5: AGREE
Agree + to + infinitive
 We agreed to meet the following day.
Agree + (that) + clause
 I agreed that the children could do their homework later.
6: APOLOGISE
Apologise + (to + someone) + for + verb-ing
 They apologised to us for being late.
 She apologised for forgetting the book.
Apologise (+ to + someone) + for + noun
 She apologised for the delay.
7: DECIDE
Decide + to + infinitive
 They decided to go to the cinema.
Decide + (that) + clause
 They decided that they would go to the cinema.
8: ENCOURAGE
Encourage + someone + to + infinitive
 She encouraged him to take the exam again.
 The teacher encouraged the students to ask questions.
9: EXPLAIN
Explain + (that) + clause
 The teacher explained that the course was finished.
Explain + noun + to + someone
 She explained the grammar to the students.
NOT: She explained me the grammar.
Explain + question word + to + infinitive
 They explained how to buy a train ticket on the internet.
 John explained where to find the restaurant.
Explain + question word + clause
 We explained what the exams would cover.
10: INSIST*
Insist + on + verb-ing
 He insisted on paying.
Insist + (that) + clause
 He insisted that we sit down.
11: PROMISE
Promise + to + infinitive
 He promised to arrive early.
Promise + (someone) + (that) + clause
 I promised him that I wouldn't do it again.
12: RECOMMEND*
Recommend + verb-ing
 I recommend visiting the British Museum while you're in London.
Recommend + (that) + clause
 I recommend that you visit the British Museum
13: REMIND
Remind + someone + to + infinitive
 She reminded him to take his keys.
Remind + someone + (that) + clause
 They reminded me that there is a party tonight.
14: SUGGEST*
Suggest + verb-ing
 I suggest leaving soon
Suggest + (that) + clause
 I suggest that you come as soon as you can.
NOT: I suggest him to come.
15: WARN
Warn + someone + (not) + to + infinitive
 I warned them not to go in the water.
Warn + someone + about + something
 She warned us about the dangerous roads.
Negatives
To make the verbs that we have reported negative, we need to look at the verb pattern:
 When there's a clause, we make the negative in the usual way: She said that she didn't like ice cream.
 When there's 'to + infinitive', we generally put 'not' before 'to': He promised not to do it again.
 When there's 'verb-ing', we generally put 'not' in front of it: I advise not taking the bus.
Try an exercise about reporting verbs here.
* Advanced Point: In formal English, some verbs that are followed by '(that) + clause' use the infinitive instead of a present
tense verb. Some people suggest that this is a kind of subjunctive in English. You only need to worry about this in very formal
writing. Mostly, this doesn't make a difference, because the present simple form in English is often the same as the infinitive
form. But when the subject is 'he', 'she' or 'it' or when the verb is 'be', we can see it clearly.
 I advise that he go to bed early. (Normally we'd expect: I advise that he goes to bed early.)
 I insist that she come now. (Normally we'd expect: I insist that she comes now.)
 They suggested that the cats be put in the garden for the night. (Normally we'd expect: They suggested that the cats are
put in the garden for the night.)
¿Qué es un verbo modal?
Un verbo modal es un verbo auxiliar (esto es, que depende de otro) que se usa para indicar lo que se llama
"modalidad": habilidad, posibilidad, permiso u obligación.
En inglés, estos verbos son necesarios porque los tiempo verbales ingleses no son suficientes para expresar
ideas como incertidumbre o posibilidad: no hay un tiempo verbal como el subjuntivo español, por ejemplo. Por
eso, entender estos verbos y saber usarlos correctamente es imprescindible para poder expresarnos en inglés y
no "hablar como los indios" ;-)

¿Cuáles son los verbos modales?

Si la explicación anterior te ha parecido un poco abstracta, seguro que lo entenderás mejor viendo cuáles son los
principales verbos modales y para qué se usan:
 Can: se puede traducir como "poder" en español y expresa habilidad o posibilidad. Por ejemplo: I can speak
English fluently. También se usa para pedir permiso o preguntar si algo es posible: Can I have some sugar in my tea,
please?
 Could: es la forma de pasado de can. También se puede usar para preguntas con el mismo significado que can,
pero es más formal. Could you please help me with my English pronunciation?
 Will: se usa para formar el futuro, ya que no existe un tiempo verbal específico para hacer esto en inglés.
También sirve para pedir favores o información: Will they cover your travel expenses on the trip? Una versión más formal
de will es shall.
 Should: similar al castellano "deber", se usa para expresar obligaciones y recomendaciones. Ejemplo: You
shouldn't smoke. También puede usarse para preguntar opinión o normas. Should I sit here?
 Must: expresa una obligación, prohibición o necesidad más fuerte que en el verbo anterior. You must do your
homework or you will never pass. También puede servir para indicar algo que consideramos probable: the movie must be
great, everyone it's talking about it.
 Would: para preguntar algo educadamente e indicar nuestras preferencias y deseos. I would rather go to Ireland
than to U.K. También forma el condicional en inglés: If I were rich, I would like to travel around the world.

Las reglas de oro para utilizar verbos modales correctamente

Por último, vamos a ver tres normas imprescindibles para usar correctamente los verbos modales en inglés:
1. Van siempre seguidos de un verbo en infinitivo, ya que no tienen significado por sí mismos. Normalmente este verbo
no lleva to, aunque hay algunas excepciones que también se consideran verbos modales: be able to, need to, have to
y ought to.
2. No se conjugan, es decir, no añaden -s en la tercera persona de singular y no tienen pasado ni futuro. Tampoco
tienen infinitivo, tiempos compuestos ni progresivos.
3. En las formas interrogativa y negativa, no necesitan añadir el auxiliar (do or does). Por ejemplo: Can you come with
me tomorrow?