Lesson

Reporting offers, suggestions, orders, intentions etc.

Reporting speech acts

≈ 15 min 8 block(s)

Text

Reporting offers, suggestions, orders, intentions and similar acts

This lesson explains how to report different kinds of speech acts: offers, suggestions, orders (commands), intentions and related remarks. When you report these utterances, you often change verb forms, pronouns, time expressions and sentence structure. Different reporting verbs and patterns are used depending on the original act.

  • Use specific reporting verbs (offered, suggested, ordered, intended, promised) to show the speaker's communicative act.
  • Offers and promises usually use 'to' + infinitive (He offered to help; She promised to send it).
  • Suggestions can be reported with -ing (He suggested postponing) or with 'that' + should (He suggested that we should postpone).
  • Orders and commands use 'told' or 'ordered' + object + to-infinitive (The boss told him to finish).
  • Intentions are reported with 'intended to' or 'was/were going to' depending on tense.

Table

Reporting patterns — direct → reported

Type Direct speech Reported speech (example)
Offer "I'll help with the proposal," Mark said. Mark offered to help with the proposal.
Suggestion "Let's postpone the meeting," she said. She suggested postponing the meeting. / She suggested that we should postpone the meeting.
Order / Command "Finish the report by 5 PM!" the manager said. The manager ordered him to finish the report by 5 PM. / The manager told him to finish the report by 5 PM.
Intention "I'm going to resign next month," he said. He said he intended to resign next month. / He said he was going to resign next month.
Promise "I'll send the file tonight," she said. She promised to send the file that night.
Refusal "I won't attend the meeting," he said. He refused to attend the meeting.

Tip

Key rules for reporting offers, suggestions, orders and intentions

Match the reporting verb to the original act and change the verb form accordingly:

  • Offers / promises → reporting verb + to-infinitive: He offered to help. She promised to send it.
  • Suggestions → suggest + -ing OR suggest + that + should (BrE): He suggested revising the plan. / He suggested that we should revise the plan.
  • Orders / commands → told/ordered + object + to-infinitive: The director told them to improve quality.
  • Intentions → said + (that) + subject + intended to OR was/were going to: She said she intended to attend. / She said she was going to attend.

Choose precise reporting verbs (offer, suggest, order, promise, refuse, intend) to reflect the speaker's meaning.

Example

Examples in context

"I'll prepare the financial summary," John said.

"Why don't we delay the launch?" the team suggested.

"Submit the monthly figures by Friday," the manager told the analyst.

"I'm planning to attend the conference," Maria said.

Tip

Common mistakes to avoid

Watch out for these universal errors when reporting offers, suggestions, orders and intentions:

  • Using the wrong reporting verb: Do not use 'said' when the speaker actually offered, suggested, ordered or promised—choose a precise verb.
  • Wrong verb form after the reporting verb: After 'suggest', don't use infinitive without 'to' (use -ing or a that-clause).
  • Incorrect word order for reported commands: Avoid leaving out the object before 'to' (The manager told to finish → incorrect).
  • Forgetting to shift tense or time expressions when necessary: Keep logical sequence (e.g., 'tomorrow' may become 'the next day').
  • Using direct question word order in reports: Convert questions to statement order (She asked where the files were, not She asked where are the files).

Focus on the reporting verb and the structure that follows it.

Quiz

Choose the correct reported sentence for: "I'll help with the proposal," Mark said.

Hint: Think about the verb that expresses giving help voluntarily.

Quiz

Complete: He suggested _____ the meeting until Friday.

Hint: Think of the verb form that follows 'suggest'.

Quiz

Choose the correct reported version of: "Finish the report by 5 PM!" the manager said.

Hint: Check for object + 'to' + base verb after the reporting verb.

Key Points

Vocabulary

offer

verb / noun CEFR B1 //ˈɒfər//

to propose to give or do something; a proposal to do something

She offered to review the contract before submission.

Vocabulary

suggest

verb CEFR B1 //səˈdʒɛst//

to propose an idea or plan for consideration

He suggested postponing the meeting until next week.

Vocabulary

order

verb / noun CEFR B2 //ˈɔːrdər//

to give a command or instruction; a command

The director ordered the team to revise the forecast.

Vocabulary

intend

verb CEFR B2 //ɪnˈtɛnd//

to have a plan or purpose to do something

They intend to launch the new product in Q3.

Vocabulary

promise

verb / noun CEFR B1 //ˈprɒmɪs//

to give assurance that one will do something; a commitment

She promised to send the updated figures by Monday.

Vocabulary

propose

verb CEFR B2 //prəˈpəʊz//

to put forward an idea or plan for consideration

She proposed a new workflow to improve efficiency.