Grammar: 🚀 Advanced Grammar: 💬➡️🗣️ Reported Speech (B2) - Lesson 5: Reporting with Modals

🚀 Lesson 5: Reporting with Modals

You are now confident reporting statements, questions, and commands. The final step is to master how modal verbs¹ (like can, will, must, should) change in Reported Speech². Some modals follow the standard backshift³ rule, while others stay the same. This lesson will make the rules clear.

Modals That Change (Backshift)

These common modals change to their "past" equivalent when the reporting verb (e.g., said, told) is in the past.

Direct Speech	Reported Speech
will	would
can	could
may	might
must (for obligation4)	had to

Direct: "I can meet you after work," she said.
Reported: She said that she could meet me after work.

Direct: "You must finish this project by Friday," the boss said.
Reported: The boss said that we had to finish the project by Friday.

Modals That DO NOT Change

The "past" modal verbs—would, could, should, might, ought to—do not change any further when they are reported. They stay the same.

Direct: "You should visit the temples in the morning," the guide advised.
Reported: The guide advised that we should visit the temples in the morning.

Direct: "It might rain this afternoon," he said.
Reported: He said that it might rain that afternoon.

Special Case: "must" for Deduction

The modal 'must' has two meanings, and they behave differently in reported speech.

• Obligation: 'must' changes to 'had to'.
  Direct: "I must go home." → He said he had to go home.
• Deduction⁵: 'must' does not change.
  Direct: "Sothea isn't here. She must be sick." → He said Sothea must be sick.

🧠 Practice Quiz: Report the Modal

Choose the correct modal form for the reported sentence.

1. Direct: "I can speak Khmer."
   → She told me that she _______ speak Khmer.
   Answer: could
2. Direct: "We will be there at 7 PM."
   → They said that they _______ be there at 7 PM.
   Answer: would
3. Direct: "You should try the fish amok."
   → Our friend from Battambang said we _______ try the fish amok.
   Answer: should (No change)
4. Direct: "You must wear a helmet."
   → The police officer said I _______ wear a helmet.
   Answer: had to (Obligation)
5. Direct: "He must be very rich; he drives a Lamborghini."
   → She thought that he _______ be very rich.
   Answer: must (Deduction - no change)

📝 Homework: What Did They Say?

Report the following sentences.

1. The weather forecast said, "It may rain heavily tonight."
   Answer: The weather forecast said that it might rain heavily that night.
2. My friend said, "I must remember to call my parents this weekend."
   Answer: My friend said that she had to remember to call her parents that weekend.
3. The doctor told me, "You should drink more water."
   Answer: The doctor told me that I should drink more water.

Vocabulary Glossary

1. Modal Verb: (Noun Phrase) - កិរិយាស័ព្ទគន្លឹះ (kĕ'rĭ'ya'sâp kôn'lœ̆h) - A special verb (like must, should, can) that changes the meaning of the main verb. ↩
2. Reported Speech: (Noun Phrase) - ការនិយាយបន្ត (kaa ni'yéay bân'tɔɔ) - The act of reporting what someone else said, without using their exact words. ↩
3. Backshift: (Verb) - ប្តូរថយក្រោយ (p'dao thoy'kraeuy) - To change a verb tense to a "more past" tense, which is often done in reported speech. ↩
4. Obligation: (Noun) - កាតព្វកិច្ច (ka'tâp'vĕ'kĕch) - Something that you must do because of a rule, law, or promise. ↩
5. Deduction: (Noun) - ការសន្និដ្ឋាន (kaa sân'nĭ'tʰaan) - A logical guess or conclusion based on evidence. ↩