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problems with passive./..

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Improving_MY_English  #318560  Mon, 22 Jan 07 11:03 PM

Can this sentence be transformed into reported speech like that:?

DIRECT SPEECH: I had a book in my hand when i came into the room at the beginning of the lesson

REPORTED SPEECH: you said that you had a book in ypur hand when you came into the room at the beginning of the lesson.

I found this answer in a CALLAN book, and I was wondering, is it gramatically correct???
because I was tought that we should change tenses when we transform sentence from direct speech into reported.
could you explain this to me???

  
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Pioussoul  #318672  Tue, 23 Jan 07 05:20 AM
 Improving_MY_English wrote:

Can this sentence be transformed into reported speech like that:?

DIRECT SPEECH: I had a book in my hand when i came into the room at the beginning of the lesson

REPORTED SPEECH: you said that you had a book in ypur hand when you came into the room at the beginning of the lesson.

I found this answer in a CALLAN book, and I was wondering, is it gramatically correct???
because I was tought that we should change tenses when we transform sentence from direct speech into reported.
could you explain this to me???

Yes, it's grammatically correct. The tenses here are all right. Btw, what kind of tenses do you have in mind? Only when you write them on this thread, could we help you?

  
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Improving_MY_English  #319023  Tue, 23 Jan 07 10:10 PM
this sentence in direct speech is in Simple Past[both parts] and in my CALLAN book, when it was changed into passive they didn't change the tense. and I was wondering why??? can we do that sometimes?? if yes, when??
  
Pioussoul  #319059  Tue, 23 Jan 07 11:56 PM

 Improving_MY_English wrote:
this sentence in direct speech is in Simple Past[both parts] and in my CALLAN book, when it was changed into passive they didn't change the tense. and I was wondering why??? can we do that sometimes?? if yes, when??

Hi, I'm sorry I am totally at sea about your question above, which doesn't conform to your base sentence.

Would you rephrase it morely clearly with examples so that we could help you?

  
Matress  #319066  Wed, 24 Jan 07 12:29 AM
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Improving_MY_English  #319287  Wed, 24 Jan 07 01:04 PM
 Pioussoul wrote:

 Improving_MY_English wrote:
this sentence in direct speech is in Simple Past[both parts] and in my CALLAN book, when it was changed into passive they didn't change the tense. and I was wondering why??? can we do that sometimes?? if yes, when??

Hi, I'm sorry I am totally at sea about your question above, which doesn't conform to your base sentence.

Would you rephrase it morely clearly with examples so that we could help you?



I meant that this sentence:
DIRECT SPEECH: I had a book in my hand when i came into the room at the beginning of the lesson
has 2 verbs, and both are in simple past. and in my book reported speech look like this:
REPORTED SPEECH: you said that you had a book in ypur hand when you came into the room at the beginning of the lesson.
so they didn't change the tenses, 2 verbs are still in simple past. and I need to know when we shouldn't change the tenses, so when sipmle past in direct speech stays as simple past in reported speech.
  
Pioussoul  #319322  Wed, 24 Jan 07 02:50 PM

 Improving_MY_English wrote:
 Pioussoul wrote:
 Improving_MY_English wrote:
this sentence in direct speech is in Simple Past[both parts] and in my CALLAN book, when it was changed into passive they didn't change the tense. and I was wondering why??? can we do that sometimes?? if yes, when??
Hi, I'm sorry I am totally at sea about your question above, which doesn't conform to your base sentence.Would you rephrase it morely clearly with examples so that we could help you?

I meant that this sentence:
DIRECT SPEECH: I had a book in my hand when i came into the room at the beginning of the lesson
has 2 verbs, and both are in simple past. and in my book reported speech look like this:
REPORTED SPEECH: you said that you had a book in ypur hand when you came into the room at the beginning of the lesson.
so they didn't change the tenses, 2 verbs are still in simple past. and I need to know when we shouldn't change the tenses, so when sipmle past in direct speech stays as simple past in reported speech.

Well, your question is not a problem with "passive" but with "tense" in reported speeches. First, you didn't say it clearly and right in your base sentences. Your direct speech should go like the following:

You said, "I had a book in my hand when i came into the room at the beginning of the lesson."

When we change it into indirect speech, we get:

You said you had had a book in your hand when you had come into the room at the beginning of the lesson.

  
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