Review: General Rules on Tense Usage
- Yesterday Thomas said, “I am going to the job fair.”
- Thomas said (that) he was going to the job fair.
In this sentence the reporting verb (the main verb of the sentence, e.g., said) is in the past. He was going… is used here because the reporter’s time is different from the original speaker’s time. In formal English this is the general rule to always follow.
However, in spoken English we can say this:
Immediate reporting
- A: What did Thomas just say to you?
B: He said (that) he is going to the job fair.
Unlock full access by logging in. Registered users can explore the entire lesson and more.