Reported Commands and Requests

Level: B1. An order like “Wait here!” or a request like “Please help me” is not reported with that. Instead you name the person and turn the command into a to-infinitive: She told me to wait here.

The rule

An imperative is the plain command form of a verb with no subject: Sit down. Be careful. Don’t move. To report it, you do not quote the words; you say who was spoken to and what they were told to do.

The pattern is reporting verb + object (the person) + to-infinitive:

• “Open the window.” → She told me to open the window.
• “Please wait.” → He asked us to wait.

Two verbs cover most cases. Use tell for an order or instruction, and ask for a request (often where the speaker said please). Both must be followed by the person (an object pronoun such as me, him, us, or a noun) before the to-infinitive.

For a negative command — one that starts with Don’t — put not directly before to:

• “Don’t be late.” → She told me not to be late.
• “Please don’t tell anyone.” → He asked me not to tell anyone.

There is no tense backshift. The to-infinitive has no tense of its own, so nothing moves back a step the way it does with reported statements and questions. You still change pronouns and time or place words to match the new speaker and moment (here → there, this → that).

Forms: imperative to reported command

Other verbs that use the same object + to-infinitive frame:

Example sentences

Common mistakes

• ❌ She said me to wait. → ✅ She told me to wait. Say cannot take a person as its object; use tell me or ask me.
• ❌ He told to me to sit down. → ✅ He told me to sit down. After tell, the person comes straight after with no to.
• ❌ She told me wait here. → ✅ She told me to wait here. The to-infinitive always keeps its to.
• ❌ He asked me don’t go. → ✅ He asked me not to go. A negative command is not to + verb, never don’t.
• ❌ The teacher told to the students to be quiet. → ✅ The teacher told the students to be quiet. No to between tell and the person.
• ❌ She asked me that I help her. → ✅ She asked me to help her. Requests use to, not a that-clause.

A short conversation

Lena: How did the interview go? Sam: Fine. They asked me to start next Monday and told me to bring my passport. Lena: Did they say anything else? Sam: They reminded me not to be late, and the manager encouraged me to ask questions on my first day.

Usage notes

• No tense backshift. Because the structure is a to-infinitive, there is no present-to-past shift. Only pronouns and words like here / there and this / that change.
• The person is required. Tell and ask (in this pattern) always need an object: She asked me to go, never She asked to go (that last one means she wanted to go herself — a different meaning).
• Say vs tell. Tell takes a person (tell me); say does not (say to me). Reported commands therefore use tell / ask, not say.
• Register. Ask and request are polite; tell, order and instruct are firmer; beg and plead with are emotional. Choose the verb that matches how the words were meant.
• Warnings. Warn often reports a Don’t… command: “Don’t drink that.” → He warned me not to drink it.

Compared with…

• Reported questions. A question is reported with if / whether or a question word and keeps a finite verb (She asked where I lived), while a command uses to + verb with no question word (She asked me to wait). Same verb ask, two very different structures. See Reported Questions.
• Reported statements. A statement is reported with that and a backshifted verb (He said that he was tired). A command has no that and no backshift — just tell / ask + person + to. See Reported Speech: Statements.
• Imperatives. The command you start from is the imperative itself (Wait! Don’t move!). Reporting it turns that bare form into a to-infinitive. Revisit Imperatives if the direct form is unclear.

Quick recap before you practise.

Practice

Quiz

Recap cheat-sheet

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