Narration Sentences Rules with Examples

Narration Sentences is a writing technique that uses narration to make your story interesting. What makes this so effective are the specific examples of what you use in each sentence, which hook readers into reading further and imagining themselves with their own life experiences.

In the “narration rules chart with examples” there are a few different types of narration sentences. These sentences can be used in many different ways and for many different purposes. They all have their own unique features that make them work better than other narration sentences.

We will cover all Narration phrases with examples in this tutorial. Under Narration, we look at ‘Direct’ and ‘Indirect’ communication.

What is the best way to locate a sentence in Direct Speech?

A phrase is considered to be in direct speech if it is written exactly as it was said by the speaker. Pawan, for example, claims that he works hard.

What is the best way to locate a statement in Indirect Speech? Indirect Speech occurs when the speaker’s statement is altered by the storyteller according to specified principles. Ram, for example, claims to put in long hours.

Narration phrases come in a variety of shapes and sizes. 

1. Declarative sentences that make a claim
2. sentences with interrogatives
3. Sentences with a negative connotation
4. sentences with exclamatory clauses
5. Sentences with a positive tone

1. How do you turn declarative or forceful statements into indirect speech?

“I put forth a lot of effort,” he adds. (Speech in Direct) He claims to put in long hours. (Speech in an indirect manner)

Assertive sentence narration norms

1. When turning the statement into indirect speech, the comma and inverted commas are deleted, and the conjunction ‘that’ is used instead.
2. The following rules apply to pronoun changes:
3. In indirect speech, say/said stays unaltered.
4. ‘Say to’ becomes ‘tell,’ and ‘Said to’ becomes ‘told.’ ‘You work hard,’ he says to me, for example. (Direct) He informs me that I put in a lot of effort. (Indirect)

Note:

1. After ‘tell’ and ‘told,’ ‘to’ is not used.
2. After ‘tell’ and ‘told,’ an item appears. The words ‘ordered,”requested,’ and ‘forbade’ will all be followed by an object in the same manner.

If the reporting verb is in the ‘present’ or ‘future tense,’ the tense of the reported utterance will not change according to the guidelines below.

‘I came here yesterday,’ he remarked, as an example. (Direct) He said that he had arrived the day before. (Indirect)

Alteration of Tension

Modal Switching

• Should/would – Shall/Will
• May – Possibility
• Could – Could

Changes in Space and Time

• that day – today
• tomorrow – the next day
• Yesterday was the day before yesterday was the day before yesterday was the day before yesterday was the day before yesterday was the day before yesterday was
• that night – tonight
• prior – the previous
• that – this
• that – this
• they are the ones
• before – before
• then – now

Examples:

1. ‘I am sorry, but I am unable to assist you at this moment,’ she said. (Direct) She said that she was unable to assist me at that time. (Indirect)
2. ‘I will come to see you tomorrow,’ he replied. (Direct) He said that he will meet me the next day. (Indirect)
3. ‘I haven’t taken any examinations this year, but I want to take two tests next year,’ Ram remarked. (Direct) Ram admitted that he had not taken any tests that year, but said he planned to take two the next year. (Indirect)
4. ‘Virtue is its own reward,’ he remarked. (Direct) He said that goodness is a reward in and of itself (Sentence is a phrase). (Indirect)
5. ‘We have to do that task today because we know tomorrow will never arrive,’ our instructor stated. (Direct) Our instructor told us that we needed to complete the job that day since we never know when tomorrow would arrive. (Indirect)

2. How to change sentences with interrogatives into indirect speech?

1. ‘Are you coming?’ he inquired. (Direct) He inquired as to whether I would be attending. (Indirect)
2. ‘When are you arriving,’ he asked? He asked me when I was coming (the question of whose family). (Indirect)

Narration Rules for sentences with interrogatives

1. ‘Said to’ should be replaced with asked, questioned, enquired, or interrogated.
2. The word ‘question mark (?)’ should be replaced with ‘full stop.’
3. Indirect Speech phrases will not be in the interrogative form. This signifies that following the subject, a helping verb is utilized.
4. Change the tense and pronoun according to the rules.
5.  If the question has a yes/no response, the conjunction if/whether will be used. There will be no conjunction used if the query is ‘what family?’

Examples:

1. ‘Do you know who I am?’ he said. (Direct) He inquired whether I knew who he was. (Indirect)
2. ‘What are you doing now?’ she said. (Direct) She inquired as to what he was doing at the time. (Indirect)
3. ‘Did you mean to come with me?’ he said. (Direct) He inquired whether he planned to accompany him. (Indirect)
4. ‘Haven’t you watched this movie?’ he said. (Direct) He inquired as to whether she had watched the film. (Indirect)
5. ‘Madam, may I assist you?’ he asked. He asked her politely if he might assist her and she responded “no.” She gave a negative response. (Indirect)
6. ‘When will the train arrive?’ he inquired. (Direct) He inquired about the train’s arrival time. (Indirect)

Sentence 5 Explanation:

• In the Indirect Speech, if we used Sir/Madame/Your honour or any other term of respect in the Direct Speech, we should use the word’respectfully’ instead.
• In the Indirect Speech, if we use Darling/Dear/My Beloved or any other term of affection in the Direct Speech, the word ‘lovingly/affectionately’ should be used instead.
• If the response is “yes” or “no,” it must be altered to “answered in the positive” or “answered in the negative.”

3. How to Change Sentences with a negative connotation into indirect speech?

• ‘Get out of here,’ he said. (Direct) He told me to go. (Indirect)

Narration Rules for Sentences with a negative connotation

1. Replace “said to” with “ordered,” “respected,” “forbidden,” “recommended,” and so on.
2. Commas and inverted commas will be replaced with the conjunction ‘to.’
3. The word ‘to’ is followed by the word ‘V1’.
4. Rules govern how tense and pronouns change.

Examples:

1. She mentioned something to me. ‘Do not come here,’ says the narrator. (Direct) She prevented me from going. (passive) or She forbade me from going there. (Indirect)
2. ‘Call the first witness immediately,’ he said. (Direct) He then instructed them to summon the first witness. (Indirect)
3. ‘Spread the garments out in the sun and don’t wash anything else,’ she said. (Direct) She told him not to wash anything else except the clothes and to lay them out in the sunshine. (Indirect)
4. ‘Stand at ease,’ the captain instructed to the troops. (Direct) The captain told the men to take a deep breath and relax. (Indirect)
5. ‘Help people but don’t expect anything in return,’ my mum advised me. (Indirect) My mother taught me to serve people without expecting anything in return.’ (Indirect)

4. How to change sentences with exclamatory clauses into indirect speech?

• ‘Alas!’ she said. “I’m undone.” (Direct) She lamented the fact that she had been undone. (Indirect)

Narration rules for sentences with exclamatory clauses

1. Said + Alas! = sorrowful exclamation Said + Hurray! = joyous exclamation Said + Fi! Ugh! = despised/disgusted exclamation. Said + Wow! = joyous exclamation. Said + Oh! = surprised/regretful exclamation.
2. Commas and inverted commas will be replaced with the conjunction ‘that.’
3. Rules govern how tense and pronouns change.

Examples:

1. ‘Hurray!’ she said. This contest has been won by us.’ (Direct) She ecstatically declared that they had won the match. (Indirect)
2. ‘How lovely is the rain!’ she said. (Direct) She shouted with delight that the rain was very lovely. (Indirect)
3. ‘Bravo!’ he said. ‘You’ve done a fantastic job.’ (Direct) He congratulated him and said he had done a good job. (Indirect)
4. ‘What a lovely surprise!’ she said. (Direct) It was a delightful surprise, she said. (Indirect)

5. How to change Sentences with a positive tone into indirect speech?

‘May God bless you,’ he added. (Direct) He prayed for God’s blessing on me. (Indirect)

Narration Rules for Sentences with a positive tone

1. Replace “said” with “wished” or “prayed.”
2. The word ‘that’ is used as a conjunction.
3. Rules govern how the tense and pronoun are modified.

Examples

1. ‘May God forgive him,’ she replied. (Direct) She appealed to God for forgiveness. (Indirect)
2. ‘Long live the king,’ they said. (Direct) They prayed for the king’s long life. (Indirect)

Important Points in the Narration:

Here you have a condition or a list of terms; if these conditions or words appear in phrases, how can the sentence be changed?

• When direct speech is turned to indirect speech, the words “need not,” “used to,” “would rather,” “would better,” “had rather,” and “had better” do not change. ‘I used to take the bus to school,’ he said. (Direct) He said that he used to take the bus to school. (Indirect)
• The tense does not change when past continuous is used with a time clause. For instance, he told me, “While I was studying, you were playing.” (Direct) He said that she was playing when he encountered him. (Indirect)
• The tense is not modified when past indefinite is used with two simultaneous acts. For instance, she said, “I made the tea, while he cooked the chips.” (Direct) She said that she was the one who made the tea and he was the one who cooked the chips. (Indirect)
• The tense does not change in the case of historical occurrences. ‘Ghandihiji founded the Quit Indian Movement,’ he remarked, as an example. (Direct) He said Gandhiji was the one who initiated the Quit India Movement. (Indirect)
• Would/should has replaced will/shall. If the sentence is suggestive, the will/shall should be replaced with’should.’ (See Exhibit 2) Examples:
  1. ‘I’ll be there tomorrow,’ he replied. (Direct) He said that he will arrive the next day. (Indirect)
  2. ‘What will I do after the exam?’ she said. (Direct) She inquired as to what she should do after the test. (Indirect)
• The modals will be altered according to the sentence’s meaning. Example:
  1. ‘If I am picked, I won’t have to take any more exams,’ she remarked. (Direct) She said that if she had been chosen, she would not have been required to take any additional exams. (Indirect)
  2. ‘Do you want me to send an e-mail?’ he said. (Direct) He inquired whether he needed to send an e-mail. (Indirect)
  3. “I would not go out alone when I was a youngster,” he remarked. (here, ‘could’ stands for ‘permission’) (Direct) He said that she was not permitted to go out alone when she was a child. (Indirect)
  4. ‘Rohit, you must be cautious,’ she added. (Directly) she advised Rohit to be cautious. (For order, the word’must’ is used) (Indirect)

The “change the narration of the following sentences” is a common problem in writing. This article will show you how to change the narration of your sentence using examples.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is narration write the rule with example?

A: Narrating the rule is highly recommended, but not required. If a question asks what your role in the group would be, you should narrate that its important to talk with others about their roles and discuss them out loud.

What are rules of narration?

How do you change a sentence into narration?

A: One way to change a sentence into narration is by putting the sentences into brackets, with each bracket representing one word.

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