was and is

English as a Second Language English Vocabulary, Grammar and Idioms
1

He told me his name was Sam
He told me his name is Sam

Have they got the same meaning?

2

He told me his name was Sam.
He tells me his name is Sam.

3

Hi Beesneees…

But according to direct speech,i can use is with told cuz it’s still true now?
But my question is.

He told me his name was Sam
He told me his name is Sam.
Have they got the same meaning?

4

They do.

Personally, I would still use ‘tells’ rather than ‘told’ with ‘is’ though.

5

Hi Mr_Kong_19,

If this is simply reported speech and you are repeating what Sam told you, it would be logical to say: He told me and clearly his name is Sam all the time:

He told me his name is Sam.

Alan

6

But this is NOT direct speech.

This is: He said “My name is Sam.”

The American Heritage® Book of English Usage.
A Practical and Authoritative Guide to Contemporary English. 1996.

7

He told me his name was Sam.

or
He said his name was Sam.

8

Hi Milanya,

I think this is far too prescriptive:

It surely depends on the actuality/validity of what was said.

Alan

9

Sorry I still dont understand

If i’m a reporter,can i write:
He told his name was Sam?

Has it got the same meaning as
He told his name is Sam

My question is HAVE THEY GOT THE SAME MEANING?

10

I answered ‘yes’ in post #4, which replied to your post #3.

You have the grammar wrong in your latest versions of the sentences in post #9 though.

11

I think “he said his name was” suggests the following:

either the man passed away or he was lying.

so, if he is still with us and he can be trusted on what he’s saying, that should be “he said his name is”

or, if it is “he said his name was” we don’t care too much about this person “The passerby said his name was Tom. We has never seen him before… and after” no “We’ve seen him neither before nor after.”

12

Hi Sergey,

With the greatest respect I have to say I think you are overegging this!

Alan

13

That means I really are )) a good theory anyway ))

14

???

15

if you’re saying I’m overegging this, that means I’m overegging this. I’ve got no doubts. And why I said it was a good theory is cause I thought this might be true.

16

May i know what grammatical mistake did i make?
Thanks!

17

In post #3 your grammar is correct.

Ibn post #9 the same sentences are incorrect because you left out the word ‘me’ in both sentences.