Reported Speech: Indirect Speech (He Said, She Asked)
To report what someone said, use dijo que for statements and preguntó si or a question word for questions, shifting tenses, pronouns and time words back.
The rule at a glance
dijo que + statement · preguntó si / dónde, qué...
Present → imperfect · preterite, perfect → pluperfect · future → conditional
Statement: que
dijo que
said that
Pedro dijo que vivía en Madrid
Pedro said he lived in Madrid
Yes/no question: si
preguntó si
asked if
Me preguntó si tenía tiempo
He/She asked me if I had time
Wh-question
preguntó dónde
asked where
Preguntó dónde vivía
He/She asked where I lived
Future → conditional
iré → iría
will → would
Dijo que iría al día siguiente
He said he would go the next day
- Time and place words shift too: mañana → al día siguiente, aquí → allí.
Forms
Reported (indirect) speech tells others what someone said without quoting them. You report the content and adjust the verbs, pronouns and time references to the new context: María dijo: "Tengo hambre" becomes María dijo que tenía hambre (María said she was hungry). Tengo (I have) becomes tenía (she had): the verb moves back a tense, and the context now makes it "she".
Tense changes
When the reporting verb is in the past (dijo, preguntó), tenses usually shift back one step: the present to the imperfect, the preterite and present perfect to the pluperfect (see perfect tenses), and the future to the conditional. A command becomes que + imperfect subjunctive.
| Direct speech | Reported speech |
|---|---|
| "Tengo frío" – present | Dijo que tenía frío – imperfect |
| "Compré pan" – preterite | Dijo que había comprado pan – pluperfect |
| "Iré mañana" – future | Dijo que iría al día siguiente – conditional |
| "He terminado" – present perfect | Dijo que había terminado – pluperfect |
| "Ven aquí" – command | Me dijo que viniera – imperfect subjunctive |
Time and place words
Time and place references shift to match the reporting perspective:
| Direct speech | Reported speech |
|---|---|
| hoy (today) | ese día / aquel día (that day) |
| ayer (yesterday) | el día anterior (the day before) |
| mañana (tomorrow) | al día siguiente (the next day) |
| aquí (here) | allí / allá (there) |
| este/esta (this) | ese/esa, aquel/aquella (that) |
| ahora (now) | entonces (then) |
Reporting verbs
Go beyond decir: these verbs all take que. For questions use preguntar.
When to use it
1. Reporting statements: verb + que
Reporting verb + que + what was said. Never leave out que.
"Tengo hambre" → María dijo que tenía hambre – María said she was hungry
"Vivo en Madrid" → Pedro dijo que vivía en Madrid – Pedro said he lived in Madrid
"No puedo ir a la reunión" → Ana dijo que no podía ir a la reunión – Ana said she couldn't go to the meeting
2. Reporting yes/no questions: preguntar + si
Use si (if, whether), normal statement word order and no question marks.
"¿Tienes tiempo?" → Me preguntó si tenía tiempo – He/She asked me if I had time
"¿Tiene reserva?" → La recepcionista preguntó si tenía reserva – The receptionist asked if I had a booking
"¿Habéis estudiado para el examen?" → La profesora preguntó si habíamos estudiado para el examen – The teacher asked if we had studied for the exam
3. Reporting wh-questions: keep the question word
Questions with qué, dónde, cuándo, quién, cómo, por qué keep the question word (with its accent) but lose the question marks.
"¿Dónde vives?" → Preguntó dónde vivía – He/She asked where I lived
"¿Qué quieres?" → Preguntó qué quería – He/She asked what I wanted
"¿Por qué llegaste tarde?" → Preguntó por qué había llegado tarde – He/She asked why I had arrived late
"¿Cuándo vas a venir?" → Mi madre preguntó cuándo iba a ir – My mum asked when I was going to go
4. Reporting commands and requests: que + subjunctive
A command or request becomes que + subjunctive. After a past reporting verb (dijo, pidió) it is the imperfect subjunctive.
"Ven aquí" → Me dijo que viniera – He/She told me to come
"¿Me ayudas?" → Me pidió que lo ayudara – He asked me to help him
5. Keeping the tense: still true now
When what was said is still true or relevant, Spanish often keeps the original tense.
Pedro dijo que vive en Madrid – Pedro said he lives in Madrid (he still lives there)
Explicó que la Tierra es redonda – He explained that the Earth is round (universal truth)
Comentó que le gusta el chocolate – She said she likes chocolate (still true)
Reported questions use statement word order. More on how direct questions are built: question formation.
Common mistakes
Forgetting que
Not this (incorrect): Dijo tenía hambre
But this (correct): Dijo que tenía hambre – He said he was hungry. Always include que when reporting statements.
Que instead of si
Not this (incorrect): Me preguntó que tenía tiempo
But this (correct): Me preguntó si tenía tiempo – He asked me if I had time. Reported yes/no questions take si (if, whether); que is for statements.
Not changing the tense
Not this (incorrect): El lunes dijo que está cansado, pero ya está bien
But this (correct): El lunes dijo que estaba cansado, pero ya está bien – On Monday he said he was tired, but he's fine now. Direct: "Estoy cansado". Present becomes imperfect (unless it is still true now).
Not changing time expressions
Not this (incorrect): La semana pasada dijo que vendría mañana
But this (correct): La semana pasada dijo que vendría al día siguiente – Last week he said he would come the next day. He said "Vendré mañana" last week, so mañana becomes al día siguiente; in the same way aquí becomes allí.
Question marks in reported questions
Not this (incorrect): Preguntó ¿dónde vivía?
But this (correct): Preguntó dónde vivía – He asked where I lived. Reported questions are statements: no question marks needed.
Quick check
8 questions1. How do you report what Ana said last week: 'Estoy cansada'?
Use 'que' and change present (estoy) to imperfect (estaba): Ana dijo que estaba cansada.
2. Report this yes/no question: '¿Tienes hambre?'
Yes/no questions use 'si' (if/whether) and no question marks: Me preguntó si tenía hambre.
3. What tense replaces the present in reported speech?
Present tense becomes Imperfect in reported speech. Example: 'tengo' becomes 'tenía'.
4. Report: '¿Dónde vives?'
Wh-questions keep the question word but lose the question marks: Preguntó dónde vivía.
5. How does 'mañana' change in reported speech?
'Mañana' (tomorrow) becomes 'al día siguiente' (the next day) in reported speech.
6. Report: 'Iré a Madrid' (using 'dijo'; the trip is now over)
Future (iré) becomes Conditional (iría): Dijo que iría a Madrid.
7. Report what he said last week: 'He terminado el trabajo'
Present perfect (he terminado) becomes Pluperfect (había terminado) in reported speech.
8. Can you keep the original tense in reported speech?
You can keep the original tense when the statement is still true or relevant now.
Test your understanding of reported speech:
Going further
Reported speech at work, with friends and when travelling, and a whole dialogue reported
In context
Boss: "Necesito el informe para mañana" → Mi jefe dijo que necesitaba el informe para el día siguiente – My boss said he needed the report for the next day
Friend: "He comprado un coche nuevo" → Carlos me contó que había comprado un coche nuevo – Carlos told me he had bought a new car
Driver: "El autobús saldrá en cinco minutos" → El conductor dijo que el autobús saldría en cinco minutos – The driver said the bus would leave in five minutes
A whole dialogue reported
Original conversation
Laura: ¿Dónde estuviste ayer? Where were you yesterday?
Miguel: Estuve en casa. No me sentía bien. I was at home. I wasn't feeling well.
Laura: ¿Qué te pasó? What happened to you?
Miguel: Creo que comí algo malo. I think I ate something bad.
Reported version
Laura le preguntó a Miguel dónde había estado el día anterior. Laura asked Miguel where he had been the day before.
Miguel respondió que había estado en casa porque no se sentía bien. Miguel replied that he had been at home because he wasn't feeling well.
Laura preguntó qué le había pasado. Laura asked what had happened to him.
Miguel explicó que creía que había comido algo malo. Miguel explained that he thought he had eaten something bad.