What is indirect speech?
Indirect (reported) speech is how you tell someone what another person said, asked, or told you - without quoting their exact words. In English: "She said she was tired" instead of "She said: 'I am tired'". Spanish follows a similar pattern, with some important tense-shifting rules.
Direct vs. indirect speech
| Type | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Direct | María dijo: "Estoy cansada." | Maria said: "I'm tired." |
| Indirect | María dijo que estaba cansada. | Maria said (that) she was tired. |
The reporting verb is usually decir (to say/tell), followed by que. Notice how the verb tense shifts back when the reporting verb is in the past.
Tense shifting rules
When the reporting verb is in the preterite (dijo, contó, explicó), the tenses in the reported clause shift back one step:
| Original tense | Shifts to | Direct | Indirect |
|---|---|---|---|
| Present | Imperfect | "Tengo hambre." | Dijo que tenía hambre. |
| Present progressive | Imperfect progressive | "Estoy trabajando." | Dijo que estaba trabajando. |
| Preterite | Pluperfect | "Fui al médico." | Dijo que había ido al médico. |
| Present perfect | Pluperfect | "He terminado." | Dijo que había terminado. |
| Future | Conditional | "Vendré mañana." | Dijo que vendría al día siguiente. |
| Conditional | Conditional (no change) | "Me gustaría ir." | Dijo que le gustaría ir. |
| Imperfect | Imperfect (no change) | "Vivía en Sevilla." | Dijo que vivía en Sevilla. |
Key pattern: The imperfect and conditional don't shift any further - they stay as they are.
When the reporting verb is in the present
If the reporting verb is in the present tense (dice que...), there's no tense shift:
- "Tengo hambre." → Dice que tiene hambre. (He says he's hungry.)
- "Iré mañana." → Dice que irá mañana. (She says she'll go tomorrow.)
Changes beyond the verb
Indirect speech also requires changes to pronouns, possessives, and time/place references:
| Direct speech | Indirect speech |
|---|---|
| yo | él/ella (or appropriate pronoun) |
| tú | yo (if reporting what was said to you) |
| mi / tu | su |
| aquí (here) | allí (there) |
| hoy (today) | ese día / aquel día (that day) |
| mañana (tomorrow) | al día siguiente (the next day) |
| ayer (yesterday) | el día anterior (the day before) |
| esta semana (this week) | esa semana (that week) |
| este (this) | ese / aquel (that) |
Reporting questions
Yes/no questions - use "si"
When reporting a yes/no question, use si (if/whether) instead of que:
- "¿Vienes a la fiesta?" → Me preguntó si iba a la fiesta. (He asked me if I was going to the party.)
- "¿Has terminado?" → Quiso saber si había terminado. (She wanted to know if I had finished.)
Information questions - keep the question word
When the original question uses a question word, keep it in the indirect version:
- "¿Dónde vives?" → Me preguntó dónde vivía. (He asked me where I lived.)
- "¿Qué hora es?" → Preguntó qué hora era. (She asked what time it was.)
- "¿Cuándo llegas?" → Quería saber cuándo llegaba. (He wanted to know when I was arriving.)
Note: Reported questions do not use question marks or inverted word order - they become statements.
Reporting commands and requests
When someone tells/asks someone to do something, use decir que or pedir que + subjunctive:
- "Ven aquí." → Me dijo que fuera allí. (He told me to go there.)
- "Cierra la puerta." → Le pidió que cerrara la puerta. (She asked him to close the door.)
- "No salgas." → Me dijo que no saliera. (She told me not to go out.)
These use the imperfect subjunctive, which you'll study in detail at B2. For now, just recognise the pattern.
Common reporting verbs
| Spanish | English | Followed by |
|---|---|---|
| decir que | to say that | indicative (reporting facts) |
| contar que | to tell / recount that | indicative |
| explicar que | to explain that | indicative |
| comentar que | to mention that | indicative |
| afirmar que | to state that | indicative |
| preguntar si / que | to ask if / what | indicative |
| pedir que | to ask (request) that | subjunctive |
| decir que (command) | to tell someone to | subjunctive |
Dialogue: gossip at the office
Ana: ¿Sabes qué me dijo Pedro ayer?
Lucía: No, ¿qué te dijo?
Ana: Me dijo que estaba pensando en dimitir. Explicó que no estaba contento con su sueldo.
Lucía: ¡No me digas! ¿Y te dijo cuándo se iría?
Ana: Comentó que probablemente se marcharía el mes que viene. También me preguntó si yo estaba contenta aquí.
Lucía: ¿Y qué le dijiste?
Ana: Le dije que me gustaba el trabajo pero que el jefe podría ser mejor.
Translation
Ana: Do you know what Pedro told me yesterday?
Lucia: No, what did he tell you?
Ana: He told me he was thinking about resigning. He explained that he wasn't happy with his salary.
Lucia: You don't say! And did he tell you when he would leave?
Ana: He mentioned he would probably leave next month. He also asked me if I was happy here.
Lucia: And what did you tell him?
Ana: I told him that I liked the job but that the boss could be better.
Practice
Convert these direct quotes to indirect speech (the reporting verb is in the past):
- María: "Vivo en Barcelona." → María dijo que...
- Juan: "¿Tienes hermanos?" → Juan me preguntó...
- El profesor: "El examen será el viernes." → El profesor explicó que...
- Mi madre: "He preparado la cena." → Mi madre dijo que...
- Laura: "¿Dónde está el banco?" → Laura preguntó...
Answers
- María dijo que vivía en Barcelona.
- Juan me preguntó si tenía hermanos.
- El profesor explicó que el examen sería el viernes.
- Mi madre dijo que había preparado la cena.
- Laura preguntó dónde estaba el banco.
Key takeaways
- When the reporting verb is past tense, shift tenses back: present → imperfect, future → conditional, preterite/present perfect → pluperfect.
- The imperfect and conditional don't shift further.
- Report yes/no questions with si; keep the question word for information questions.
- Report commands with decir/pedir que + subjunctive.
- Adjust pronouns, possessives, and time references (hoy → ese día, mañana → al día siguiente).