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Indirect Speech

Indirect Speech

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How to use reported speech in Spanish (dijo que, me preguntó si)

Retell what anyone said — statements, questions, requests — smoothly in live conversation.

GRAMMAR PACK · 6 LESSONS · B2

Report a statement with que and shift the tense back when your reporting verb is past: present becomes imperfect ("Tengo hambre" → Dijo que tenía hambre), future becomes conditional (Dijo que vendría al día siguiente), and the preterite or perfect becomes pluperfect (Dijo que había ido al cine). Yes/no questions take si — Me preguntó si quería ir al cine — while requests take que + imperfect subjunctive: Me pidió que cerrara la puerta. Time words shift with the perspective: hoy → ese día, mañana → al día siguiente.

Below: every shift with its phrases, how gossip actually gets retold across Latin America, the over-shifting trap — and a way to practise reporting real quotes out loud instead of rewriting them on paper.

Say this

The phrases that carry the conversation

Reporting statements with que

  • Dijo que estaba cansado.He said he was tired.
  • Me contó que vivía en Barcelona.She told me she lived in Barcelona.
  • Explicó que no entendía el problema.He explained that he didn't understand the problem.
  • Comentó que había terminado el proyecto.She mentioned that she had finished the project.

Reporting questions

  • Me preguntó si quería ir al cine.He asked me if I wanted to go to the cinema.
  • Me preguntó dónde vivía.She asked me where I lived.
  • Quería saber cuándo llegábamos.He wanted to know when we were arriving.
  • Me preguntó por qué no había venido.She asked me why I hadn't come.

Tense shifts: present → imperfect, future → conditional

  • "Tengo hambre" → Dijo que tenía hambre."I'm hungry" → He said he was hungry.
  • "Vendré mañana" → Dijo que vendría al día siguiente."I'll come tomorrow" → He said he would come the next day.
  • "Fui al cine" → Dijo que había ido al cine."I went to the cinema" → He said he had gone to the cinema.
  • "He comido" → Dijo que había comido."I've eaten" → He said he had eaten.

Regional Spanish

What locals actually say

Textbooks teach one word. Locals use several — pick your region's and stay consistent.

Watch out

Mistakes that mark you as a textbook speaker

  1. Forgetting time shiftsadjust hoy/mañana to appropriate reference (ese día, al día siguiente)
  2. Dropping pronoun alignmentrestate from new speaker perspective (yo → él/ella)
  3. Over-shifting when not neededkeep present if context is current (Dijo que Madrid es la capital)

The part no drill site can do

No flashcards. You learn it by using it

Carla, &Be grammar teacher

Carla

Your grammar teacher for this pack

No sentence-rewrite exercises — in the Indirect Speech lessons you retell things to Carla and she talks back. She hands you a quote — "Estoy ocupado" — and you report it both ways out loud: Dice que está ocupado with a present reporting verb, Dijo que estaba ocupado with a past one. Then she pushes you into the fun stuff: two-layer chains (Me dijo que Ana le había dicho que…) and the classic gossip opener locals lean on — resulta que me dijo que…

Blank mid-sentence and nothing bad happens — she waits. That's the practice, without unnecessary judgement.

Finish the 6 lessons and Indirect Speech is yours — earned, not given.

Download on the App Store First 10 lessons free · 10-minute spoken lessons · your AI coaching team remembers you

Quick answers

Questions people ask

How do tenses change in Spanish reported speech?

When the reporting verb is past: present → imperfect (Dijo que tenía hambre), future → conditional (Dijo que vendría), preterite and present perfect → pluperfect (Dijo que había comido).

How do you report a question in Spanish?

Yes/no questions use si: Me preguntó si quería ir al cine. Wh-questions keep their question word: Me preguntó dónde vivía. In Mexico you'll also hear the colloquial que si: me preguntó que si quería ir.

How do you report a command or request in Spanish?

With que + imperfect subjunctive: Me pidió que cerrara la puerta, Sugirió que fuéramos al restaurante nuevo, Recomendó que estudiáramos más.

Do you always have to shift the tense in reported speech?

No — if what was said is still true, keep the present: Dijo que Madrid es la capital de España. Over-shifting when the context is current is a common learner tell.

How do words like hoy and mañana change when you report speech?

They shift with the timeline: hoy → ese día, mañana → al día siguiente, ayer → el día anterior, and aquí → allí: "Ayer llovió" → Dijo que el día anterior había llovido.