reported speech spanish rules

Reported Speech Spanish Guide: Examples + Verb Changes 

Reported speech is an overlooked yet crucial feature in everyday conversations. In short, it allows you to convey what someone else said adequately. Since mastering this topic can boost your fluency, in this reported speech Spanish guide, you’ll learn: 

• How to form reported speech
• Verb Changes in Indirect Speech
• Downloadable PDF

In addition to this, I’ve also included different examples of how to apply this concept in real-life situations. Let’s do this! 

What Is the Reported Speech in Spanish?

Reported speech in Spanish, also known as indirect speech, conveys what someone else said without quoting their exact words. 

Simply put, Spanish indirect speech allows you to rephrase and report what someone said. On the contrary, direct speech involves quoting the exact words a person used. For instance: 

In Spanish, decir is the most common verb to form the reported speech. However, you can also use the following verbs: 

• Aclarar : Clarify / Explain
• Afirmar : Affirm / Clair
• Anunciar : Announce
• Contar : Tell
• Explicar : Explain
• Pedir : Ask 
• Preguntar : Ask
• Prometer : Promise
• Recordar : Remember 
• Recomendar : Recommend 
• Sugerir : Suggest

Spanish indirect speech allows you to share information and someone’s thoughts or opinions with different people. As a result, it’s commonly used in news and writing environments, but also in daily conversations. 

How to form indirect speech 

To report what someone said, we use one of the previous verbs followed by que: 

[Verb] + que + [statement]

When using reported speech in Spanish you’re repeating what another person said, we must do some modifications to preserve the meaning of the original sentence. These changes include: 

• Adjust the pronouns and adjectives
• Change the verb tense (if applicable)

Take this graphic as an example: 

Spanish Reported Speech: Verb Backshifting 

When it comes to reported speech, verb conjugations are one of the major adjustments you must make. In simple words, we must change the tense of the original verb to maintain a logical sequence. In Spanish grammar , this is known as backshifting . 

To help you understand and apply backshifting in reported speech, I’ve prepared this table that compares the original tenses with their backshifted equivalents: 

We only change the tense of a verb when the original action already took place . Let me break this down for you. 

Let’s say you’re traveling and you call me today to tell me when you arrive. You’ll say: 

Llegaré a las dos.  I will arrive at two. 

But the time comes, and you’re not here. Everybody is asking me what time you’re supposed to arrive and I repeat what you said: 

Me dijo que llegaría a las 2.  He said he would arrive at 2. 

In this case, I backshifted the verb because the original action (arrival time) had already passed. The same happens with other tenses. 

However, the tense of the original statement doesn’t change when talking about facts or when the action is still relevant (it just happened). 

Take this sentence as an example: 

This example implies that I’m immediately telling you what our friend said. 

Reported Speech: Additional Spanish Resources

Transforming from direct and indirect speech requires knowledge of diverse grammatical elements. For starters, you must have a good command of Spanish pronouns so you know which pronoun to use for your sentence. 

On that same note, you should also get familiar with possessive adjectives in case you need to mention someone’s belongings. And, of course, you must be comfortable conjugating verbs in different Spanish tenses . 

Make sure you know how to form the:

• Present indicative
• Present perfect
• Present subjunctive
• Preterite tense
• Imperfect subjunctive
• Past perfect
• Imperative  
• Future simple
• Conditional tense

Download the Spanish Reported Speech PDF

Download a free PDF made for this guide including the graphics for reported speech as well as the backshifting verbs table so you can learn how to convert direct into indirect speech.

Daniela Sanchez

¡Hola! Soy Daniela Sanchez, I've been studying Spanish professionally as well as teaching it in Mexico and online for over 10 years. I’ve taught Spanish to a wide array of foreigners from many backgrounds. Over the years, I've made it my mission to work hard on refining many challenging to understand grammar topics to make my students' learning experiences easier, faster and more enjoyable. Read More About Me

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Reported Speech in Spanish: Master the Art of Talking About What Other People Say

Reported speech is everywhere.

In English, you use it dozens (if not hundreds) of times every day without even realizing it.

The good news is that you can be that natural in Spanish, too. You’re literally just an article away from becoming a Spanish reported speech master yourself!

Don’t believe me? Give this post just 10 minutes of your time, and you’ll see how easy it can be.

What Is Spanish Reported Speech?

Basics of spanish reported speech, spanish reporting verbs, decir  (to say, to tell), preguntar  (to ask), querer saber (to want to know), pedir  (to ask), querer (to want), other reporting verbs in spanish, using  que (that), spanish reported speech word order: subject + verb + object, spanish reported speech based on questions, yes or no questions, “wh-” questions, other changes in spanish reported speech, personal pronouns and possessives, time and place expressions, verb tenses, and one more thing….

Download: This blog post is available as a convenient and portable PDF that you can take anywhere. Click here to get a copy. (Download)

Direct and reported speech are two of the most frequently-used grammar points in languages, and Spanish is no exception. Whenever you talk about what someone else has said, you use either direct or reported speech.

When you repeat exactly what another person has said and explicitly indicate who said it, you’re using direct speech. For example:

Daniel dice: “Estoy muy cansado hoy.” (Daniel says: “I am very tired today.”)

Now, let’s say you don’t remember exactly what your  compadre (buddy) Daniel said, but you do remember the gist of it. If someone else asks you what Daniel said, you’d say something like:

Daniel dice que está muy cansado hoy.  (Daniel says he is very tired today.)

That, in a nutshell, is reported speech. Spanish reported speech is where you talk about someone (other than yourself and the person you’re talking to) and what that person said without necessarily quoting them verbatim.

In written texts or messages, it’s usually easier to differentiate between Spanish direct and reported speech. For starters, direct speech uses quotation marks to enclose the statement being quoted, while reported speech doesn’t. Direct speech quotes the person being talked about word-for-word, while reported speech may or may not use their exact words, though the gist of what they said is always present.

So that’s it, right? Differentiating direct and reported speech in Spanish is just a matter of using the right punctuation marks and whether you used the other person’s exact words, yes? 

Not quite. Although English and Spanish reported speech are similar for the most part, the latter has some unique quirks that we’ll be discussing in the next sections.

Like in English, reported speech in Spanish consists of a few basic elements: reporting verbs, connecting words like que (“that”) and the message from the person being talked about—whether the message is verbatim or not.

Let’s break them down below.

Similar to English, Spanish reporting verbs (also known as communication verbs ) are used to signal that you’re either quoting someone directly (direct speech) or paraphrasing them (reported speech).

There are dozens of reporting verbs in every language, although we tend to use some of them more often than others.

Here are a few of the most common reporting verbs in Spanish:

Decir is probably the most common Spanish word to use when talking about what someone else said.

If you want to tell someone about what another person is asking, use preguntar.

Querer saber can be used in a similar way as preguntar.

When you’re talking about what someone else wants, use pedir.

Instead of pedir, you can also use querer.

As I’ve mentioned earlier, there are so many Spanish reporting verbs that it would be impossible to list them all here. However, I can give you some of the most common ones:

You may have noticed that almost all of our examples above have the word que . I’m telling you now: que is going to be your new best friend, because every single reported statement and command in Spanish will include it, even if you omit or don’t need “that” in English.

Let’s look at a few examples:

It doesn’t matter if you’re talking about a statement, command or question. The word order will always be Subject + Verb + Object, as is typical of Spanish sentence structure .

When the reported speech Spanish speakers use is based on questions , it deviates slightly from the structure we just discussed and is based on whether you’re using a “yes or no” question or a “wh-” question.

In reported speech that’s based on this kind of question, you use si (if, whether) instead of que .

Recall the Spanish equivalents of the English “wh-” questions:

When you’re reporting a “wh-” question, you use the appropriate question words above instead of  que or  si .

One thing to keep in mind: when using the verb preguntar , you can add que just before the question word.

Don’t be afraid to write two que together! They aren’t the same word, and they don’t have the same function.

In reported speech, the personal pronouns and possessives change from the reported version. Luckily, it works the same way in English—that is, the change is necessary so that the core message isn’t lost or misinterpreted.

Again like English, time and place expressions in the reported speech Spanish speakers use change from their direct counterparts.

Here are some of the main changes that take place:

There’s a group of words I’d like to include in this section. They’re neither time nor place expressions, but they imply distance from the speaker.

Undoubtedly, the most troublesome part of reported speech in Spanish is that the verbs change their tenses.

The good news is that these changes don’t happen all the time, and you have almost identical changes in English.

But when do we need to make changes in verb tenses? How do we know?

The only thing you have to bear in mind here is the reporting verb. Yes, that little friend present at the beginning of the reported sentences we studied before.

There are only two straightforward rules, really:

1. If the reporting verb is in the present simple or the present perfect tense, you DON’T have to change any verb tenses unless you have a command.

2. If the reporting verb is in the preterite, the imperfect or the past perfect tense ( pluscuamperfecto ), you DO need to make changes.

Have a look at the following examples. The reporting verbs (in bold) are in the present simple or the present perfect, so there are no verb changes in the reported sentences.

As stated before, when you have a command, you do need to make changes even when the reporting verb is in the present or the present perfect tense. Therefore, the imperative changes into the present subjunctive .

Similarly, if the command’s reporting verb is in the past tense, the imperative changes into the imperfect subjunctive.

In those sentences where the reporting verb appears in the past tense, you need to make verb tense changes in the reported fragment. These changes are almost identical to those in English, but here are the most important ones for your convenience:

In those sentences where the verb is in the imperfect , conditional or past perfect ( pluscuamperfecto ), there are no tense changes.

I know this can all sound very overwhelming and confusing, so I’d like to introduce you to the language learning platform FluentU , where you can watch reported speech in Spanish in action.

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And that’s all!

As you can see, Spanish and English reported speeches are very similar.

Just remember the few rules I’ve taught you in this post, and you’ll have no problem at all!

If you've made it this far that means you probably enjoy learning Spanish with engaging material and will then love FluentU .

Other sites use scripted content. FluentU uses a natural approach that helps you ease into the Spanish language and culture over time. You’ll learn Spanish as it’s actually spoken by real people.

FluentU has a wide variety of videos, as you can see here:

FluentU brings native videos within reach with interactive transcripts. You can tap on any word to look it up instantly. Every definition has examples that have been written to help you understand how the word is used. If you see an interesting word you don’t know, you can add it to a vocab list.

Review a complete interactive transcript under the Dialogue tab, and find words and phrases listed under Vocab .

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Indirect Speech in Spanish

El estilo indirecto ( indirect speech / reported speech ) is used in Spanish to report what someone has said without quoting them directly . In this article, you’ll learn the difference between direct and indirect speech and about the different types of indirect speech.

Direct Speech vs. Indirect Speech

Just like in English, we can report what another person said with direct speech or indirect speech. Direct speech is used to narrate the exact words expressed by the speaker. It is primarily used in writing.

Let’s take a look at a few examples using direct speech!

By using indirect speech, we don’t have to repeat what the speaker has said word-for-word. By omitting the direct quotation, we can paraphrase someone else's words, focusing more on the content of what someone said, rather than their exact words. Note that, since it is used to relay what someone said, it is almost always used in a past tense.

Let’s change the previous examples of direct speech to indirect speech.

He Said, She Said

There are three types of indirect speech: indirect statements , indirect questions , and indirect commands . Let’s take a closer look.

Indirect Statements

Reporting verbs , followed by the conjunction que ( that ), are used to introduce someone else's statement indirectly . Decir ( to say / to tell ) is the most common verb used to report a statement, but there are many more:

Let’s take a look at some examples!

Indirect Questions

When reporting a question, we use the verb preguntar ( to ask ) or the verb phrase querer saber ( to want to know ) followed by si ( if / whether ).

For example:

When reporting who , what , where , when , why , or how questions, use preguntar or querer saber followed by the question word. Since it is indirect speech, we do not need to use question marks.

Indirect Commands or Requests

To report a command, we use a variety of reporting verbs followed by que . Here is a list of the most common verbs used to report a command or request:

Check out these examples!

Important Changes

When using indirect speech, you often need to change the verb tense. Here's a table to help you remember what tense you need to use!

Pronouns and Possessives

When changing direct speech to reported speech, make sure to change any necessary pronouns and possessive adjectives .

Time and Place Expressions

Finally, when using indirect speech, we need to change references to time and place. Here’s a list of the most common changes:

When using indirect speech, you need to know your past tenses well. Review your past tenses in Spanish with these articles!

• Preterite vs. Imperfect
• Verbs that Change Meaning in the Preterite
• Past Participles
• Irregular Spanish Past Participles
• Sequence of Tenses in Spanish
• The Simple Past vs. Past Continuous in Spanish
• Past Perfect Progressive in Spanish
• Past Perfect
• Past Perfect Subjunctive

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Indirect Speech in Spanish Grammar

Indirect speech in spanish: the basics, how to change direct speech to indirect speech in spanish, changing the tense in indirect speech, changing information about place and time.

• Lingolia Plus Spanish

What is estilo indirecto ?

Reported speech or indirect speech (el estilo indirecto) is when we repeat what another person has said without directly quoting it.

This means that we often have to adapt or change certain parts of speech such as pronouns , tenses and time and place markers to reflect that we are only reporting what was said, not repeating it word-for-word.

Learn all about reported speech in Spanish with Lingolia, then practise in the interactive exercises.

Direct speech repeats someone’s utterance word-for-word and is placed within quotation marks (comillas: «…»).

Indirect speech reproduces something a person has said without quoting them exactly.

Indirect speech is therefore introduced by a reporting verb such as decir say , afirmar confirm , contar tell , exclamar exclaim , explicar explain , preguntar ask  …

Sentences in reported speech take the following form: reporting verb + que (= that)

Questions in reported speech do not take question marks.

Yes-no questions (oraciones interrogativas totales) take the following form: reporting verb + si (= if)

When a question contains a question word (oración interrogativa parcial) , we use this in place of si : reporting verb + question word

Indirect Questions

Remember: questions in indirect speech are not the same thing as indirect questions (las oraciones interrogativas indirectas).

To learn more, check out our page on indirect questions in Spanish grammar .

There are several parts of speech that we have to change when converting direct speech to indirect speech in Spanish.

Luckily the process is almost exactly the same as it is in English, which means you already know more than you think!

Let’s start off with a simple example in English:

In this example, we can see that the following parts of speech have changed:

• personal pronouns (I → he)
• verb (like → liked)
• demonstrative pronoun (this → that)

In Spanish, we change the exact same things (plus a few others). Let’s break them down in detail:

• personal pronouns (yo, tú, él, ella …) Example: Juan: «( Yo ) estoy estupendamente». Juan: “ I’m great.” → Juan dijo que ( él ) estaba estupendamente. He said that he was great. 1st person to 3rd
• possessives (mi, tu, su …)
• demonstratives (este, esta, ese …)
• information about place and time
• the verb changes its person and tense (more info on this below) Example: Juan: « Estoy estupendamente». Juan: “I am doing great.” → Juan dijo que estaba estupendamente. Juan said that he was doing great. 1st person to 3rd; present tense to imperfect

When moving from direct to indirect speech, we often have to change the tense of the verb.

Whether we have to change the tense depends on the tense of the reporting verb.

No change in tense

The tense in the indirect speech stays the same if the reporting verb is in the present, future or perfect tense (él cuenta, él contará, él ha contado ). The person still changes.

Exception: the imperative

The imperative is a special case. Even if the reporting verb is in the present or perfect, the imperative does not remain the same in the indirect speech; it changes to become the present subjunctive .

However, when the reporting verb is in the past, the imperative behaves like other tenses and changes to the imperfect subjunctive in indirect speech.

When to change the tense in indirect speech

When the reporting verb is in the preterite, imperfect or past perfect (él contó, el contaba, el había contado ), the tense of the indirect speech moves back one. This is known as backshifting.

The table below shows how to backshift the tense from direct speech to indirect speech when you have a reporting verb in the past.

Time and place references have to be adapted in indirect speech.

The table below shows how to convert time and place references from direct speech to indirect speech.

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How to use reported speech in Spanish?

Reported speech, also known as indirect discourse, is the reproduction or “repackaging” of someone else’s message. In English and in Spanish, we normally begin reported speech with a reporting verb ( dijo ( " he/she said " ) ), preguntó ( " he/she asked " ) , etc.), followed by a conjunction ( que ( " that " ) ) and then the message. With that said, reported speech in Spanish has a few rules we need to keep in mind. Are you ready to be the messenger? Let’s get started!

Table of Contents

Direct vs indirect speech.

Spanish and English both have different means of communicating what someone has said. One way is called direct speech. Direct speech works the same in both languages: you use direct quotations and a punctuation mark to introduce the message. In English, we use a comma, but in Spanish, we introduce direct speech with a colon. Here is an example of direct speech:

El profesor fue claro. Nos dijo: “Hagan la tarea para mañana.”

The professor was clear. He told us, “Do your homework for tomorrow.”

Indirect speech, while still relaying a message, has a few more things to consider. In Spanish, we can indirectly report statements, questions (yes/no and content), and commands/requests . Because we use indirect speech way more than direct speech in our daily life, we need to make sure you know how to use it and how to build it to avoid confusion or mixed messages. What does indirect speech look like, you ask? Here are some examples:

Indirect statement:

La señora explicó que para abrir la puerta necesitábamos jalar, no empujar .

The lady explained that t o open the door we needed to pull, not push .

Indirect command:

Mi mamá me dijo que hiciera la cama y guardara los platos .

My mom told me to make the bed and put away the dishes .

Indirect question:

Mi hermana nos preguntó si íbamos a reunirnos para su cumpleaños .

My sister asked us if we were going to get together for her birthday .

While still relaying a message, see how the reported/indirect messages have to change in both languages? Let’s get our learning going!

How to build indirect speech in Spanish?

Before we begin any type of indirect speech, we must start our clause with a verb of reporting. The following are some frequently used verbs of reporting:

• decir ( " to say, to tell " )
• preguntar ( " to ask " )
• querer ( " to want " )
• explicar ( " to explain " )
• afirmar ( " to assert " )
• añadir ( " to add " )
• contestar ( " to reply, to answer " )
• insistir ( " to insist " )

The verb of reporting can refer to the present or the past . If it refers to the present, the verb of reporting will be in the present (simple or progressive) or present perfect :

El niño dice/ha dicho que quiere su biberón.

The boy says/has said that he wants his bottle.

If it refers to the past, the most common form is the preterite :

El niño dijo que quería su biberón.

The boy said that he wanted his bottle.

The second ingredient in indirect speech is a conjunction that follows the verb of reporting. The conjunctions are normally que ( " that " ) or si ( " if " ) .

Finally, we must adapt three additional items when building indirect speech. The three changes are: relation , time , and location . Keep reading to learn more!

Subject pronouns and possessives

When using indirect speech, we need to make sure we change subject pronouns No definition set for subject pronouns Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum. and possessives to match the message that was given. This also happens in English. Here’s an example:

Direct speech:

María dijo: “( yo ) Quiero mi burrito.”

María said, “ I want my burrito.”

Indirect speech:

María dijo que ella quería su burrito.

María said that she wanted her burrito.

Notice how the indirect speech goes from first to third person since we are indirectly referring to what has been said.

Change in location and time

When we are using indirect speech, we must adjust our time and location references as well. This also happens in English! It should not be too difficult to pick up.

Time changes:

hoy ( " today " ) → ese día/aquel día ( " that day " )

Julio dice: “Llego hoy.”

Julio says, “I arrive today.”

Julio dijo que llegaba ese día.

Julio said that he would arrive that day.

ahora ( " now " ) → entonces ( " then " )

La niña insiste: “Quiero jugo ahora.”

The girl insists, “I want juice now.”

La niña insistió que quería jugo entonces.

The girl insisted that she wanted juice then.

mañana ( " tomorrow " ) → al día siguiente ( " the next day " )

El estudiante añadió: “No estaré en clases mañana.”

The student added, “I will not be in classes tomorrow.”

El estudiante añadió que no estaría en clases al día siguiente.

The student added that he would not be in classes the next day.

Click the link to see some additional Spanish expressions and how they change with indirect speech !

Notice that if you're reporting in the present, you might not need to change the time reference. It’s all a matter of time relativity! For instance, llego hoy ( " I arrive today " ) , if you're relaying this message on the same day then there is no need to change:

Location changes:

Adverbs of place: aquí ( " here " ) → allí, ahí ( " there " )

Mi papá dijo: “Estaciónate aquí.”

My dad said, “Park here.”

Mi papá quiso que me estacionara allí.

My dad wanted me to park there.

These include demonstratives, adjectives, and pronouns because they deal with distance from the speaker!

este, esta ( " this " ) → ese, esa, aquel, aquella ( " that " ) estos, estas ( " these " ) → esos, esas, aquellos, aquellas ( " those " )

Directionality/verbs of direction will also change!

llevar ( " to take " ) → traer ( " to bring " )

ir ( " to go " ) → venir ( " to come " )

And vice versa!

Ana says, “I’ll bring coffee for everyone.”

Ana says she’ll bring coffee for everyone.

For more on how to use these particular verbs in Spanish , head over to our post!

Adapting verb tenses in indirect speech

The last crucial change in building indirect speech happens to verb tenses. Just like we change time expressions above, sometimes we need to change verb tenses to ensure the message is being communicated appropriately. Here are a couple of examples:

If the reporting verb is related to the present , then there is NO NEED to change the verb tense.

El doctor dice : “No ⤷ present puedo atenderte.”

The doctor says, “I can’t see you.”

El doctor dice que no ⤷ present puede atenderme.

The doctor says he cannot see me.

If the reporting verb is related to the past , then you will need to change the verb tense.

El doctor dijo : “No ⤷ present puedo atenderte.”

El doctor dijo que no ⤷ imperfect podía atenderme.

For a full list of Spanish verb tenses and their corresponding tense in indirect speech , click the link!

We will see next that these rules also apply to indirect questions, but they do not when using commands. Keep reading to find out which verb tenses you use with Spanish commands.

Indirect questions in Spanish

If you are relaying a question with indirect speech, there are a couple of different options for doing so. However, the most common verbs of reporting for questions are: preguntar ( " to ask " ) and querer saber ( " to want to know " ) . With regard to verb tenses, it works exactly like the indirect statements above. Let’s check questions and indirect speech, shall we?

Yes and no questions

Mi hermano preguntó: “¿Tienes chicle?”

My brother asked, “Do you have gum?”

Mi hermano preguntó si tenía chicle.

My brother asked if I had gum.

To report a yes/no answer, you can say:

Questions words

f you are reporting a question that originally had a question word (who, what, when, where, etc.), you will not require the use of que ( " that " ) or si ( " if " ) . Instead, you will keep the original question word in Spanish as your "bridge" between the reporting verb and indirect speech. For example:

El chico preguntó: “¿ Dónde está la Rambla?”

The boy asked, “Where is the Rambla?”

El chico preguntó dónde estaba la Rambla.

The boy asked where the Rambla was.

Erica quiere saber: ¿Cuándo es la asamblea?

Erica wants to know, “When is the assembly?”

Erica quiere saber cuándo es la asamblea.

Erica wants to know when the assembly is.

In colloquial speech it is common to insert " que " between the reporting verb “ preguntar " and the question word or before si for yes/no indirect questions.

Enrique me preguntó (que) por qué habías llegado tarde.

Enrique asked me why you had arrived late.

Los estudiantes preguntaron (que) si podían tener una extensión.

The students asked if they could have an extension.

For more on questions, check out: " How to build questions in Spanish? "

Indirect commands in Spanish

To use indirect speech to relay commands, the format continues being similar to indirect statements:

Introduce the indirect speech with a verb of reporting.

• exigir ( " to demand " )
• mandar ( " to command " )
• pedir ( " to ask for/request " )

Follow it with the conjunction que ( " that " ) .

Finally, if the verb of reporting is in the present, present continuous, or present perfect, then the command will be in the present subjunctive . For example:

Compra leche, por favor.

Buy milk, please.

Tu papá pide que compres leche, por favor.

Your dad asks that you buy milk, please.

On the other hand, if the verb of reporting is in the preterite, imperfect, or past perfect, then the command will be in the imperfect subjunctive .

Tu papá pidió que compraras leche, por favor.

Your dad asked you to buy milk, please.

Need a refresher on these subjunctive tenses? We have you covered with these posts on the Spanish present subjunctive and the Spanish imperfect subjunctive .

To sum it up

Indirect speech is used for indirectly reporting statements, questions (yes/no and content), and commands/requests. In order to build indirect speech appropriately, we need to keep in mind the following pieces:

Start the clause with a verb of reporting, such as decir ( " to say, to tell " ) , preguntar ( " to ask " ) , querer ( " to want " ) , etc.

Follow the verb of reporting with a conjunction .

que ( " that " ) for indirect statements and commands, or

si ( " if " ) for yes/no questions

a question word (who, what, when , where, etc.) for content questions.

Finally, we must adapt three additional items when building indirect speech:

Time changes: making sure the time expressions are appropriately adjusted to fit an indirect message.

Location changes: making sure words that imply distance from the speaker also match the indirect speech.

Verb tense changes: We change verb tenses to ensure the message is being communicated appropriately.

Statements and questions use verbs in the indicative.

Commands use verbs in the subjunctive.

While it seems like a lot of stuff to remember, these changes make sense because so many of them also happen in English. The best way to master indirect speech is to practice it, so I have created an activity for you to get you started with it. You can check it out by clicking the link!

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Learn Latin American Spanish Online. Country accents, dialects, and vocabulary blogs and worksheets

Indirect Speech In Spanish: Learn How To Use It

Last Updated on April 19, 2022 by Elizabeth Alcantara Filed Under: Grammar , Language Worksheet

Reported speech can be intimidating at first glance, but it can also prove to be a lifesaver when you need it. It is all about announcing, passing along, or repeating what someone else says, whether it’s something you heard in a podcast, news your friend just shared with you, or simply a comment that someone made.

Let’s take an example to illustrate how indirect speech works. Your Latin American friend invites you to a family meal. You’re sitting down at the table surrounded by six cousins, four aunts, and five uncles. The baby is crying, the music is loud, the children are laughing, and there are three different conversations taking place at the same time. Suddenly the abuelita sitting next to you asks you what a certain person said… What do you do? Well, you’d take a deep breath and use your reported speech skills, even if you are a little unsure because you know you can’t leave grandma without an answer! 

Reporting what someone has said can prove useful in a wide range of situations, as you can see. In this lesson, I will show you how to easily use this grammar in everyday conversation. So let’s get started! 

Table of Contents

Reported speech in Spanish: estilo directo e indirecto

Before diving into indirect speech (or estilo indirecto), you should know that there is another useful way of repeating information: direct speech or estilo directo. 

If you choose to report a statement, question or command, using estilo directo, you’ll have to repeat all the words exactly as you heard them (like a parrot would), using quotation marks. Take a look at this example:

Mom: “La comida está lista”. (“The food is ready”). 

You: Ella dijo: “La comida está lista”. (She said: “The food is ready”). 

As you can see, the original comment and the reported one are the same. Just like when little kids play el teléfono roto (the broken phone), but the difference is they actually get the final message right.

Now, when you use indirect speech there are some key differences you need to take into consideration. For starters, you don’t need to use quotation marks, and you’ll most likely have to make some adjustments regarding pronouns and verb tenses, which we’ll explain below. But first, let’s check the same example from above, using estilo indirecto:

Mom: “La comida está lista”.

You: Ella dice que la comida está lista. (She says that the food is ready). 

Pretty simple, isn’t it? Only a few changes were made, the quotation marks were sent packing, and the word ‘ que’ (that) was added. 

Now that you can tell the difference between direct and indirect speech, let’s keep diving!

Indirect speech: reporting verbs  

If you take a closer look at the first part of all sentences in indirect speech, you’ll probably notice some verbs like decir (to say), preguntar (to ask), or pedir (to ask). These are what we call reporting verbs, and they are the ones that lead the way for repetition. Check the following reported sentences:

• Cousin: Ella dijo que estaba en el parque. (She said she was at the park). 
• Uncle: Él pregunta dónde está su franela. (He asks where his T-shirt is). 
• Children: Ellos pidieron irse temprano. (They asked to leave early). 

 There are other reporting verbs like anunciar (to announce), comentar (to comment), and contestar (to answer), that could be very useful, too.

The use of ‘que ‘

This word plays a very significant role in indirect speech. As opposed to its English version ‘that’, the word ‘que’ needs to be included, in most cases, after the reporting verb.

• Grandpa: “Quiero comer sopa” (“I want to eat soup”).
• You: Él dice que quiere comer sopa. (He says that he wants to eat soup.) 
• Aunt: “El café no está listo” (The coffee isn’t ready). 
• You: Ella dice que el café no está listo. (She says the coffee isn’t ready). 
• Mom: “¡No toquen las empanadas!” (“Don’t touch the empanadas!”. 
• You: Ella pidió que no tocaran las empanadas. (She asked not to touch the). 

So try not to forget about this short yet crucial word.          

Pronouns and possessives

Since you are repeating what another person said there are some tiny little changes you’ll need to make in the pronouns and possessives in order to keep the meaning of the sentence. Remember you are acting as a messenger, which means the message you are delivering is not actually from your point of view.

• Dad: “ Yo quiero un pedazo de torta” (I want a piece of cake).
• You: Él dice que quiere un pedazo de torta. (He says he wants a piece of cake).
• Mom: “Dejé mi bolso en el carro” (I left my purse in the car).
• You: Ella dice que dejó su bolso en el carro. (She says she left her purse in the car).

Verb tenses

This is the moment when you hold on to your oxygen tank and get ready to explore some slightly deeper waters with us.

So far, you’ve read several example sentences that have probably left you wondering about some changes in the tenses, and you are right! There are some differences you need to learn about. We’ll break them down into three sections: statements, questions, and commands. 

When reporting a statement, the first thing you need to check is the reporting verb. If the verb is in the simple present or present perfect form, the tense in the subordinate clause (the comment you are reporting) does not change. So there you have some good news.

• Uncle: Él dice: “ Necesito más hielo” (“I need more ice”).
• You: Él dice que necesita más hielo. (He says he needs more ice).

Now, when the reporting verb is expressed in the past tense, it’s time to make some adjustments to the subordinate clause:

Present simple to imperfect                                                                                                       

• Dad: El papá dijo: “ Quiero ir a bailar” (The dad said: “I want to go dancing”). 
• You: Él dijo que quería ir a bailar. (He said he wanted to go dancing). 

Preterite to Pluscuamperfecto ( past perfect )

• Mom: Mamá dijo: “Yo preparé las empanadas”. (Mom said: “I prepared the empanadas”).
• You: Ella dijo que ella había preparado las empanadas. (She said she had prepared the empanadas). 

Future simple to Conditional simple

• Aunt: La tía dijo: “ Tomaré una siesta”. (The aunt said: “I will take a nap”) 
• You: Ella dijo que tomaría una siesta. (She said she would take a nap). 

And that’s it! Those are the changes you need to make when reporting statements.

Bonus: if the sentence you are reporting is in the imperfect, conditional or past perfect, you don’t need to change anything.

Reporting questions without a problem will be very easy for you to achieve if you remember these two simple rules:

First , yes or no questions use the word ‘si’ (if) without including the word ‘que’ :

• Mom: La mamá pregunta: “¿Quieren más postre?” (The mom asks: “Do you want more dessert?”). 
• You: Ella pregunta si quieren más postre. (She asks if you want more dessert). 
• Kid: El niño preguntó: “¿Puedo jugar afuera?” (The kid asked: “Can I play outside?”) 
• You: El niño preguntó si podía jugar afuera. (The kid asked if he could play outside). 

Note: Notice how the same tense changes we just explained are applied to questions, too. Always remember to check the tense of the reporting verb so you can make the necessary adjustments.

Second , when you are going to turn an information question into indirect speech, you don’t use ‘que’ nor ‘si’ , this time you use the same question word. Just like you do in English!

• Uncle: El tío pregunta: “¿ Dónde está el perro?” (The uncle asks: “Where is the dog?”) 
• You: Él pregunta dónde está el perro. (He asks where the dog is). 
• Grandpa: El abuelo preguntó: “¿A qué hora sirven el postre?” (Grandpa asked: What time is dessert served?). 
• You: Él preguntó a qué hora servían el postre. (He asked what time dessert was served).
• Cousin: La prima dijo: “¿ Quién despertará a tía Clara?” (The cousin said: “Who will wake Aunt Clara up?”).
• You: Ella preguntó quién despertaría a la tía Clara. (She asked who would wake Aunt Clara up).

It turns out commands bring their own set of rules, but we are confident it won’t be a problem!

To begin with, you’ll always need to make some changes even if the reporting verb is in the simple present or present perfect form. 

Imperative (orders) to present subjunctive

• Grandpa: El abuelo pide: “ Tráiganme un café, por favor”. (Grandpa asks: “Bring me a coffee, please”)
• You: El abuelo pide que le traigan un café, por favor. (Grandpa asks to bring him a coffee, please).
• Grandma: La abuela pide: “ Despiértenme en un rato” (Grandma asks: “Wake me up in a bit”).
• You: La abuela pide que la despierten en un rato. (Grandma asks to wake her up in a bit).

Now, there’s only one change you’ll need to make when the reporting verb is in the past tense, and it’s pretty simple. Check it out:

Imperative to imperfect subjunctive

• Mom: La mamá le dijo al niño: “ Vuelve a la mesa” (The mom told the kid: “Go back to the table”).
• You: La mamá le dijo al niño que volviera a la mesa. (The mom told the kid to go back to the table). 
• Dad: El papá le dijo a la niña: “ Bebe agua” (The dad told the little girl: “Drink water”).
• You: El papá le dijo a la niña que bebiera agua. (The dad told the little girl to drink water).

There you have it. You did great, diver! Now you can enjoy the water for a little while. If you enjoyed this lesson on how to use indirect Speech in Spanish, sign up for our newsletter where we announce new articles.

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Indirect/reported speech in Spanish

Direct speech is when we use the exact same words someone says, exactly as they say it. Reported speech is when we report what someone has said in the past. 

Reported speech in Spanish works very similarly to how reported speech works in English. For example:

Direct speech: "Tengo frío." "I'm cold."

Reported speech in present tense: Ella dice que tiene frío.  She says she is cold.

Reported speech in past tense: Ella dijo que tenía frío.   She said she was cold.

As you can see, when we report speech in the present tense using "dice que..." the tense used in the reported speech remains the same.

However, if we report speech in the past tense using  "dijo que..." the tense changes: tengo → tenía / am → was ) - note that it happens both in English and Spanish. 

But there are lots of things to consider when learning about indirect/reported speech.

Using "que" in Spanish reported speech

Bear in mind that in Spanish we always need  "que" in reported speech while in English you can often choose whether or not to use  "that":

Dice va a llover .

Dicen están contentos .

Reported speech in the present tense

When we report speech using the present tense, i.e. dice que ..., está diciendo que.. . the tense used in the orginal sentence from the direct speech remains the same. This also applies when reporting speech in the present perfect in Spanish: ha dicho que... 

Here are some examples:

"Ayer fui al cine."  ("Yesterday I went to the cinema.")

"Iré a la piscina con Juan."  ("I'll go to the swimming pool with Juan.")

"Yo habría esperado un poco."  ("I would have waited a bit.")

As you can see, the tense doesn't change, but the conjugation changes in reported speech to match with the new subject:

Reported speech in the past tense

We need to be careful with the tense change in reported speech when we transmit the information using the Spanish preterite tense: dijo que... 

Here's a table to see these changes: 

The changes described above shows the most natural correlation/sequence of tenses.

Bear in mind though that spoken Spanish can be somewhat flexible and that these changes are not always used as strictly as shown in the table above. An example of this is when we interpret what is said in the direct speech as something that is still happening when reporting it.

For example, is someone says: "Estoy embarazada."  ("I am pregnant.")   you can report this as:

Me dijo que estaba embarazada. She told me she was pregnant.

This is the usual sequence of tenses, from the present to the imperfect as we explained above.

But you could also say:

Me dijo que está embarazada.  She told me she was pregnant [and still is]. = She told me she is pregnant.

Keeping the present tense using  "que está..." emphasises the fact that she is still pregnant at the moment of reporting it. So we permit some flexibility to allow for these nuances.

Have a look at some more examples and notice what changes in the reported speech:

" Llegué temprano." - Dijo que había llegado temprano. "I arrived early." - He said he had arrived early.

" Veremos una película." - Dijeron que verían una película. "We'll watch a film." - They said they'd watch a film.

"Ana había fumado ". - Dijo que Ana había fumado . "Ana had smoked." - He said Ana had smoked.

"Ojalá lo hubiera sabido ." - Dijo que ojalá lo hubiera sabido . I wish I'd known. - He said he wished he had known.

"Quería que yo pagara" . - Dijo que quería que ella pagara . "He wanted me to pay." - He said he wanted her to pay.

"Me encantaría volver." - Dijo que le encantaría volver. "I'd love to come back." - She said she'd love to come back.

"Mi madre se habría enfadado ." - Dijo que su madre se habría enfadado. "My mum would have got cross." - She said that her mum would have got cross."

"Es posible que vuelva ." - Dijo que era posible que volviese ." "I may come back." - He said he may come back.

"No vayas a Madrid". Le dijo que no fuera a Madrid. "Don't go to Madrid." - He asked him (lit: said to him) not to go to Madrid.

Spacial and time references in reported speech

We have to bear in mind that if there is a spacial reference in the direct speech, we may need to change it if at the moment of reporting it time has passed or we are in a different place.  For example:

"Hace calor aquí ."  ("It's hot here.")

"Lo he pasado genial este verano ."  ("I had a great time this summer.")

Possessives in reported speech

Possessives also need changing in reported speech. For example:

" Mis hijos son muy listos."   ("My children are very clever.")

Notice how now that we are doing reported speech mis becomes sus . 

Questions in reported speech

If we are reporting questions then we tend to use the verb preguntar  as the introductory verb:  pregunta que..., preguntó que... 

When there is an interrogative pronoun:   dónde, cuándo, quién.. it works as follows.

Direct speech (question): "¿Cuándo llega Blanca?"  ("When is Blanca arriving?")

Direct speech (question) :  "¿Cómo se hace esto?"  ("How do you do this?")

Direct speech (question) :  "¿Quién es Marta Sánchez?" ("Who is Marta Sánchez?")

Note that dropping "que" in this case would also be acceptable:

Preguntaba quién era Marta Sánchez.

Preguntó cómo se hacía aquello.

Preguntan cuándo llega Blanca.

When there is no interrogative pronoun in the direct speech we use  "pregunta si . .., preguntó si . ..":

Direct speech (question) :  "¿Tienen ustedes los documentos?"  ("Do you have the documents?")

Direct speech (question) :  "¿Te apetece una cerveza?" ("Do you want a beer?")

Other reporting verbs in reported speech

Bear in mind that the most common verb used to introduce reported speech is  decir,  which we've used in our examples in this lesson, but there are other reporting verbs that can be used in reported speech, such as: aclarar que..., sugerir que..., apuntar que..., recomendar que..., repetir que... etc. Some examples are:

Direct speech:  "Estudiad más", dijo el profesor.   ("Study more", said the teacher.")

Direct speech:  "No fue mi intención interrumpir la reunión."  ("It wasn't my intention to interrupt the meeting.")

Using the verbs pedir and decir in reported speech for orders/commands

The verbs  pedir and  decir are generally used in reported speech in Spanish to convey an order. They are soft orders in comparison to the verb "ordenar" (to order).  We report with these verbs when the direct speech is in the imperative:

Direct speech:  "¡Venid aquí!" (Come here!)

Direct speech:  "¡Compra pan!"  ("Buy some bread!")

Direct speech:  "¡Suban rápido!"  ("Come up quickly!")

These two videos will help you clarify any doubt about Spanish reported speech:

Reported speech in the present

Reported speech in the past

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Spanish reported speech

Spanish Reported Speech: A Comprehensive Lesson

Introduction

In Spanish, as in many languages, there are two ways to express what someone has said: direct speech and indirect (or reported) speech. This lesson will guide you through the intricacies of Spanish reported speech, providing examples and explanations for each aspect.

Direct Speech

Direct speech is when we quote the exact words that someone has said, usually enclosed in quotation marks. For example:

• María dijo: “Estoy cansada” (María said, “I am tired”).
• Juan preguntó: “¿Dónde está el baño?” (Juan asked, “Where is the bathroom?”).

Indirect Speech

Indirect speech (also called reported speech) is when we convey the meaning of what someone said without using their exact words. For example:

• María dijo que estaba cansada (María said that she was tired).
• Juan preguntó dónde estaba el baño (Juan asked where the bathroom was).

Reported Direct Speech

In Spanish, reported direct speech is similar to English, using quotation marks to enclose the exact words spoken. The main difference is the use of the colon (:) to introduce the quote. Examples:

• Carlos exclamó: “¡Qué sorpresa verte aquí!” (Carlos exclaimed, “What a surprise to see you here!”).
• Laura respondió: “Sí, decidí venir de visita” (Laura replied, “Yes, I decided to come for a visit”).

Reported Indirect Speech

Indirect speech is more common in everyday conversation, as it allows for a more natural flow of information. We use it when we want to convey the meaning of what someone said, without quoting their exact words.

• Mi hermana me dijo que no podía venir a la fiesta (My sister told me she couldn’t come to the party).
• El profesor nos explicó que el examen sería difícil (The teacher explained to us that the exam would be difficult).

How Verbs Change in Indirect Speech

When using indirect speech, verb tenses often change to reflect the temporal relationship between the original statement and the reported statement. Here are some common changes:

• Direct: “Tengo hambre” (I’m hungry).
• Indirect: Dijo que tenía hambre (He said he was hungry).
• Direct: “Iré al cine” (I will go to the movies).
• Indirect: Dijo que iría al cine (He said he would go to the movies).
• Direct: “Comí pizza” (I ate pizza).
• Indirect: Dijo que había comido pizza (He said he had eaten pizza).

Here’s a table to illustrate how Spanish verbs generally change from direct speech to indirect speech:

How Pronouns, Possessives, and Demonstratives Change in Indirect Speech

When reporting speech, pronouns, possessives, and demonstratives may need to be adjusted to maintain clarity and coherence. Examples:

• Direct: “Mi coche está en el garaje” (My car is in the garage).
• Indirect: Dijo que su coche estaba en el garaje (He said that his car was in the garage).
• Direct: “Este libro es interesante” (This book is interesting).
• Indirect: Dijo que ese libro era interesante (He said that book was interesting).

How Questions Change from Direct Speech to Indirect Speech

When reporting questions, the sentence structure changes from interrogative to declarative. The question words (qué, quién, cuándo, etc.) remain the same. Examples:

• Direct: “¿Cuándo llegará el tren?” (When will the train arrive?).
• Indirect: Preguntó cuándo llegaría el tren (He asked when the train would arrive).
• Direct: “¿Dónde vives?” (Where do you live?).
• Indirect: Me preguntó dónde vivía (He asked me where I lived).

In conclusion, understanding the differences between direct and indirect speech is crucial for accurately reporting what someone has said in Spanish. By mastering the changes in verb tenses, pronouns, possessives, and demonstratives, as well as the structure of reported questions, you’ll be well-equipped to convey information in a natural and coherent manner.

Thank you for studying with us!

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GRAMMAR INDEX

Reported speech in spanish.

Reported speech in Spanish is a concept that linguists use to explain how speakers interpret another person’s words. So, when you need to recount a past conversation, you can use this way of interpreting it.

What does this imply? When you interpret the literal words that another person said in the past, you need to make changes in tenses, pronouns, adverbs and other types of words.

Reported Speech in Spanish: Verbal Changes

First of all, we should understand why we need to change the verbal tenses when using the reported speech in Spanish . To introduce another person’s words, we need to use a verbum dicendi (a verb of speech in Latin), such as decir, comentar, preguntar, declarar … These verbs will affect the subordinate clause depending on whether the conversation took place in the near past (almost present) or remoter.

Conversation in the Present or Very Near Past

If the conversation has just occurred, we can use the introductory verb in the present indicative . In this case, most verbal tenses in the subordinate clause remain unchanged :

El profesor: “Hoy vamos a estudiar el estilo indirecto en español.”

El profesor dice que hoy vamos a estudiar el estilo indirecto en español.

However, if in the original conversation any imperative or expression is used that indicates obligation or influence on the other person, we must change the verb to the present subjunctive :

La madre: “ Debes estudiar más. Termina de comer y ponte a estudiar.”

Mi madre dice que estudie más. Que termine de comer y me ponga a estudiar.

Conversation in the Past

However, in most situations, when we replay a conversation, we tend to use introductory verbs in the past. In this case, there are many more changes in the verbal tenses. Let’s say, the verbs of the original conversation, “ step into the past “. Let’s look at some examples:

Present indicative = Imperfect indicative

There is a strong relationship between these two tenses in Spanish. The present indicative is used for descriptions and habits and the imperfect of indicative is the same, but in the past. In the reported speech in Spanish we can see these similarities:

Mi amigo: “Para mejorar mi español siempre escucho podcasts y leo blogs”

Mi amigo dijo que para mejorar su español siempre escuchaba podcasts y leía

The Preterite Imperfect Does Not Change in the Reported Speech in Spanish

There are no options in Spanish for expressing a habit further into the past than the imperfect of indicative . That is why we keep the tense in the reported speech in Spanish:

Mi padre: “Cuando yo era joven, no había tanto tiempo para estudiar”

Mi padre me comentó que cuando él era joven, no había tanto tiempo para estudiar.

Past Simple = Pluperfect

However, we can take a specific action in the past ( past indefinite or simple ) one step further into the past ( pluperfect ).

Mi profesor: “Ayer no hiciste los deberes y no estudiaste nada”.

Mi profesor me dijo que el día anterior no había hecho los deberes y no había estudiado

Present Perfect = Pluperfect

As with the past simple, an action expressed in the present perfect tense must be taken further into the past by using the pluperfect :

Mi novia: “ He oído que la clase de conversación en Spanishviaskype.com ha sido muy divertida”.

Mi novia me indicó que había oído que la clase de conversación en com había sido muy divertida.

The Pluperfect Tense Does Not Change in the Reported Speech in Spanish

Obviously, the pluperfect expresses a past action that took place before another. Therefore, it cannot be changed in the reported speech in Spanish.

Yo: “Nunca me había sentido tan cómodo en una clase de español como en Spanishviaskype.com ”.

Le comenté a mi amigo que nunca me había sentido tan cómodo en una clase de español como en Spanishviaskype.com .

Futures = Conditionals

The future tenses ( imperfect and perfect ) should be changed to conditional tenses ( imperfect and perfect ). The reason is that the conditional is a type of “future in the past”. It can express an action after another action in the past:

Mi hermano: “El año que viene iré a la universidad y para entonces, habré aprendido inglés”.

Mi hermano me confesó que al año siguiente iría a la universidad y para entonces habría aprendido inglés.

The Conditional Tenses Does Not Change in the Reported Speech in Spanish

As with the imperfect tense , the conditional does not change in the  reported speech in Spanish .

Mi profe de español: “ Para aprobar el examen DELE , yo practicaría el subjuntivo y ya habría estudiado el estilo indirecto”

Mi profe de español me avisó que para aprobar el examen DELE , él practicaría el subjuntivo y ya habría estudiado el estilo indirecto.

The Subjunctive Tenses

As for the subjunctive tenses, the verbal changes are similar to the indicative :

Mi padre: “Quiero que vuelvas pronto a casa.”

Mi padre me dijo que volviera pronto a casa.

Imperative = Imperfecto subjunctive

When we express a command or request with the imperative , we must transform it to the imperfect subjunctive in the reported speech in Spanish .

El profesor: “¡ Callaos !”

El profesor nos ordenó que nos calláramos .

The Reported Speech in Spanish: Other Changes

In addition to the verbal changes, when we use the reported speech in Spanish, other alterations occur in persons, adverbs and expressions of time and place , and in interrogative sentences . Now, we will analyze them one by one.

Reported Speech in Spanish: Changes in the Marks of Person

Of course, when we use the reported speech, we need to focus on the people who are speaking. Generally, we recreate the words of a third person. In the original conversation, that person was part of the conversation; however, in the reported speech they are absent. Because of this, we will have to make changes to personal pronouns, possessives and verbal endings .

Estudiante: “ Yo aprobar é mi examen”.

El estudiante dijo que él aprobar ía su examen.

Changes in Time

The original conversation occurred at a specific time in the past. So, if we need to replicate it, we will have to change the time frame, because we will be speaking in our present. Don’t worry, we won’t need a time machine; we just need to adjust some words: adverbs and time expressions .

Profesor de Spanishviaskype : “ Ahora mismo , tienes que estudiar el vocabulario para nuestra clase de conversación de mañana ”.

El profesor me dijo que en ese mismo momento , tenía que estudiar el vocabulario para nuestra clase de conversación del día siguiente.

Changes in Space

In addition to time, we also need to consider expressions of space and location. We often refer to objects and people being in one place in the original conversation. But, we might be in another location in the reported speech. Consequently, demonstratives and adjectives of place may change.

Amigo: “Me encanta España. Aquí siempre puedo comer esta maravillosa comida”.

Mi amigo me confesó que le encantaba España; que allí siempre podía comer aquella maravillosa comida.

Changes in Interrogative Sentences

An interrogative sentence also needs some adjustments in the  reported speech in Spanish . Actually, they remain as interrogative sentences, but indirectly. If we need to replicate a total question (with a “yes” or “no” answer), we will need the conjunction “ si “; on the other hand, if we have a partial question (with an interrogative word such as “ qué , dónde , quién …”), that word is kept.

Estudiante: “¿Crees que puedo aprender español en un año? ¿ Cómo puedo conseguirlo?”.

El estudiante me preguntó (que) si creía que podía aprender español en un año y (que) cómo podía conseguirlo.

As you can see, the conjunction que can be omitted when we are dealing with an interrogative sentence. Now you know the main changes that occur in the  reported speech in Spanish . If you need to put them into practice, there is nothing better than reserving a class with our teachers at Spanishviaskype.com .

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Reported Speech in Spanish (B1)

Reported speech or indirect speech  – EL ESTILO INDIRECTO in Spanish- are used to relate someone’s words without using a direct quote. 

Expressing "Say"

Decir without an indirect object usually means “ to  say . ” In Spanish, as in English, when reporting what someone “says, ” the tense used in the original statement is also used in the reported-speech expression.

On the other hand, when reporting what someone “said,” a past tense is used.  The indicative is used to report what someone says or said. The subjunctive is used  in commands, to report what someone tells or told someone else to do.

By the way, click here to see the whole verb DECIR conjugation in Spanish .

Direct and indirect Speech in Spanish

Here you have some examples. Tense original quote is the direct speech , tense after «d ice que » is the indirect speech in present while tense after « dijo que » is the indirect speech in the past.

Notice that in English “ that ” is optional in reported speech: He says he worked hard. / He says that he worked hard . In Spanish “ que ” is compulsory: Dijo que trabajaba duro.

There are much more about reported speech what we will see it in future post, so keep in touch!

Reported speech exercices

Now it is time you practice everything you have learned with the interactive activitiy below.  Remember to contact your tutor with any question you have about reported speech in Spanish or to ask for more activities.  Don’t you have a Spanish personal tutor yet?

Déjanos un mensaje en los comentarios si quieres que preparemos más ejercicios sobre este tema. Muchas gracias por ayudarnos a mejorar.

Recuerda que también puedes registrarte en uno de nuestros talleres de gramática o pedir una tutoría si este tema te cuesta especialmente.

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Spanish Reported Speech

👉 how to use reported / indirect speech in spanish, – spanish grammar basics for beginners –.

The indirect style is used to report someone’s words. As in English, we use a verb followed by a subordinate clause to introduce the person’s speech.

Construction of a sentence in indirect style

(Subject) + Verb + subordinate clause

• Mis amigas dicen que soy muy buena persona . (My friends say I am a good person).
• Elena dice que lo siente mucho . (Elena says she is very sorry.)

Depending on the context, we will use either declarative verbs or verbs of opinion, wish, order, or prohibition.

Use of a declarative verb

If the verb used to introduce the speech is a declarative verb , we will use the indicative in the subordinate clause.

The most common declarative verbs in Spanish are : decir, contar, afirmar, explicar, declarar, exclamar.

Use of the verb “decir” in indirect style

Present tense:.

– When the speech is reported in the present tense and the action is taking place as we speak:

Declarative verb (present tense) + subordinate proposition verb (present tense)

• Pablo: “El gato está en el jardín”. (The cat is in the garden.)
• Pablo dice dice el gato está en el jardín. (Pablo says the cat is in the garden.)

– When reporting speech in the present tense for an action that took place before the moment of speaking:

Declarative verb (present tense) + subordinate proposition verb (past simple/present perfect)

• Miguel : “Mi hermano vino a casa esta mañana.”
• Miguel dice que su hermano ha venido/vino a casa esta mañana.

– When the speech is reported later and the action was taking place at the time the person was making the speech:

Declarative verb (past simple) + subordinate proposition verb (imperfect)

• Pablo dijo que el gato estaba en el jardín. (Pablo said that the cat was in the garden.)

– When the speech is reported later and the action took place before the person was saying the speech:

Declarative verb (past simple) + subordinate proposition verb (more than perfect)

• Miguel dijo que su hermano había venido a casa por la mañana.

Conditional:

In the case where the speech is reported later and the words were stated in the future tense:

Declarative verb (simple past tense) + subordinate proposition verb (conditional)

• Pablo : « El gato estará en el jardín.” (The cat will be in the garden.)
• Pablo dijo que el gato estaría en el jardín. (Pablo says that the cat will be in the garden.)

Use of the verb “declarar” in indirect style

The suspect: “I have nothing to declare. “

• El sospechoso declara que no tiene nada que esconder. (The suspect declares that he has nothing to hide.)
• El sospechoso declaró que no tenía nada que esconder. (The suspect said he had nothing to hide).

Use of a verb expressing a command, prayer or advice

If the verb used to introduce the speech is a verb of order, prayer, advice or prohibition , the subjunctive should be used in the subordinate clause.

Verbs expressing a command

The most common verbs to express an order in Spanish are: pedir and ordenar .

Use of the verb “pedir” in indirect style

Ordering verb (present tense) + subordinate proposition verb (present subjunctive)

• Maria: “Dame una respuesta esta tarde.” (Give me an answer this afternoon.)
• Maria me pide que le dé una respuesta esta tarde. (Maria asks me to give her an answer this afternoon.)

Past tense:

Order verb (past tense) + subordinate proposition verb (imperfect subjunctive).

Remember that the imperfect subjunctive (pretérito imperfecto) is conjugated in 2 different forms in Spanish.

• Maria me pidió que le diera/diese una respuesta esta tarde. (Maria asked me to give her an answer in the afternoon).

Use of the verb “ordenar” in indirect style

• Miguel : “Ayudame a limpiar.” (Help me clean up).
• Miguel me ordona que le ayude a limpiar. (Miguel orders me to help him clean.)
• Miguel me ordonó que le ayudará/ayudase a limpiar. (Miguel ordered me to help him clean up.)

Verbs expressing prayer

The most common verbs in Spanish to express a prayer are rogar y suplicar .

Use of “suplicar” in indirect style

• Juan : « Por favor hermano, no me pegues. » (Please my brother, don’t hit me).
• Juan suplica su hermano que no le pegue . (Juan begs his brother not to hit him).
• Juan suplicó su hermano que no le pegara/pegase . (Juan begged his brother not to hit him).

Use of the verb “rogar” in indirect style

• El conductor : “Por favor que vuelvan inmediatamente a sus asientos. (Please return to your seats immediately.)
• El conductor les ruega que vuelvan inmediatamente a sus asientos. (The driver asks them to return to their seats immediately.)
• El conductor les rogó que volvieran/volviesen inmediatamente a sus asientos. (The driver asked them to return to their seats immediately.)

Verbs expressing advice

The most common verbs in Spanish to express advice are aconsejar and sugerir .

Use of the verb “aconsejar” in indirect style

• Angel : « Deberías hacer más deporte. » (You should do more sports).
• Angel me aconseja que haga más deporte. (Angel advises me to do more sports).
• Angel me aconsejó que hiciera/hiciese más deporte. (Angel advised me to do more sports.)

Use of the verb “sugerir” in indirect style

• Lucia : « Tendrías que tomar este camino porque es más corto.»
• Lucia me sugiere que tome este camino porque es más corto.
• Lucia me sugirió que tomara/tomase este camino porque era más corto.

Verb expressing a prohibition.

The verb used in Spanish to express an interdiction is “ prohibir “.

Use of the verb “prohibir” in indirect style

• Diego: « No le hables. » (Don’t talk to him.)
• Diego me prohíbe que le hable . (Diego forbids me to talk to him.)
• Diego me prohíbio que le hablara/hablase . (Diego forbids me to talk to him.)

👉 Practice now!

👉 Next lesson: Indefinite adjectives (Alguno, Ninguno, Cada, Mismo…)

👉 Previous lesson: Superlative adjectives

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Linguim » Learn Spanish » Advanced » Reported Speech in Spanish

Reported Speech in Spanish

It is very important to learn how to report the sayings of one person to a third party in any foreign language. This is a  typical daily situation which we encounter over and over again. 

As in English, there are two ways to report the declaration of someone else in Spanish: direct way and indirect way. The first one is called the direct speech and the latter is called the indirect speech or the reported speech. 

Governing the reported speech is of course more complicated than governing the direct speech. Because if you choose the express the quotaton in a direct way, you simply take the sentence of the person and put it in the quotation mark without having to make any change

For example

Carlos dice “leo un libro” Carlos says “he reads a book”.

In the indirect version, you need to say

Carlos dice que lee un libro

Hence, the indirect speech is expressed by using “que” in Spanish. Also note that the verb “leer” is conjugated in accordance with the subject pronoun, singular third person. This is the case if present tense is used.

On the other hand if past tenses are used you need to be careful. Because further changes are necessary. The following classification can be used to decide which tense shall be used with the indirect speech. 

If in the direct speech present or imperfect is used, use imperfect in the indirect speech.

If in the direct speech preterite or pluperfect is used, use pluperfect in the indirect speech.

If in the direct speech future or conditional is used, use conditional in the indirect speech.

If in the direct speech future perfect or conditional perfect is used, use conditional perfect in the indirect speech.

Rosa preguntó  " ¿Dónde está el libro? " (Rosa asked "where the book is)

Rosa  preguntó donde estaba el libro (Rosa asked where the book was)

Note also that the two sentences were joined this time using the relative pronoun donde. 

Examples of words which are used frequently in reported speech are given below

decir  to say

contestar   to answer

declarer  to declare

explicar  to explain

pretender to claim

proclamar  to announce

insistir   to insist

preguntar  to ask

Let us take a break from the reported speech and learn some idioms 

A otro perro con ese hueso (You are pulling my leg)

El hijo de la gato, ratones mata (Like father like son)

Mientras que en mi casa estoy, rey soy (A man’s home is his castle)

La carne de burro no es transparente (I can't see through you)

Antes que te cases mira lo que haces (Look before you leap)

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Indirect Speech

When we speak we often use our own words directly, employing the so-called direct speech . When we want to report what someone else says or thinks, we use the Indirect Speech (or Reported Speech). In Spanish there are some specific ways for Indirect Speech structures. Here we illustrate two different sets of rules for Indirect Speech in the Present,  when referring to present actions, and for Indirect Speech in the Past , when talking about events and thoughts in the past. Of course these rules are more strictly respected in written and formal Spanish, and more flexibly used in spoken and informal speech.

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Estilo indirecto

Indirect or reported speech.

In Spanish and English, when we speak we can use our own words directly, employing  direct speech . The exact words of the original speaker are reported in quotes.

For example:

When we want to report what someone else says or thinks, we use i ndirect speech (also known as reported speech). The original speaker's words are now reported without quotes in a subordinate clause (introduced by que ). Indirect speech is more complicated than direct speech, because it requires certain changes in the elements of the sentence (tenses, time expressions, pronouns, etc.)

Marcos dice: "Necesito mi libro." (Direct speech)

Marcos dice que necesit a su libro. (Indirect speech) 

In Spanish you can use indirect speech when referring to present actions, and it's also possible to use indirect speech when talking about events and thoughts in the past and future. Note that these rules are more strictly respected in written and formal Spanish, and more flexibly used in spoken and informal speech.

More examples:

Laura dijo: "Iré contigo."   (Laura said: "I will go with you.") 

Laura dijo que iría contigo.   (Laura said she'd go with you.)

Laura dijo: "Yo no lo he roto."  (Laura said: "I haven't broken it.)

Laura dijo que ella no lo había roto.   (Laura said that she hadn't broken it.)

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Spanish Grammar Lesson: Direct vs Indirect Speech

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March 25, 2017

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The difference between direct and indirect speech (also called reported speech) is pretty easy to understand.  

But it's not very easy to apply when speaking in a foreign language. It is a very important part of communicating, however, and plays an major role in most conversations.

Read on for a quick introduction and guide to direct vs indirect speech in Spanish.

So, what’s the difference?

That’s a very good question! Before we get too far ahead of ourselves with all the little technicalities, let’s make sure that we understand what we’re dealing with here.

In order to do this, take the following conversation:

Pedro: Where are you going?

Jose: To the store.

1: Will you get milk?

2: Sure, no problem.

Now, let’s say Pedro later goes on to have a conversation with someone else, about the above mentioned interaction. There are some options for how they could go about doing this. Let’s just say it looked something like this:

• Pedro: I asked Jose where he was going. He said, “to the store.” So, I asked if he would get some milk, and he said “sure, no problem.”

The above recounting of a previous event or exchange with another person is what we’re going to look at. You have two options when doing this.

The first, is by using quotation marks. This is direct speech. This means that the words are being repeated exactly like they were said.

• He said, “to the store.”
• ...and he said, “sure, no problem.”

The second way of recounting a conversation is through indirect speech. In the example above, this is done through changing the verb tense, although that isn’t always required (we will look at that more later).  

• Reported: I asked him where he was going.
• Reported: I asked if he would get some milk.

Basically, there are 3 important rules to keep in mind when using indirect (reported) speech. They are:

• You will not use quotation marks
• Since you’re not quoting, you don’t need to say word-for-word what the person said
• When reporting what someone said, you generally change the verb tense.

Reporting Verbs

There are still a few things we need to talk about before getting into everyone’s favorite part about grammar--the technicalities.

In order to identify that something is being “reported” or to communicate that you are repeating something that someone said previously, you’ll use a reporting verb. We have them in English as well. The most common are:

*Most common of the most common

“Que”--your new best friend

You’ll notice that (almost) all of the examples above in the chart using reported speech include the little word “que.” This is not a coincidence.

When speaking in reported speech you will always use the “que” (meaning “that”). Even if in English we can and would omit the “that” you still need it in Spanish.”  

“She said that she was tired.”- Here, in English the “that” is optional. This is not the case in Spanish.

“He asked that I go to the store.” (He asked me to go to the store.) - this is one of the examples where the “that” wouldn’t be use in English, but it would in Spanish.

But wait… the questions…

If you’re reporting a question, you have a few options available as they don’t always need the “que”.

Yes and No Questions.

If the answer to the question being reported can be “yes” or “no” you don’t need the “que.” In these situation we would use the “si” like in English (if).

“He asked me if I could go to the store.”- Me preguntó si iba a la tienda .

Questions with question words

If you are reporting a question that contained the question words  (where, who, when, etc.) you will not need the “que” but stick with the question word used in the original context.

• María: Where is Sara? ( ¿Dónde está Sara? )

Reported speech: Maria wanted to know where Sara was. ( María quería saber donde estaba Sara. )

Let’s get a little more technical.

We’ll try to ease you into all of this grammatical stuff. It seems like a lot to remember. But, a lot of it is very common in English as well, so try to not to get too overwhelmed!

Personal pronouns and Possessive pronouns.

Again, let’s start with an example:

• María: Can you tell my brother that I need to talk to him? ¿Puedes decirle a mi hermano que le tengo que hablar?

Here, obviously a few things need to change if you want to report this statement. For one, he’s not your brother and for another you’re not the one that needs to speak to him.

In this situation, the personal pronouns (you, I) need to change, as well as the possessive (my). Here’s how this statement would sound when repeating it later on to someone else:

• The pronouns remain the same.
• Here, you can see that the pronouns did change.

So far so good, right? It’s pretty basic stuff up to this point. Just like in English, we need to change the subject and the pronouns.

Time phrases

Obviously, more often than not, if you’re reporting something that happened it’s because the person you’re recounting the event to wasn’t there when it took place--i.e. it was in the past.

So, here’s how you would change around your time phrases so they line up with what you’re saying:

As you’ll notice above, all of the examples are written in the past. This is also something important to pay attention to, and probably one of the most important grammatical points of reported speech. So, let’s go ahead and dive right into that!

Verb tenses in indirect (reported) speech.

The tense the reporting verb is in (present, past, future) will have a big impact on the rest of the sentence. Not only will you need to pay attention to the tense, but also to what is being said.

Command/Request vs information

Depending on the context of the conversation being reported, you’ll need to use different ways of repeating it.

This is where things can start to get a little tricky. We do have similar rules in English as they do in Spanish, but in English they are a little more flexible, and followed less frequently.

Here are some good rules to keep in mind when using indirect speech in Spanish:

• If the reporting verb is in the present or present perfect tense you do not need to change the verb tense--unless it’s a command (we’ll talk more about this in a minute).
• If the reporting verb is in the preterite, imperfect, or the past perfect tense you do need to change the  verb tense.

Let’s look at a quick scenario and see what we have:

Scenario: Let’s say you’re texting with someone, and your friend (who you’re with physically) wants to know what the person texting you is saying.

Person 1: What did he say?

Person 2: He asked if we are free tonight. ( reporting information )

1: Why? What does he want?

2: He wants us to help him move. ( reporting a request )

Here, we can see that in the first part, Person 2 is simply repeating the information . He asked a question, and this is what it is. The reporting verb “want to know” is in the present, so the second verb is in the present as well.

In the second part of the exchange, the reporting verb is in the present, so in English, we keep the it in the present as well. In Spanish, however, if we are reporting a request or command , we need to use the subjunctive. In this case it will be the present subjunctive because the reporting verb is in present.

In Spanish the conversation would go like this:

Person 1: ¿Qué dijo?”

Person 2: Quiere saber si estamos libres esta noche. (present-present)

1: ¿Por qué? ¿Qué quiere?

2: Quiere que le ayudemos a hacer la mudanza. (present-present subjunctive)

Note: This change to the subjunctive only happens with certain verbs: Decir, Pedir, Querer. An easy way to remember this is if they verb will be followed by “si” or “que.”

• Quiere saber si podemos salir esta noche. (He wants to know if I can go out tonight.)
• Me pregunta si quiero quedar mañana. (He’s asking if I can meet up tomorrow.)
• Again, in this situation you’re not necessarily relaying the request or the command, but merely the information contained in the request itself.
• Me dice que tenga cuidado. (He tells me to be careful.)
• Frenando me pide que le ayude con los deberes. (Franks asks me to help with the homework.)
• Fernando me dice que tengo que ir a clase mañana.

Verb Tense Changes

So, if you feel like all of that has settled into your mind and it’s not going to explode just yet, let’s keep chugging along!

As mentioned above, if the reporting verb is in present, it will only change (to present subjunctive) if the thing being reported is a command/ request. When the reporting verb is in the past, however, the rest of the information being reported will need to change tense. Here’s how that is going to work:

Present Simple--Imperfect

• Direct speech: Angela dijo, “No puedo ir.” (Angela said, “I can’t go.”)
• Indirect/ Reported speech: Angela dijo que no podía ir. (Angela said that she couldn’t go.)

Preterite--Pluscuamperfecto (past perfect)

• Direct speech: Sergio dijo, “Ayer compré un movil nuevo.”  (Sergio said, “Yesterday I bought a new cell phone.)
• Indirect/ Reported speech: Sergio dijo que el día anterior había comprado un movil nuevo. (Sergio said that the day before he had bought a new phone.)

Future simple (will)--Conditional simple (would)

• Direct speech : Candela dijo, “Llegaré tarde.” - (Candela said, “I’ll arrive late.”)
• Indirect/ Reported speech: Candela dijo que llegaría tarde. - (Candela said that she would arrive late.)

Imperfect/Conditional/Past Perfect

With these, you will not change second verb tense. Yay!

• Direct speech: Juan dijo, “la playa era muy bonita.” (Juan said, “the beach was very pretty.”)
• Indirect/ Reported speech: Juan dijo que la playa era muy bonita . (Juan said that beach was very pretty.)

Conditional:  

• Direct speech: María dijo, “Me gustaría vivir en Nueva York.” (Maria said, “I would like to live in New York.”
• Indirect/ Reported speech: María dijo que le gustaría vivir en Nueva York. (Maria said she would like to live in New York.
• Past Perfect
• Direct speech: Mi padre me dijo, “a las 5 ya había llegado. ” (My dad told me, “at 5 I had already arrived.”)
• Indirect/ Reported speech: Mi padre me dijo que a las 5 ya había llegado . (My dad told me that a 5 he had already arrived.)

Just one more thing… I promise!

One last thing to remember, like we saw with the present tense, if the verb in the past is a reporting verb, and what is being reported is a command or request, you will use the subjunctive--past subjunctive this time!

• Direct speech: Mis padres me dijeron, “vuelve a casa a las 23.00. ” (My parents told me, “be home at 11:00pm.)
• Indirect/ Reported speech: Mis padres me dijeron que volviera a casa a las 23.00 . (My parents told me to be home by 11:00 pm.)

¡Madre Mía! That was a lot of information!

Let’s see if we can condense it down just a little bit.

Important rules to remember. If you are using reporting speech:

If you do need to change the verb tense, this is why and when:

• Commands or requests with a present tense reporting verb will take the present subjunctive conjugation in the following verb.
• Again, commands or requests with a past tense reporting verb will need to take the past subjunctive conjugation in the following verb.

If the reporting verb is in the past, these are the changes you’ll make:

• Present simple--imperfect
• Preterite-Past Perfect (Pluscuamperfecto)
• Will future--simple continual (would)

Verbs that will not change the tense of the others verbs:

• Conditional

Things to keep in mind:

• Remember your reporting verbs
• Remember to change the personal and possessive pronouns
• Remember your time phrases

In reality, it’s not as complicated as it looks. It may take a little practice to get used to, but after a while, you’ll find that is relatively similar to what we do in English. Do you have any shortcuts you use to remember the rules mentioned above? Is reported (indirect) speech something you struggle with? Let us know in the comments!

About the author 

Anastasia is a Chicago, Illinois native. She began studying Spanish over 10 years ago, and hasn’t stopped since. Living in Spain since 2012, she loves Spanish tortilla, vino tinto, and anything that contains jamón ibérico.

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Intermediate Spanish Review Lesson 24 How to use Spanish Indirect / Reported Speech (Part 1) Posted by Laura & Adam on Feb 11, 2014 in Learning , Spanish Grammar , Spanish Vocabulary , Videos

¡Hola! ¿Cómo estáis?

Hoy vamos a practicar El Estilo Indirecto en español. Today we are going to practice the Spanish Estilo Indirecto – Indirect or Reported Speech in Spanish.

Answers to all tasks involved in this lesson will be given at the end of the post and you can also follow a link with this post to watch the original theory video lesson on the same topic.

To go back and watch the original video lesson please follow this link:

Intermediate theory video lesson 24

1. Let´s start by making some sentences using Spanish reported speech. I will tell you some sentences and I would like you to transform them to reported speech using “Dijo que”. For example, if I say “Hace mucho calor” you should say “Dijo que hacía mucho calor”:

Tengo frío. He terminado de estudiar. Estoy cansada. Me gusta ir a la playa. Ana quiere venir con nosotros. Ya había visto esta película antes. Hemos estado en Barcelona muchas veces. No sé nadar. Estamos muy contentos. Estudié mucho para el examen.

2. Next, please translate the following sentences from Spanish to English:

El médico me dice siempre que tengo que comer más fruta. El médico medijo que tengo que beber mucha agua. Mi profesor me dijo que tenía que estudiar más. Carlos dijo que estaba aburrido. Sonia dice que ya ha estado aquí antes. Sonia dijo que ya había estado aquí antes. Me dijeron que este restaurante es muy caro. Ana dice que necesita unas vacaciones. Ayer dijiste que hoy tenías que trabajar. Pedro siempre dice que trabaja demasiado.

3. Finally, please translate the following sentences from English to Spanish:

My grandmother says that I am perfect. They said that they were the best. Sara told me that she liked a lot this book. Antonio says that he cannot understand anything. María and Alberto say that they are getting married this year. Lola told me that the Spanish lesson was very good fun. You always say that next time you will study more. Pablo said that he would come today. Carmen says that you have to watch this movie. They say that doing exercise is good for health.

This is all for today.

I hope this practice lesson has helped you to understand what Spanish reported or indirect speech is and how to use it correctly. If you are not fully confident yet, I recommend you watch the original theory video lesson a few times again.

Have a great week! ¡Hasta pronto!

I hope you are enjoying my weekly interactive Spanish lessons. Follow this link for many more great resources to help you learn and practice Spanish .

1. Dijo que tenía frío. Dijo que había terminado de estudiar. Dijo que estaba cansada. Dijo que le gustaba ir a la playa. Dijo que Ana quería venir con nosotros. Dijo que ya había visto esta película antes. Dijo que habían estado en Barcelona muchas veces. Dijo que no sabía nadar. Dijo que estaban muy contentos. Dijo que estudió mucho para el examen.

2. The doctor always tells me that I have to eat more fruit. The doctor told me that I have to drink a lot of water. My teacher told me that I had to study more. Carlos said that he was bored. Sonia says that she has already been here before. Sonia said that she had already been here before. They told me that this restaurant is very expensive. Ana says that she needs some holidays. Yesterday you said that today you had to work. Pedro always says that he works too much.

3. Mi abuela dice que soy perfecta. Ellos dijeron que eran los mejores. Sara me dijo que le gustó mucho este libro. Antonio dice que no puede comprender nada. María y Alberto dicen que se van a casar este año. Lola me dijo que la clase de español fue muy divertida. Siempre dices que la próxima vez estudiarás más. Pablo dijo que vendría hoy. Carmen dice que tienes que ver esta película. Dicen que hacer ejercicio es bueno para la salud.

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Laura & Adam have been blogging and creating online Spanish courses for Transparent Language since 2010. Laura is from Bilbao in northern Spain and Adam is from Devon in the south of England. They lived together in Spain for over 10 years, where their 2 daughters were born, and now they live in Scotland. Both Laura & Adam qualified as foreign language teachers in 2004 and since have been teaching Spanish in Spain, the UK, and online.

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A Simple Lesson on Direct vs Indirect Spanish

You may be surprised to learn that the way direct vs indirect Spanish works is quite similar to the way direct vs indirect English does.

In both languages direct speech makes use of quotes and keeps things simple. However, sometimes speaking in direct speech sounds a bit weird or “robot-like.” And that’s why you need to learn how to use indirect speech too. 

In this post, I’ll answer the question of direct vs indirect Spanish—what is direct and indirect speech and how does it work? Then I’ll explore the grammar particularities of indirect speech, with lots of examples, as well as some new vocabulary. 

Direct vs Indirect Spanish 

What’s the direct vs indirect Spanish discussion about? Well, it’s basically a topic about two different ways of communicating what another person said. 

These two distinct “ways of communicating” are also known as “direct speech” or “direct style,” and “indirect speech,” “indirect style,” or even “reported speech.” In Spanish, they’re simply known as estilo directo and estilo indirecto . 

Direct Speech

On the direct vs indirect Spanish argument, the easy part is learning direct speech. If you’ve ever used quotes to repeat the exact same words of another person, then you already know how to use it. 

Direct speech works the same way both in English and Spanish, with just a small change in punctuation—from a colon in Spanish to a comma in English. 

Let’s see some examples of direct speech. 

El maestro dijo: “La tarea se entrega el viernes.” The teacher said, “The homework is due on Friday.”

“Eres mi mejor amigo,” dijo María. “You’re my best friend,” Maria said.  

Simple, right? Let’s see now the other side of the direct vs indirect Spanish debate: indirect speech. 

Indirect Speech

Indirect speech is a little more complicated than direct speech. However, in real life conversations it’s more common to use indirect speech, so it’s crucial that you get it right. 

If we’re talking about direct vs indirect Spanish, the direct part only requires you to remember to add quotation marks. However, on the indirect part there are quite a few moving parts, grammar rules, and specific changes that you need to remember. 

Let’s take a look at them!

Indirect Spanish Grammar Structure

When you’re comparing direct vs indirect Spanish, you need to focus on dissecting the indirect Spanish grammar structure and all its variables. 

Indirect Speech Formula 

If you you want to report either a command, a statement, or a question in Spanish, you need to use a simple formula: 

Subject + Verb + Object

El maestro quiere que Miguel (subject) repita (verb) el examen (object).  The teacher wants Miguel to repeat the exam. 

Mamá dijo que Carlos (subject) podía (verb) venir (object) .  Mom said that Carlos could come.

Mónica pregunta si tú (subject) tienes (verb) su teléfono (object) .  Monica asks if you have her phone.  

At this point, it’s important to mention that subject pronouns and verbs need to adapt to agree with the new subject in indirect speech. 

Direct speech: 

Alejandra dijo: “(yo) soy la mejor.” Alejandra said: “I’m the best.”

Indirect speech: 

Alejandra dijo que (ella) es la mejor. Alejandra said that she’s the best.

Notice how in the direct speech sentence the subject is yo, and the verb is conjugated in the first person singular: soy . While in the indirect speech sentence the subject is ella, and the verb is conjugated in the third person singular: es .

The Importance of ‘ Que ’ on Indirect Speech

Notice how in the first two examples given above, there is a que located just before the subject. I would have included this little word in the indirect speech formula, if it wasn’t for the way questions behave as indirect speech in Spanish. But que is there to be found in every other indirect speech construction: 

El presidente dice que el país está mejor.  The president says that the country is better now. 

Karla confesó que ya no lo ama.  Karla confessed that she doesn’t love him anymore. 

Papá me pidió que lavara su carro.  Dad asked me to wash his car. 

It doesn’t matter if it’s a statement or a command, the word que will always be there (even if in English you may avoid its equivalent “that”). 

Questions and Question Words

In indirect Spanish you may find two kinds of questions: “yes or no questions,” and “question word questions”. In the first case, you don’t need to use que, instead you have to use si (if, whether):

Mamá quiere saber si fuiste al dentista.  Mom wants to know if you went to the dentist. 

Mis alumnos me preguntaron si habría examen.  My students asked me if there will be an exam. 

The second case works a little bit differently. 

In Spanish, the question words include: qué (what), quién (who), cuál (which), cuánto (how much), cuándo (when), cómo (how), dónde (where), and por qué (why).

When you are using indirect speech and one of these question words arise, all you have to do is to substitute the si of the “yes or no questions” with the required question word.

El maestro quiere saber dónde estás.  The teacher wants to know where you are. 

Carlos cuestiona quién hizo esto.  Carlos questions who did this. 

Finally, if you’re using the verb preguntar (to ask) in indirect speech you may add an extra que before the question word. However, if you don’t add this que the structure of the sentence is also correct. 

Papá pregunta que cómo te sientes.  Dad asks how are you. 

Juan pregunta que qué quieres de regalo.  Juan asks what you want as a present. 

Reporting Verbs

On the direct vs indirect Spanish topic, there are a few verbs that you have to use to repeat what someone else said. These verbs are known as “reporting verbs” and you can use them either in direct or indirect speech. 

Decir – to say

Mi jefe me dijo que estaba despedido.  My boss said that I was fired. 

Preguntar – to ask

Jorge pregunta que cuándo llegaste. Jorge asks when you arrived.

Querer – to want

Martha quiere que la visites.  Martha wants you to visit her. 

Explicar – to explain

“El apagón se debe a las bajas temperaturas,” explicó el presidente.  “The blackout is due to the low temperature,” the president explained.

Afirmar – to assert

“Perdimos por culpa del árbitro,” afirmó el entrenador.  “We lost because of the referee,” the coach asserted.

Other common reporting verbs in Spanish include: 

añadir – to add

declarar – to declare

insistir – to insist

sostener – to maintain 

contestar – to answer

pedir – to ask

anunciar – to announce

asegurar – to assure

negar – to deny

comentar – to comment

prometer – to promise

recordar – to remind

Verb Tenses

Remember when I said above that in indirect speech the verbs need to adapt to reflect the new subject? Well, verbs also change tenses sometimes in indirect speech. 

If the verb in the main clause is in the present tense, there are no changes to be made: 

Direct speech:  

Papá dice: “Tengo hambre.” Dad says, “I’m hungry.” 

Indirect speech:

Papá dice que tiene hambre.  Dad says he’s hungry. 

Notice how both verbs decir and tener are in the present tense, both in the direct speech sentence as in the indirect speech one. 

However, when the reporting verb is conjugated in the past tense, you have to be careful as indirect speech becomes a little bit more complicated, as the verb in the subordinate clause needs to change: 

Papá dijo: “Tengo hambre.” Dad said, “I’m hungry.” 

Papá dijo que tenía hambre.  Dad said he was hungry. 

Notice how in direct speech the reporting verb “ dijo ” is in simple past tense or preterite, while the second one “tengo” is in present tense. However, in indirect speech the second verb “ tenía ” is conjugated in the imperfect. 

The most common indirect speech tense change in the reported fragment is from present simple to imperfect, as in the example given above. But, there are a couple of other tense changes that you need to take into consideration: 

Preterite to Pluscuamperfecto

Erika dijo: ”El año pasado fui a París.” Erika said, “Last year I went to Paris.”

Erika dijo que había ido a París el año pasado.  Erika said she had gone to Paris last year. 

Future simple to Conditional

Mamá dijo: “Comeré más tarde.” Mom said: “I will eat later.”

Mamá dijo que comería más tarde.  Mom said she would eat later. 

Direct vs Indirect Spanish Conclusion

Learning how to choose between direct vs indirect Spanish and to use them correctly is a process that starts by learning the grammar rules, as you did today. But, in reality, the only way to master indirect speech is by practicing it. Only when you apply these rules in real-life conversations, you’ll start noticing when a pronoun needs to be changed or a tense is incorrectly used. 

Sign up for a free class with one of our certified, native Spanish-speaking teachers, and start choosing between direct vs indirect Spanish today!

Ready to learn more Spanish grammar? Check these out!

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Spanishland School

Piensa Como Nativo

413 | Advanced Spanish Practice: Reported Speech (Estilo Indirecto)

In today's episode we bring you an advanced Spanish practice. We are going to review the rules of the reported speech and will do some exercises together with Nate's help. 

😉Este es sin duda el tema más difícil en español porque tienes que recordar todos los tiempos y modos. 

Pero no te preocupes, al igual que todos los demás temas, es cuestión de práctica.

➡️Descarga el PDF con las 11 reglas y los ejercicios aquí:

Reported Speech PDF

Puedes practicar más este tema con el episodio 319 del podcast de Españolistos.

⭐Escúchalo aquí:

Espanolistos Episode 319

💬¿Qué fue algo nuevo que aprendiste aquí? Dinos en los comentarios. 💗

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Canada Wants to Regulate Online Content. Critics Say It Goes Too Far.

A bill introduced by the Canadian government to safeguard against online harms has stirred opposition from free speech advocates.

By Vjosa Isai

Reporting from Toronto

Canada has waded into the contentious issue of regulating online content with a sweeping proposal that would force technology companies to restrict and remove harmful material, especially posts involving children, that appears on their platforms.

While the intent to better monitor online content has drawn widespread support, the bill has faced intense backlash over its attempt to regulate hate speech. Critics say the proposal crosses the line into censorship.

The bill would create a new regulatory agency with the power to issue 24-hour takedown orders to companies for content deemed to be child sexual abuse or intimate photos and videos shared without consent, often referred to as revenge porn .

The agency could also initiate investigations of tech companies and impose hefty, multimillion dollar fines. Companies would have to submit digital safety plans, including design features to shield children from potentially harmful content.

The proposal by the government of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is meant to address “the anarchy and lawlessness” of the internet, said Arif Virani, the justice minister and attorney general.

“Right now, you can empower your kids until you’re blue in the face about the internet,” Mr. Virani said in an interview. “If there are no rules on the internet, about how things will happen, how platforms will behave, then we’ve got a problem. We’re here to solve that problem.”

But others say parts of the bill, particularly the targeting of hate speech, are so onerous that they would muzzle free expression. The Canadian writer Margaret Atwood called the bill “Orwellian.”

Since 2014, the police in Canada have seen a fourfold increase in reports of child pornography and sexual offenses against children online, according to data published in March by the national census agency.

Canada’s move to regulate tech giants comes amid intensifying concern over the power of social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, YouTube and TikTok, to disseminate harmful content with few checks.

The European Union, the United Kingdom and Australia have all adopted laws meant to police online content, while the United States is also wrestling with how to address the matter. U.S. lawmakers summoned tech executives in January to a congressional hearing on online child safety.

The bill in Canada is winding its way through Parliament and must be passed by the House of Commons and the Senate before it becomes law. Because Mr. Trudeau’s Liberal Party has an agreement with an opposition party to support government legislation, some version of the proposal is likely to pass.

The comprehensive bill calls for civil and criminal penalties on hate speech, a move that has provoked the strongest opposition.

One provision would, for the first time in Canada, establish hate as a separate crime that would encompass both written and physical acts. Currently, depending on the circumstances, hate can be added as an element to other criminal offenses but cannot be charged as a separate crime. The government argues that making it a separate crime would make it easier to track offenses.

Another measure would allow people to seek the equivalent of a protection order against someone they accuse of targeting them with hate.

The bill would also restore a regulation repealed by Parliament about a decade ago allowing Canadians to file complaints to an existing human rights commission that can ultimately lead to financial penalties of up to 50,000 Canadian dollars against people judged to have committed hate speech.

The Canadian Civil Liberties Association criticized the bill, saying it would lead to “overbroad violations of expressive freedom, privacy, protest rights and liberty,” and would give a new regulatory agency the power to be “judge, jury and executioner.”

The government seems to want to “create a much more sanitized internet and that’s very harmful for free speech because it’s the controversial stuff we need to be able to talk about,’’ said Josh Dehaas, counsel at the Canadian Constitution Foundation, a nonprofit that promotes civil liberties.

Mr. Virani, the justice minister, rejected any suggestion that the government was trying to limit free speech, saying the bill seeks to protect people from hatred.

“Free speech in this country doesn’t include hate speech,” he said.

Some experts and tech companies praised the bill, saying that the stiffest penalties were reserved for the worst forms of content and would not trample on free speech.

“It’s an incredibly thoughtful piece of legislation, if you’re looking at balancing protection from harm and protection of fundamental rights,” said Emily Laidlaw, a professor who focuses on cybersecurity law at the University of Calgary.

As the bill is in the early stages of the legislative process and criticism has been robust, changes are likely to come before a final vote. Government officials said they expected that amendments would need to be negotiated.

The leader of the Conservative Party, Pierre Poilievre, has questioned the need for more bureaucracy, saying online crimes could be dealt with through expanded criminal enforcement.

But some supporters of the bill say it would provide a faster way to tackle crimes on the internet since tech platforms could be ordered to remove content within a day.

Beyond social media sites, the bill would also apply to pornography websites and livestreaming services like Discord. Private message platforms such as Signal would be excluded.

Meta, which owns Facebook and Instagram, said it supported the Canadian government’s goal to protect young people online and wanted to collaborate “with lawmakers and industry peers on our longstanding priority to keep Canadians safe.”

Tech companies have responded to internet safety laws in other countries by saying that their internal tools, like parental controls, are already effective at protecting children, though some experts argue that it is still too easy for minors to bypass safeguards and access inappropriate content.

Canada’s proposal has become a target for right-wing and conservative media outlets in the United States, who have seized on the criminal and civil penalties to accuse Mr. Trudeau of trying to suppress political speech.

Some supporters say the bill provides regular online users a way to rein in content that can sometimes have tragic consequences.

Carol Todd, who lives in British Columbia, knows from painful personal experience what it means to confront sexual images of children online.

Her daughter was 15 when she died by suicide after a Dutch man, using some two dozen fake accounts, shared sexual images of her online and demanded money. He was eventually arrested and convicted in 2022 for sexual extortion, and is imprisoned in the Netherlands.

Ms. Todd said it was hard enough finding a place on Facebook to report the images of her daughter. “It was just so much work and it defeated my kid,” she said. (The posts were eventually removed, Ms. Todd said, though Facebook never commented on the case.)

Lianna McDonald, the director of the Canadian Center for Child Protection, said the government’s proposed online regulations could prevent other tragic outcomes.

“We’ve lost too many children,” she said, “and too many families have been devastated by the violence that occurs online.”

Both Canada and the United States have a three-digit suicide and crisis hotline: 988. If you are having thoughts of suicide, call or text 988 and visit 988.ca (Canada) or 988lifeline.org (United States) for a list of additional resources. This service offers bilingual crisis support in each country, 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

Vjosa Isai is a reporter and researcher for The Times based in Toronto, where she covers news from across Canada. More about Vjosa Isai