Reported Speech
Kurz erklärt
Reported speech (el estilo indirecto) presents what someone said without quoting the exact words. Pronouns, possessives, time expressions, and verb forms may change to match the new speaker and moment. After a past reporting verb, a present situation is commonly viewed from that past perspective: Estoy cansada becomes dijo que estaba cansada. A tense change is not automatic when the information is still true or relevant: La Tierra gira alrededor del Sol can remain dijo que la Tierra gira alrededor del Sol.
Bildung
Statement: decir/explicar/comentar + que + clause. Yes/no question: preguntar + si + clause. Information question: preguntar + question word + clause. Request or command: pedir/decir + que + imperfect subjunctive when the reporting verb is in the past.
Verwendung
- Use it to summarize conversations, messages, news, or instructions.
- Adjust person and reference words when the viewpoint changes: hoy may become ese día, and mañana may become al día siguiente.
- With a past reporting verb, present often shifts to imperfect, and future often shifts to conditional.
- Keep a present tense when the reported fact remains valid and the speaker wants to present it as current.
Beispiele
- Ana dijo que estaba trabajando desde casa. — Ana said that she was working from home.
- Me preguntaron si podía llegar más temprano. — They asked me whether I could arrive earlier.
- Luis comentó que llamaría al día siguiente. — Luis said that he would call the next day.
- La doctora me pidió que descansara. — The doctor asked me to rest.
Typischer Fehler
❌ La doctora me pidió descansar.
✅ La doctora me pidió que descansara.
Unlike English ask someone to do something, a reported request with pedir normally uses que followed by the subjunctive.
Merke
Do not shift tenses mechanically. First decide whether the information is viewed from the past or remains current.