Direct and Indirect Speech in Spanish
Learn how direct and indirect speech work in Spanish sentence structure. This guide explains how to report statements, questions, commands and requests with decir que, preguntar si, question words, tense changes, pronoun changes and time expressions.
Why learn direct and indirect speech with MundoDele?
Direct and indirect speech are essential for telling stories, reporting conversations, writing summaries and explaining what someone said or asked. MundoDele teaches this topic through sentence structure: reporting verb, connector, reported clause and tense relationship.
The central contrast is simple: direct speech keeps the original words, while indirect speech adapts the sentence to the new speaker and situation.
How to use this page
Use this page as the main guide for Spanish direct and indirect speech. First learn the difference between exact quotation and reported speech. Then study reported statements, reported yes/no questions, reported information questions and reported commands.
Statements
Use a reporting verb plus que.
Dijo que estaba cansada.
She said she was tired.
Yes/no questions
Use preguntar si.
Preguntó si podía venir.
He/she asked if he/she could come.
Commands
Use a request or command verb plus que and the subjunctive.
Me pidió que viniera.
He/she asked me to come.
What is direct and indirect speech in Spanish?
Direct speech repeats the exact words someone said. Indirect speech reports the content of what was said, often with changes in tense, pronouns, time expressions and place expressions.
| Type | Spanish example | English meaning | Structure |
|---|---|---|---|
| Direct speech | Ana dijo: “Estoy cansada.” | Ana said: “I am tired.” | Exact quoted words. |
| Indirect speech | Ana dijo que estaba cansada. | Ana said that she was tired. | Reported statement with que. |
| Direct question | Pedro preguntó: “¿Puedes venir?” | Pedro asked: “Can you come?” | Exact quoted question. |
| Indirect question | Pedro preguntó si podía venir. | Pedro asked if I could come. | Reported yes/no question with si. |
Indirect statements with que
Statements in indirect speech usually use a reporting verb plus que. The reported information becomes a subordinate clause.
| Direct speech | Indirect speech | Change |
|---|---|---|
| “Estoy cansada.” | Ana dijo que estaba cansada. | estoy → estaba. |
| “Vivo en Madrid.” | Pedro dijo que vivía en Madrid. | vivo → vivía. |
| “No tengo tiempo.” | Laura dijo que no tenía tiempo. | tengo → tenía. |
| “He terminado.” | Él dijo que había terminado. | he terminado → había terminado. |
Related page: Conjunctions with Que in Spanish.
Indirect yes/no questions with si
Yes/no questions are reported with si, which means “if” or “whether” in this structure. The sentence no longer has the structure of a direct question.
| Direct question | Indirect question | English meaning | Connector |
|---|---|---|---|
| ¿Tienes tiempo? | Preguntó si tenía tiempo. | He/she asked if I had time. | si |
| ¿Puedes venir? | Preguntó si podía venir. | He/she asked if I could come. | si |
| ¿Has terminado? | Preguntó si había terminado. | He/she asked if I had finished. | si |
| ¿Vas a estudiar? | Preguntó si iba a estudiar. | He/she asked if I was going to study. | si |
Indirect information questions
Information questions keep their question word in indirect speech: qué, quién, cuándo, dónde, cómo, por qué or cuánto.
| Direct question | Indirect question | English meaning | Question word |
|---|---|---|---|
| ¿Dónde vives? | Preguntó dónde vivía. | He/she asked where I lived. | dónde |
| ¿Qué quieres? | Preguntó qué quería. | He/she asked what I wanted. | qué |
| ¿Cuándo llegas? | Preguntó cuándo llegaba. | He/she asked when I was arriving. | cuándo |
| ¿Cómo lo hiciste? | Preguntó cómo lo había hecho. | He/she asked how I had done it. | cómo |
| ¿Por qué estudias español? | Preguntó por qué estudiaba español. | He/she asked why I studied Spanish. | por qué |
Related page: Spanish Interrogative Pronouns.
Tense changes in Spanish indirect speech
When the reporting verb is in the past, Spanish often shifts the reported verb back in time. This is one of the most important parts of indirect speech.
| Direct speech tense | Direct speech | Indirect speech | Typical change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Present | “Estoy cansada.” | Dijo que estaba cansada. | Present → imperfect. |
| Preterite | “Llegué tarde.” | Dijo que había llegado tarde. | Preterite → pluperfect. |
| Present perfect | “He terminado.” | Dijo que había terminado. | Present perfect → pluperfect. |
| Future | “Iré mañana.” | Dijo que iría al día siguiente. | Future → conditional. |
| Near future | “Voy a estudiar.” | Dijo que iba a estudiar. | voy a → iba a. |
| Imperative | “Ven temprano.” | Me pidió que viniera temprano. | Command → imperfect subjunctive. |
Pronoun changes in indirect speech
Pronouns often change because the sentence is now reported from a different point of view. The exact change depends on who speaks, who reports and who is being addressed.
| Direct speech | Indirect speech | Change | English meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ana dijo: “Estoy cansada.” | Ana dijo que estaba cansada. | yo becomes ella in meaning. | Ana said she was tired. |
| Pedro dijo: “Mi casa está cerca.” | Pedro dijo que su casa estaba cerca. | mi → su. | Pedro said his house was nearby. |
| Laura dijo: “Te llamo mañana.” | Laura dijo que me llamaría al día siguiente. | te can become me. | Laura said she would call me the next day. |
| Ellos dijeron: “Nuestro plan funciona.” | Ellos dijeron que su plan funcionaba. | nuestro → su. | They said their plan worked. |
Time and place changes in indirect speech
Time and place expressions can change when the speech is reported later or from another place. These changes are not mechanical in every context, but they are common in standard indirect speech.
| Direct speech | Indirect speech | Example | English meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| hoy | ese día | Dijo que trabajaba ese día. | He/she said that he/she was working that day. |
| mañana | al día siguiente | Dijo que vendría al día siguiente. | He/she said that he/she would come the next day. |
| ayer | el día anterior | Dijo que había llegado el día anterior. | He/she said that he/she had arrived the previous day. |
| aquí | allí | Dijo que vivía allí. | He/she said that he/she lived there. |
| este | ese / aquel | Dijo que ese libro era suyo. | He/she said that book was his/hers. |
Reporting commands and requests
Commands and requests are usually reported with verbs such as pedir, decir, ordenar, recomendar or aconsejar plus que and the subjunctive.
| Direct command | Indirect speech | English meaning | Structure |
|---|---|---|---|
| “Ven temprano.” | Me pidió que viniera temprano. | He/she asked me to come early. | pedir que + subjunctive |
| “No hables.” | Me dijo que no hablara. | He/she told me not to speak. | decir que + subjunctive |
| “Estudien más.” | El profesor recomendó que estudiaran más. | The teacher recommended that they study more. | recomendar que + subjunctive |
| “Esperen aquí.” | Les ordenó que esperaran allí. | He/she ordered them to wait there. | ordenar que + subjunctive |
Related page: Imperfect Subjunctive in Spanish.
Common reporting verbs in Spanish
Direct and indirect speech depend on reporting verbs. Different verbs show whether the speaker says, asks, answers, explains, denies, announces or requests something.
| Reporting verb | Meaning | Example | Typical structure |
|---|---|---|---|
| decir | to say / to tell | Dijo que estaba ocupado. | decir que |
| contar | to tell / to recount | Me contó que vivía en Sevilla. | contar que |
| preguntar | to ask | Preguntó si podía entrar. | preguntar si |
| responder | to answer | Respondió que no sabía. | responder que |
| explicar | to explain | Explicó que el sistema era nuevo. | explicar que |
| pedir | to ask / request | Pidió que esperáramos. | pedir que + subjunctive |
Detailed page: Reporting Verbs in Spanish.
Indicative or subjunctive in indirect speech?
Reported statements normally use the indicative when the content is presented as information. Reported commands, requests, recommendations and denials often use the subjunctive.
| Structure | Spanish example | Mood | Reason |
|---|---|---|---|
| decir que | Dijo que estaba cansado. | Indicative | Reported statement. |
| explicar que | Explicó que era necesario esperar. | Indicative | Reported explanation. |
| pedir que | Pidió que llegáramos temprano. | Subjunctive | Reported request. |
| recomendar que | Recomendó que estudiáramos más. | Subjunctive | Reported recommendation. |
| negar que | Negó que tuviera problemas. | Subjunctive | Reported denial. |
Related page: Indicative vs Subjunctive in Spanish.
Practice exercises: direct and indirect speech in Spanish
Try to answer before opening the solutions. These exercises focus on que, si, question words, tense changes and reported commands.
Exercise 1: choose que or si
- Dijo ___ estaba cansada.
- Preguntó ___ podía venir.
- Explicó ___ el curso empezaba el lunes.
- Quería saber ___ había tiempo.
Show answers
1. que
2. si
3. que
4. si
Exercise 2: report the question
- ¿Dónde vives? → Preguntó...
- ¿Qué quieres? → Preguntó...
- ¿Cuándo llegas? → Preguntó...
- ¿Puedes venir? → Preguntó...
Show answers
1. Preguntó dónde vivía.
2. Preguntó qué quería.
3. Preguntó cuándo llegaba.
4. Preguntó si podía venir.
Exercise 3: change to indirect speech
- Ana dijo: “Estoy ocupada.”
- Pedro dijo: “He terminado.”
- Laura dijo: “Iré mañana.”
- El profesor dijo: “Estudien más.”
Show answers
1. Ana dijo que estaba ocupada.
2. Pedro dijo que había terminado.
3. Laura dijo que iría al día siguiente.
4. El profesor dijo que estudiaran más.
Typical mistakes with direct and indirect speech in Spanish
- Forgetting que in indirect statements: say dijo que estaba cansada, not dijo estaba cansada.
- Using que instead of si for yes/no questions: say preguntó si podía venir.
- Keeping direct question structure in indirect questions: say preguntó dónde vivía, not a direct question inside the sentence.
- Forgetting tense changes after a past reporting verb: estoy often becomes estaba.
- Forgetting pronoun changes: mi casa can become su casa.
- Using indicative after reported requests: say pidió que viniera, not pidió que venía.
Related grammar topics
Spanish Sentence Structures
Return to the main sentence structure overview and learn how Spanish clauses connect.
Reporting Verbs
Study verbs such as decir, preguntar, responder and explicar.
Conjunctions with Que
Learn how que connects reported statements and subordinate clauses.
Interrogative Pronouns
Review qué, quién, cuándo, dónde, cómo and por qué.
Imperfect Subjunctive
Learn forms such as viniera, hablara, estudiara and tuviera.
Indicative vs Subjunctive
Understand why statements and requests use different moods.
Where to go next
After direct and indirect speech, continue with reporting verbs, que and interrogative pronouns. These topics help you build sentences such as dijo que estaba cansada, preguntó si podía venir and preguntó dónde vivía.
Learn Spanish sentence structure with MundoDele
Direct and indirect speech help you report conversations, questions, stories and instructions in Spanish. With MundoDele, you can learn the structure step by step through clear examples and connected grammar paths.
FAQ: direct and indirect speech in Spanish
What is direct speech in Spanish?
Direct speech repeats the exact words someone said: Ana dijo: “Estoy cansada.”
What is indirect speech in Spanish?
Indirect speech reports what someone said without quoting the exact words: Ana dijo que estaba cansada.
How do you report a statement in Spanish?
Use a reporting verb plus que: dijo que estaba cansado, explicó que el curso empezaba el lunes.
How do you report a yes/no question in Spanish?
Use preguntar si: preguntó si podía venir, preguntó si había terminado.
How do you report an information question in Spanish?
Keep the question word: preguntó dónde vivía, preguntó qué quería, preguntó cuándo llegaba.
Do tenses change in Spanish indirect speech?
Often yes, especially after a past reporting verb. For example, estoy cansada can become dijo que estaba cansada.
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