This French B1 lesson explains reported speech in French step by step, with examples in French and English. Then practise with the worksheet on reported speech in French and check yourself with the quiz.
Quick answer: Reported speech in French retells someone’s words with a verb such as dire que, expliquer que or demander si. When the reporting verb is in the past, the tenses shift back: present to imparfait, passé composé to plus-que-parfait, futur to conditionnel. Pronouns and time words also change: demain becomes le lendemain.
Level: French B1 (CEFR intermediate) · Standards: CEFR B1, Spoken production
Reported speech in French: the lesson
How do you report what someone said?
In reported speech you retell the words instead of quoting them. There are no quotation marks, and the sentence is introduced by a reporting verb plus que. Unlike English “that”, que is never optional.
Examples
Samia dit : « Je suis pressée. » → Samia dit qu’elle est pressée. — Samia says she is in a hurry.
Samia a dit : « Je suis pressée. » → Samia a dit qu’elle était pressée. — Samia said she was in a hurry.
When the reporting verb is in the present, the tense stays. When it is in the past, the tense shifts back, as in English.
| Original | Reported |
|---|---|
| « J’ai faim. » | Il a dit qu’il avait faim. |
| « J’ai signé. » | Elle a dit qu’elle avait signé. |
| « Je viendrai. » | Il a dit qu’il viendrait. |
| « Je vais partir. » | Elle a dit qu’elle allait partir. |
The imparfait and the plus-que-parfait do not change.
What else changes besides the tenses?
Pronouns and possessives follow the new speaker: mon becomes son. Time and place words also shift, because the moment of speaking has passed.
| Direct | Reported (past) |
|---|---|
| aujourd’hui | ce jour-là |
| demain | le lendemain |
| hier | la veille |
| maintenant | alors |
| ici | là |
How do you report questions and orders?
Rule
For a yes/no question use si: Elle m’a demandé si j’avais réservé. For a question word keep it: Il a demandé où j’habitais. For qu’est-ce que use ce que. Never invert the subject and never add a question mark. For an order use de + infinitive: Le médecin m’a dit de me reposer.
Watch out
English says “He told me he was late” and “He said to me”. French needs the right pattern: Il m’a dit qu’il était en retard, never Il a dit moi. The person you speak to is an indirect object: dire à quelqu’un, demander à quelqu’un de.
Culture
Newspapers often use the conditional to report an unconfirmed fact: Le ministre aurait démissionné — the minister reportedly resigned. It signals “I cannot verify this”.
Zoé’s tip
To report quickly, ask three questions: Who is speaking now? Is my reporting verb in the past? Have the time words changed? If yes to the second, shift the tense back.
Key points to remember
- After a past reporting verb: présent becomes imparfait, passé composé becomes plus-que-parfait, futur becomes conditionnel.
- Statements use que, yes/no questions use si, and orders use de + infinitive.
- Hier becomes la veille, demain becomes le lendemain, aujourd’hui becomes ce jour-là.
- Reported questions have no inversion and no question mark.
- With a present reporting verb (il dit que), the tense does not change.
Passing On Messages and Conversations: frequently asked questions
Does the tense always change in French reported speech?
No. It changes only when the reporting verb is in the past. After il dit que, the present stays present, as in il dit qu’il est fatigué.
How do I report a yes/no question in French?
Use si after the verb demander and drop the inversion: Elle m’a demandé si j’avais réservé. There is no question mark.
How do I report an order or a request?
Use dire de or demander de followed by an infinitive: Il m’a demandé d’envoyer le dossier. A negative order becomes de ne pas + infinitive.
What is the difference between dire and demander?
Dire que reports a statement, demander si or demander + question word reports a question, and dire de or demander de reports an order.
Which verbs can introduce reported speech?
The most useful are dire, expliquer, demander, répondre, annoncer, ajouter and raconter. They all take que except demander, which takes si or de.