When you repeat what someone said, you can do it two ways. You can quote them directly, word for word, or you can report it indirectly, folding their words into your own sentence.
Building indirect speech
Building indirect speech comes down to two decisions.
Two decisions
Look at the subject and change it if needed. Je often becomes il or elle once someone else is reporting the words.
Pick an introductory verb that matches the original statement: a plain statement calls for dire, an admission calls for avouer, a promise calls for promettre.
Here are some of the most common introductory verbs.
affirmer — to claim
annoncer — to announce
ajouter — to add
assurer — to assure
avouer — to admit
constater — to note
déclarer — to state
dire — to say
expliquer — to explain
prétendre — to claim
promettre — to promise
répondre — to answer
Dire is the one most people reach for by default, and it's rarely wrong. But reaching for a more precise verb is part of what makes your French sound more sophisticated.
Here's both decisions in action. Léa's own words are reported by someone else, so the subject changes, and dire is the natural introductory verb for a plain statement like this.
Léa dit…
« J’habite à Marseille. »
je→elle
Léa ditqu’elle habite à Marseille.
Someone else is reporting Léa’s words, so je becomes elle, and que is inserted. The verb itself doesn’t change, because the reporting verb (dit) is in the present, a rule covered next.
When the reporting verb is in the present
If the verb introducing the indirect speech is in the present, the future, or the conditional, the tense inside the que clause stays exactly as it was. Only the subject changes, to match who is now speaking about whom.
Marc dit…
« Je suis en retard. »
je→il
Marc dit qu’il est en retard.
The verb itself doesn’t change tense, only its ending, to agree with il.
When the reporting verb is in the past
This is where la concordance des temps, or tense agreement, comes into play. Once the reporting verb sits in the imperfect, the passé composé, or the plus-que-parfait, three tense changes apply automatically inside the que clause.
In the direct quote
Once reported
présent
→
imparfait
futur
→
conditionnel
passé composé
→
plus-que-parfait
Présent → imparfait
Elle a dit…
« Jetravaille beaucoup en ce moment. »
je→elletravaille→travaillait
Elle a dit qu’elletravaillait beaucoup en ce moment.
Présent becomes imparfait, and the subject shifts too.
Futur → conditionnel
Il a annoncé…
« Jepartirai bientôt. »
je→ilpartirai→partirait
Il a annoncé qu’ilpartirait bientôt.
Passé composé → plus-que-parfait
Elle a expliqué…
« J’ai fini mon rapport. »
je→elleai fini→avait fini
Elle a expliqué qu’elleavait fini son rapport.
Passé composé becomes plus-que-parfait, and the subject shifts too.
The tenses that never change
Three tenses hold their ground no matter what the reporting verb is doing: the imparfait, the plus-que-parfait, and the conditionnel. Whatever else shifts in the sentence, these three stay exactly as they were written.
Elle a dit…
« J’habitais à Lyon quand j’étais enfant. »
habitais — aucun changement
Elle a dit qu’elle habitait à Lyon quand elle était enfant.
Imparfait — no change.
Il a ajouté…
« Je serais ravi de venir. »
serais — aucun changement
Il a ajouté qu’il serait ravi de venir.
Conditionnel — no change.
Elle a précisé…
« J’avais déjà terminé mon travail. »
avais déjà terminé — aucun changement
Elle a précisé qu’elle avait déjà terminé son travail.
Plus-que-parfait — no change.
Indirect speech also changes subject and possessive pronouns (je becomes il or elle, mon becomes son), and time expressions shift too (hier becomes la veille, la semaine prochaine becomes la semaine suivante). Reporting questions and reporting commands each follow their own logic.
