French Indirect Speech (Le discours indirect)
Indirect speech allows us to report what someone else said without using their exact words or quotation marks. We paraphrase or give the gist of what was said using reporting verbs.
Common reporting verbs:
Il dit... (He says)Elle annonce... (She announces)Il demande... (He asks)Elle explique... (She explains)Il répond... (He replies)
How to turn direct speech into indirect speech
When transforming direct speech to indirect speech, you must adjust three main things:
01
Change the pronouns to reflect the new speaker's perspective.
Direct: Il a déclaré : "Je suis enthousiaste de travailler avec vous."
Indirect: Il a déclaré qu'il était enthousiaste de travailler avec moi.
02
Change the Verb Conjugation/Tense (more on this below).
Detailed table below
03
Change time and place markers if necessary.
Direct: "J'ai préparé une présentation hier."
Indirect: Il a annoncé qu'il avait préparé une présentation la veille.
Changing the Tense (La concordance des temps)
If the reporting verb is in the PRESENT (e.g., il dit):
The tense of the reported speech remains unchanged. You only adjust the subject pronoun conjugation (e.g., 1st person → 3rd person).
Elle lui dit: "Je suis ravie." → Elle lui dit qu'elle est ravie.
If the reporting verb is in the PAST (e.g., il a dit, il disait):
The tense of the reported speech must be shifted "back" in time.
| Direct Speech Tense | Indirect Speech Tense |
|---|---|
| Présent | Imparfait |
| Passé composé / Passé simple | Plus-que-parfait |
| Imparfait | Imparfait / Plus-que-parfait |
| Futur simple | Conditionnel présent |
| Futur antérieur | Conditionnel passé |
| Impératif (Commands) | Subjonctif (or de + inf) |
| Conditionnel | Conditionnel (Unchanged) |
Connecting the clauses
Declarative Sentences
Attached to the reporting verb with the word que (qu' before a vowel).
Je lui ai dit que j'étais ravie.
Questions
Open questions use the same question word. Yes/No questions use si.
Je lui ai demandé comment il allait.
Je lui ai demandé s'il avait des questions.
Demands / Requests (Imperative)
Best expressed using an infinitive clause with de + infinitive. Usually uses the reporting verb demander or dire.
"Appelez-moi !" → Il m'a demandé de l'appeler.
Practice Indirect Speech
Master the rules of tense concordance and structural transformation in French reported speech.
1
Pronoun Change Drills2
Tense Shift (Present Reporting)3
Tense Shift (Past Reporting)4
Question Conversion (si/où)