B1 · Unit 14 · 41 words, 2 texts with translation
Report what someone said
Pass on what other people said and asked in the past, sum up a TV episode and talk about detective stories.
Texts in this unit
Grammar in this unit
Reported speech in the past: dijo que + past tense
Your landlady called, the doctor explained something, a friend told you a story — and now you need to pass it on to someone else. So far you've reported words with dice que + present: Dice que está cansado (he says he's tired). But usually the conversation is already over, and then you say dijo que — "he said (that)" or "she said (that)". After it, the tense of the other person's words moves one step back into the past. English often does the same ("I'm at home" → she said she was at home), but Spanish does it much more consistently.
| What the person said | When | How you report it |
|---|---|---|
| «Estoy en casa» — I'm at home | now | Dijo que estaba en casa. |
| «He hablado con la agencia», «Hablé…» | already happened | Dijo que había hablado con la agencia. |
| «Voy a vender el piso», «Venderé…» | in the future | Dijo que iba a vender el piso. |
You already know all three forms: estaba is the imperfect ("was", "was doing"; A2, units 12–13), había hablado is the past perfect ("had done"; unit 9), and iba a is voy a in the past ("was going to").
The person changes too: the speaker's "I" becomes "he" or "she", and mi becomes su.
- «No tengo prisa». → Carmen dijo que no tenía prisa. — Carmen said she wasn't in a hurry.
- «He perdido las llaves». → Dani dijo que había perdido las llaves. — Dani said he had lost his keys.
- «Te voy a ayudar». → Me dijo que me iba a ayudar. — He said he was going to help me.
Instead of dijo, you can use other verbs: contestó que (answered that), me contó que (told me that), afirmó que (stated that), me advirtió que (warned me that), insistió en que (insisted that; note the en).
Common mistake. In casual English people often keep the original tense: "He said he's tired", "She said she'll call". In Spanish, take the step back: not dijo que está cansado, but dijo que estaba cansado; not dijo que llamará, but dijo que iba a llamar. In everyday speech Spaniards sometimes keep the present when what was said is still true, but with the step back you'll never be wrong.
Reported questions: preguntó si…, preguntó dónde…
You already know how to put a question inside a sentence: no sé dónde está — I don't know where it is; or ¿sabe si hay metro? (do you know if there's a metro?; unit 7). Now you'll report a question someone asked earlier: "she asked if I was at home".
The rule is the same as with dijo que: the tense moves one step back into the past. But there's no que here: in its place you put si or a question word.
A yes/no question → si (if, whether):
- «¿Estás en casa?» → Me preguntó si estaba en casa. — She asked me if I was at home.
- «¿Has pagado el alquiler?» → Me preguntó si había pagado el alquiler. — She asked me if I had paid the rent.
- «¿Vais a renovar el contrato?» → Nos preguntó si íbamos a renovar el contrato. — He asked us if we were going to renew the lease.
A question with a question word → the word stays, and it keeps its written accent:
- «¿Dónde vives?» → Me preguntó dónde vivía. — He asked me where I lived.
- «¿Cuánto cuesta?» → Le pregunté cuánto costaba. — I asked how much it cost.
Me, te, le, nos show who was asked: le pregunté — I asked him, I asked her (or: I asked you, formal).
Short answers are reported briefly: contestó que sí (he answered yes), dijo que no — she said no.
Common mistakes. The first one is dropping si. It must come right after preguntó, just like "if" in "she asked if…": not ✗ preguntó estaba en casa, but preguntó si estaba en casa. The second one is keeping the tense of the question. In casual English you might say "he asked where I live", but in Spanish it's preguntó dónde vivía.
Words in this unit
según — according to
Según mi hermana, la película es muy buena. — According to my sister, the movie is very good.
contestar — to answer, to reply
No contesta al teléfono. — He doesn't answer the phone.
la venta — sale
La venta de entradas empieza mañana. — Ticket sales start tomorrow.
el programa — show, program
Mi programa favorito es de cocina. — My favorite show is a cooking show.
el episodio — episode
Ayer vi dos episodios seguidos. — Yesterday I watched two episodes in a row.
el resumen — summary
¿Me haces un resumen de la película? — Can you give me a summary of the movie?
resumir — to summarize, to sum up
Resumo la película en dos frases. — I'll sum up the movie in two sentences.
es decir — that is, in other words
Vivo cerca, es decir, a cinco minutos. — I live nearby, that is, five minutes away.
o sea — I mean, that is, so
No tengo tiempo, o sea, no puedo ir. — I don't have time, I mean, I can't go.
total — so, in the end, anyway
Esperé una hora y, total, no vino nadie. — I waited an hour and, in the end, nobody came.
exacto — exact; exactly
—¿Lo dijo así? —¡Exacto! — Is that how he said it? — Exactly!
insistir — to insist
Mi madre insiste en pagar. — My mom insists on paying.
mencionar — to mention
Mi jefe menciona tu nombre. — My boss mentions your name.
referirse — to refer to, to mean
¿A qué te refieres? — What do you mean?
averiguar — to find out
Voy a averiguar a qué hora abre. — I'm going to find out what time it opens.
afirmar — to claim, to state
El testigo afirma que vio al ladrón. — The witness claims he saw the thief.
advertir — to warn
Te advierto que está muy lejos. — I'm warning you, it's very far.
tranquilizar — to calm down, to reassure
Mis palabras la tranquilizan. — My words calm her down.
la preocupación — worry, concern
Mi mayor preocupación es el dinero. — My biggest worry is money.
la agencia — agency
Trabajo en una agencia de viajes. — I work at a travel agency.
renovar — to renew, to update
Tengo que renovar el pasaporte. — I have to renew my passport.
la subida — rise, increase; climb
Hay una subida de precios. — There's a rise in prices.
robar — to steal, to rob
Me han robado el móvil en el metro. — My cell phone got stolen on the metro.
el robo — theft, robbery
Hubo un robo en la tienda. — There was a theft at the store.
engañar — to deceive, to cheat, to fool
Creo que el vendedor nos engaña. — I think the seller is cheating us.
sospechar — to suspect
La policía sospecha del vecino. — The police suspect the neighbor.
sospechoso — suspicious; suspect
Ese hombre me parece sospechoso. — That man looks suspicious to me.
detener — to arrest, to stop
La policía detiene al ladrón. — The police arrest the thief.
traicionar — to betray
En la serie, el hermano traiciona a su familia. — In the series, the brother betrays his family.
matar — to kill
Este trabajo me mata. — This job is killing me.
la víctima — victim
La víctima vivía sola. — The victim lived alone.
el/la testigo — witness
El testigo vio todo. — The witness saw everything.
el/la detective — detective
El detective habla con el testigo. — The detective is talking to the witness.
el/la juez — judge
El juez escucha a todos antes de decidir. — The judge listens to everyone before deciding.
la justicia — justice
Quiero justicia. — I want justice.
la defensa — defense
La defensa habla después del juez. — The defense speaks after the judge.
la cárcel — prison, jail
Está en la cárcel desde hace un año. — He's been in prison for a year.
la trampa — trap, trick
Cuidado, es una trampa. — Careful, it's a trap.
la amenaza — threat
Recibió una amenaza por teléfono. — He got a threat over the phone.
el arma — weapon, gun
La policía busca el arma. — The police are looking for the weapon.
cambiar de idea — to change your mind
He cambiado de idea: no voy. — I've changed my mind: I'm not going.
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