To speak Italian confidently, it’s not enough to memorize words and basic grammar — you also need to know how to report what others have said, asked, or thought.This skill plays a key role in everyday communication, whether you are recounting a conversation, summarizing a dialogue, or expressing an opinion indirectly.

As in English, Italian uses two main structures: direct speech and reported speech. At first glance, these systems may seem very similar to those you already know. However, some important differences can lead to mistakes, especially if you translate word for word from English.

In this article, we will take a detailed look at how reported speech works in Italian, focusing on the key points you need to master and the most common difficulties for English speakers.

1. Direct speech and reported speech: two ways of reporting what someone says

To begin with, it is important to clearly distinguish between the two structures.

Direct speech consists of reporting someone’s exact words without modifying them. In Italian, these words are introduced by a colon and placed between quotation marks.

Valeria domani mi dirà: ‘Non so niente!’

Mia sorella ti chiede: ‘Hai fame?’

In these sentences, the speaker’s words are reproduced exactly. This form is widely used in dialogues, narratives, and storytelling.

Reported speech, on the other hand, allows us to report the same words by integrating them into a larger sentence. Instead of quoting the exact words, we reformulate them using a subordinate clause.

Valeria domani mi dirà che non sa niente.

Mia sorella ti chiede se hai fame.

Switching to reported speech makes the sentence smoother and more suitable for explanatory or narrative contexts. It is also the most commonly used form in everyday language.

2. Transforming a statement

When a sentence in direct speech is a statement, it becomes in reported speech a subordinate clause introduced by che (“that”).

This transformation is fundamental, as it allows the message to be integrated into a more complex structure.

Costanzo domani mi dirà: ‘Non so niente!’ → Costanzo domani mi dirà che non sa niente.

This change involves several adjustments.

First, quotation marks and the colon are removed.

Next, the subordinate clause is introduced with che.

Finally—and this is essential—some elements of the sentence must be adapted to the new point of view, especially personal pronouns and possessive adjectives.

When reporting what someone said, first- and second-person forms often shift to third-person forms.

Here is another example:

‘La tua giacca mi piace molto’ → Valeria aggiunge che la tua giacca le piace molto.

Here, mi becomes le, because the speaker has changed. Similarly, a possessive adjective such as tua may become sua, depending on the context.

These transformations are not automatic: they always depend on the perspective adopted in the sentence. It is therefore important to identify who is speaking and who is being referred to in order to choose the correct form.

3. Transforming a question

When direct speech contains a question, transforming it into reported speech requires a bit more attention.

The question becomes an indirect question, meaning a subordinate clause that keeps the meaning of the question but loses its direct interrogative form.

For yes/no questions, Italian uses se (“if” or “whether”).

Mia sorella ti chiede: ‘Hai fame?’ → Mia sorella ti chiede se hai fame.

In this case, the sentence is no longer structured as an independent question. It is integrated into the main clause, without inversion or overall question punctuation.

As with statements, pronouns and possessives must also be adapted according to the new point of view.

For example:

‘Mi presti la tua macchina?‘

could become:

Ti chiede se le presti la tua (ou sua) macchina.

Here, mi becomes le, and tua may change depending on the relationship between the speakers.

It is important to understand that even though the form changes, the interrogative meaning remains. This transformation makes the sentence more fluid and natural, while maintaining coherence in perspective.

4. Verb tenses: a key point

One of the most delicate aspects of reported speech in Italian concerns verb tenses. This is also one of the areas where English-speaking learners tend to make the most mistakes.

The main rule depends on the tense of the reporting verb.

4.1 Reporting verb in the present or future

When the main verb is in the present or future, the tenses in the subordinate clause generally remain unchanged.

Valeria aggiunge: ‘La tua giacca mi piace molto’. → Valeria aggiunge che la tua giacca le piace molto.

Valeria chiederà: ‘Gli sconti finiscono oggi?’ → Valeria chiederà se gli sconti finiscono oggi.

In these cases, there is no shift in time, because the reported action is still relevant at the moment of speaking.

4.2 Reporting verb in the past

When the reporting verb is in the past, the situation changes: you need to apply a sequence of tenses.

The verb tenses in the subordinate clause shift to match the new time reference.

Here are the main transformations to remember:

• presente→ imperfetto

‘Voglio rispetto.’ → Valeria ha detto che voleva rispetto.

• imperfetto→ imperfetto (no change)

‘Guardavo la TV.’ → Valeria ha detto che guardava la TV.

• passato prossimo → trapassato prossimo

‘Ho avuto un malore.’ → Valeria ha detto che aveva avuto un malore.

• futuro→ condizionale passato

‘Avrò un bambino.’ → Valeria ha detto che avrebbe avuto un bambino.

• condizionale presente → condizionale passato

‘Vorrei un gelato.’ → Valeria ha detto che avrebbe voluto un gelato.

Note: the imperfect does not change in reported speech because it already expresses an ongoing action in the past.

These transformations ensure consistency between the moment when something was said and the moment when it is reported. Mastering this system is essential to avoid mistakes.

5.  Key differences with English

Although reported speech works in a broadly similar way in Italian and English, there are some important differences that can lead to errors for English-speaking learners.

One of the most common difficulties concerns the use of che (“that”). In English, “that” is often optional and can be omitted:

He said (that) he was tired.

In Italian, however, che cannot be dropped:

Ha detto che era stanco.

Omitting che is a very common mistake among English speakers.

Another important difference involves the use of verb tenses. English is relatively flexible, and in some cases it allows the present tense even after a past reporting verb:

He said he is tired.

In Italian, this is generally not possible. The verb must follow a stricter sequence of tenses:

Ha detto che era stanco.

For this reason, English speakers often tend to use the present (è) instead of the imperfect (era), which results in incorrect sentences.

Pronouns and indirect objects also represent a significant challenge. English uses relatively simple forms such as me, him, or her, whereas Italian requires more careful adjustments:

He told me he liked my jacket. → Mi ha detto che gli piaceva la mia giacca.

Here, me becomes mi and him becomes gli, depending on the perspective. These changes are not always intuitive and require practice.

Finally, although both languages use a form of tense shifting, Italian tends to apply it more consistently and systematically than English. This means that learners must pay closer attention to verb forms in order to maintain coherence.

Understanding these differences can help avoid common mistakes and develop a more accurate and natural use of Italian.

6. Key steps to remember

Reported speech is a very useful structure, but it requires accuracy. To use it correctly, it is important to follow a series of steps.

When transforming a sentence from direct to reported speech, you should:

• integrate the sentence into a larger structure using a subordinate clause
• introduce a statement with che and a question with se
• adapt pronouns and possessives to the new point of view
• check the tense of the reporting verb to determine whether changes are needed
• apply the sequence of tenses if the verb is in the past
• check the overall coherence of the sentence

7. Want to go further

If you would like to strengthen these concepts, we recommend consulting the grammar sheet dedicated to reported speech (Discorso indiretto) in Italian. It is an excellent resource for reviewing and checking your understanding.

8. Keep improving your Italian

Mastering reported speech is an essential step in reaching a solid intermediate level in Italian. It allows you not only to better understand conversations, but also to express yourself more precisely and naturally.

However, to truly internalize these structures, it is essential to practice them regularly in different contexts.

The course Allegramente! has been designed to guide you through this process in a gradual and effective way.

Thanks to a clear method, detailed explanations, and practical exercises, you will be able to strengthen your grammatical foundations, improve your listening and reading comprehension, and gain confidence in communication.

And if you’re not sure where to start, you can take our placement test: in just a few minutes, you will discover the learning path best suited to your level.