Discours indirect : changement de temps (présent → imparfait)

Imagine your friend Sarah says: Je suis contente. She is talking right now. Later, you tell your mom about it. You say: "Sarah said she was happy." See that? "Is" became "was." French does the exact same thing. If your reporting verb is in the past, the main verb slides back. The présent slides back into the imparfait. Think of it as a domino effect. One past verb knocks the next one into the past too. It keeps the timeline of your story logical. Without this shift, you sound like a robot. Or like someone who hasn't finished their morning espresso. It keeps the listener focused on the story, not the grammar.

1. 1Reporting speech follows a simple three-step recipe.
2. 2Start with your reporting verb in the past. Usually, this is Il a dit (He said) or Elle a expliqué (She explained).
3. 3Add the magic word que. This means "that." It connects your intro to the message.
4. 4Change the original present tense verb to the imparfait.
5. 5Example:
6. 6Direct: Il dit : "Je mange."
7. 7Indirect: Il a dit qu'il mangeait.
8. 8Notice how mange (present) becomes mangeait (imparfait). Also, remember that que becomes qu' before a vowel. It is like a puzzle piece that only fits one way.

You will use this constantly in real life. Imagine you are at a job interview. You tell the boss what your previous manager said. Mon patron a dit que je travaillais bien. (My boss said I worked well). Or maybe you are ordering food for a friend. Il a dit qu'il voulait une pizza. (He said he wanted a pizza). It is perfect for sharing gossip too! Léa a dit qu'elle aimait Marc. (Léa said she liked Marc). Use it whenever you are recounting a past event. It helps you set the scene. It tells the listener: "This happened before, and I am just the messenger."

Don't use this if you are reporting something right now. If the reporting verb is in the present, stay in the present.

Example: Il dit qu'il a faim. (He says he is hungry).

No time travel is needed here because the reporting is happening live. Also, don't use it for general truths. If someone says "The sun is hot," you can say Il a dit que le soleil est chaud. The sun is still hot, right? Grammar isn't meant to be a prison. If the fact is still true today, you can sometimes skip the shift. But when in doubt, shift it back. It is the safer bet for learners.

The biggest mistake is forgetting the que. In English, we often skip "that." We say "He said he was tired." In French, you MUST say que. Il a dit qu'il était fatigué. Another classic error is keeping the present tense. Il a dit qu'il est fatigué sounds a bit clunky to a native ear. It’s like wearing socks with sandals—not illegal, but people will notice! Also, watch your pronouns. If Marc says "I am fast," you say "He said he was fast." Don't forget to change je to il or elle. Even native speakers mess this up when they are tired, so don't sweat it too much.

How is this different from direct speech? Direct speech uses quotation marks. Il a dit : "Je suis là." It is a literal copy. Indirect speech is a summary. It is more common in casual conversation. It feels less formal and more like a natural story. Also, don't confuse this with the passé composé. We use the imparfait for the reported part because it describes a state or an ongoing action in the past. The passé composé is for the action of saying it (Il a dit). Think of passé composé as the "event" and imparfait as the "background."