DELE B1 Reported Speech: Practice Test & Review
Reported speech (estilo indirecto) is one of the most tested points on the DELE B1 listening section. It appears when you have to retell what someone said, and it forces you to shift tenses, pronouns, and time markers. If you can’t turn “Voy al cine” into “Dijo que iba al cine,” you’ll lose points in every listening task.
This page gives you a five-part practice quiz: an evaluation set to see where you stand, three practice sets to drill the tense shifts and pronoun changes, and a challenge set to confirm mastery. If you get stuck, scroll down for the full explanation. Ready? Start with the evaluation set below.
Grammar Guide
The Rule
Reported speech (estilo indirecto) retells what someone said without quoting them directly. When the reporting verb is in the past (dijo, preguntó, pidió), the tense inside the quote shifts back one step, pronouns change to match the new speaker, and time and place markers move to the reporter’s perspective.
If the reporting verb is in the present (dice, pregunta), no tense shift happens. The B1 exam tests the past-reporting pattern almost exclusively.
Tense Shifts
| Direct speech | Reported speech | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Present | Imperfect | «Hablo» → Dijo que hablaba. |
| Present progressive | Imperfect progressive | «Estoy estudiando» → Dijo que estaba estudiando. |
| Present perfect | Past perfect | «He terminado» → Dijo que había terminado. |
| Preterite | Past perfect | «Comí» → Dijo que había comido. |
| Future | Conditional | «Llegaré» → Dijo que llegaría. |
| Conditional | Conditional | «Iría» → Dijo que iría. |
| Imperative | Imperfect subjunctive | «Ven» → Dijo que fuera. |
The present and imperfect both shift to the imperfect. The preterite and present perfect both shift to the past perfect.
Pronoun Changes
| Direct | Reported | When |
|---|---|---|
| yo | él / ella | Reporting about someone else |
| tú | yo | Reporter is the listener |
| tú | él / ella | Reporter is a third party |
| mi | su | Reporting someone else’s possession |
| te | me | Reporter is the listener |
| te | le | Reporter is a third party |
Pronouns shift so the reported sentence makes sense from the reporter’s point of view.
Time and Place Changes
| Direct | Reported |
|---|---|
| aquí | allí |
| ahora | entonces |
| hoy | ese día |
| mañana | al día siguiente |
| ayer | el día anterior |
| esta tarde | esa tarde |
| la semana que viene | la semana siguiente |
These changes depend on when the reporting happens. If the reporter is in the same place at the same time, some markers stay unchanged.
Reporting Questions
| Direct question | Reported question |
|---|---|
| «¿Dónde vives?» | Preguntó dónde vivía. |
| «¿Qué haces?» | Preguntó qué hacía. |
| «¿Puedes ayudarme?» | Preguntó si podía ayudarle. |
Wh- questions keep the question word. Yes/no questions become si clauses. Both lose the question marks and use the imperfect.
Reporting Commands
| Direct command | Reported command |
|---|---|
| «Ven aquí.» | Me pidió que fuera allí. |
| «Haz la tarea.» | Me pidió que hiciera la tarea. |
| «No salgas.» | Me pidió que no saliera. |
Commands become pidió que + imperfect subjunctive. The imperative form is not kept.
Common Mistakes
- Keeping the present tense in the reported clause.
✗ Dijo que va al cine.
✓ Dijo que iba al cine.
A past reporting verb shifts the present to the imperfect. - Forgetting to change pronouns.
✗ Dijo que te llamaba mañana. (when the reporter is the listener)
✓ Dijo que me llamaba al día siguiente.
Te becomes me when the reporter is the person being called. - Keeping the imperative in reported speech.
✗ Me pidió que ven aquí.
✓ Me pidió que fuera allí.
Commands become imperfect subjunctive in reported speech. - Using the wrong time marker.
✗ Dijo que venía hoy. (when reporting the next day)
✓ Dijo que venía ese día.
Hoy becomes ese día when reported later.
Quick Decision Chart
| Ask yourself | Answer | Form |
|---|---|---|
| Is the reporting verb in the past? | Yes | Shift the tense back one step |
| Is the reporting verb in the present? | Yes | No tense shift |
| Is it a question? | Yes | Keep the question word, or use si for yes/no |
| Is it a command? | Yes | Pidió que + imperfect subjunctive |
| Do pronouns need to change? | Yes | Shift to the reporter’s perspective |
| Do time or place markers need to change? | Yes | Shift to the reporter’s time and place |
Two Sentences That Show the Difference
«Voy al cine.»
I’m going to the cinema.
- Direct quote, present tense
Dijo que iba al cine.
He said he was going to the cinema.
- Reported speech, past reporting verb, present → imperfect
«Llámame mañana.»
Call me tomorrow.
- Direct command, imperative
Me pidió que le llamara al día siguiente.
He asked me to call him the next day.
- Reported command, imperfect subjunctive, mañana → al día siguiente
