{"id":15540,"date":"2015-11-17T16:22:49","date_gmt":"2015-11-17T07:22:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dante-learning.com\/eng\/?p=15540"},"modified":"2026-04-21T07:49:47","modified_gmt":"2026-04-20T22:49:47","slug":"italian-indirect-speech","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dante-learning.com\/eng\/italian-indirect-speech\/","title":{"rendered":"Italian Indirect Speech: The Complete Tense and Deixis Shift Guide"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>Italian indirect speech (<em>discorso indiretto<\/em>) is the system for reporting what someone else said or thought without quoting them word for word. In English the tense backshift is light (He said he was tired). In Italian the shift is deeper: verbs, demonstratives, time words, place words, and sometimes even the mood all move together. This post gives you a full tense-shift table, a real dialog where you can watch the transformations happen step by step, and the two secondary constructions that most guides skip: the implicit <em>di + infinito<\/em> report and <em>discorso indiretto libero<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Level B2. This post assumes you already handle the Italian subjunctive. Reported speech is where subjunctive, conditional, and consecutio temporum converge.<\/p>\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">What changes when you switch from direct to indirect speech?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Direct speech quotes the speaker verbatim. Italian indirect speech re-anchors the same words to a new point of view in a different time and place.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>Direct: Mario ha detto: &#8220;Voglio andare a Roma&#8221;.<\/li><li>Indirect: Mario ha detto che <em>voleva<\/em> andare a Roma.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>The verb of reporting (<em>ha detto<\/em>) sits in the past, and everything downstream has to align with it. That is six separate shifts, not one. Tense shift, subject shift (IO becomes LUI or LEI), time shift (oggi becomes quel giorno), place shift (qui becomes l&igrave;), demonstrative shift (questo becomes quello), and sometimes mood shift (indicativo becomes congiuntivo or the other way around).<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"gb-container gb-container-p15540-obs1\">\n\n<p>&#128269; <strong>One principle that drives everything.<\/strong> <em>The reported clause is anchored to the moment and the viewpoint of the reporting verb, not the original speaker. Once that clicks, the six shifts collapse into one rule: re-anchor everything.<\/em><\/p>\n\n<\/div>\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Do tenses change when the reporting verb is in the present?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Within Italian indirect speech, when the reporting verb is in the <em>presente<\/em> (<em>dice, chiede, vuole sapere<\/em>), or in a future, or in a passato prossimo with a present value, the embedded clause keeps its original tenses. The re-anchoring is minimal because the reporting moment coincides with the present.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>Direct: Mario dice: &#8220;Voglio andare a Roma&#8221;. &rarr; Mario dice che <em>vuole<\/em> andare a Roma.<\/li><li>Direct: Mario dir\u00e0: &#8220;Vengo domani&#8221;. &rarr; Mario dir\u00e0 che <em>verr\u00e0<\/em> domani.<\/li><li>Direct: Mario dice: &#8220;Sono andato al mercato ieri&#8221;. &rarr; Mario dice che <em>&egrave; andato<\/em> al mercato ieri.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Subject and demonstrative shifts still apply (IO &rarr; LUI, questo &rarr; quel if distance is marked), but the tenses stay put. This is the case Italian learners usually meet first and then mistakenly generalise as &#8220;the rule&#8221;.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">How do tenses shift when the reporting verb is in the past?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>This is the core of Italian indirect speech. The table below assumes the reporting verb is in a past tense (<em>ha detto, disse, aveva detto, diceva<\/em>). Every indicative, conditional, subjunctive and imperative in the original sentence gets remapped.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-table is-style-stripes\"><table class=\"has-fixed-layout\"><thead><tr><th>Original tense<\/th><th>Shifts to<\/th><th>Example<\/th><\/tr><\/thead><tbody><tr><td>Presente indicativo<\/td><td>Imperfetto indicativo<\/td><td>&#8220;vado&#8221; &rarr; che andava<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Passato prossimo \/ remoto<\/td><td>Trapassato prossimo<\/td><td>&#8220;sono andato&#8221; &rarr; che era andato<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Futuro semplice<\/td><td>Condizionale passato<\/td><td>&#8220;andr&ograve;&#8221; &rarr; che sarebbe andato<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Futuro anteriore<\/td><td>Condizionale passato<\/td><td>&#8220;sar&ograve; andato&#8221; &rarr; che sarebbe andato<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Imperfetto<\/td><td>Imperfetto (no shift)<\/td><td>&#8220;andavo&#8221; &rarr; che andava<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Trapassato<\/td><td>Trapassato (no shift)<\/td><td>&#8220;ero andato&#8221; &rarr; che era andato<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Condizionale presente<\/td><td>Condizionale passato<\/td><td>&#8220;andrei&#8221; &rarr; che sarebbe andato<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Congiuntivo presente<\/td><td>Congiuntivo imperfetto<\/td><td>&#8220;che vada&#8221; &rarr; che andasse<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Congiuntivo passato<\/td><td>Congiuntivo trapassato<\/td><td>&#8220;che sia andato&#8221; &rarr; che fosse andato<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Imperativo<\/td><td>di + infinito OR congiuntivo imperfetto<\/td><td>&#8220;vai!&#8221; &rarr; di andare \/ che andasse<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n<div class=\"gb-container gb-container-p15540-obs2\">\n\n<p>&#128269; <strong>Where English speakers slip up most often.<\/strong> <em>The future tense does not shift to a conditional present, it shifts to a condizionale passato. &#8220;Mario said he will come&#8221; becomes Mario ha detto che sarebbe venuto, not Mario ha detto che verrebbe. The present conditional (verrebbe) means &#8220;he would come if&#8230;&#8221;, which is a different thing entirely. The condizionale passato is the grammatical slot Italian reserves for future-in-the-past.<\/em><\/p>\n\n<\/div>\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Can you also report statements with di + infinito?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Yes, and this is one of the most underused constructions in Italian indirect speech among B1-B2 learners. When the subject of the reported clause is the same as the subject of the reporting verb, the che + tensed verb clause can collapse to <em>di + infinito<\/em>. The infinito presente reports a contemporaneous action; the infinito passato reports an anterior one.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>Direct: Paolo disse: &#8220;Sono stanco&#8221;. &rarr; Explicit: Paolo disse <em>che era stanco<\/em>. &rarr; Implicit: Paolo disse <em>di essere stanco<\/em>.<\/li><li>Direct: Paolo disse: &#8220;Ho sbagliato&#8221;. &rarr; Explicit: Paolo disse <em>che aveva sbagliato<\/em>. &rarr; Implicit: Paolo disse <em>di aver sbagliato<\/em>.<\/li><li>Direct: Lea dice: &#8220;Sono molto affezionata al mio cane&#8221;. &rarr; Implicit: Lea dice <em>di essere molto affezionata al suo cane<\/em>.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Italian writers and careful speakers use the implicit form constantly because it is shorter and cleaner. The explicit che form is always available as a fallback, but if the subjects coincide, the implicit version reads as more polished.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"gb-container gb-container-p15540-obs3\">\n\n<p>&#128269; <strong>When di + infinito is not available.<\/strong> <em>If the subject of the reported clause differs from the subject of the reporting verb, the implicit construction is blocked. &#8220;Paolo disse che Luca era stanco&#8221; cannot collapse to an infinitive: the subjects diverge, so che + imperfetto is the only option.<\/em><\/p>\n\n<\/div>\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">When does di + infinito cause subject ambiguity, and how do you fix it?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Even when the grammar allows <em>di + infinito<\/em>, the construction can become ambiguous the moment a second person enters the sentence. The infinitive carries no subject marker, so the reader has to guess who is doing what.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>Direct: Maria dice a Luigi: &#8220;Me ne vado&#8221;.<\/li><li>Ambiguous indirect: Maria dice a Luigi <em>di andarsene<\/em>. (Who is leaving? Maria is telling Luigi to leave? Or Maria is announcing that she is leaving?)<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>There are two clean ways to resolve the ambiguity. Both swap the infinitive for an explicit <em>che + tensed verb<\/em> so the subject is pinned down.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li><strong>Maria is the one leaving.<\/strong> &rarr; Maria dice a Luigi <em>che se ne va<\/em> (present reporting) \/ <em>che se ne andava<\/em> (past reporting).<\/li><li><strong>Luigi is the one being told to leave.<\/strong> &rarr; Maria dice a Luigi <em>che se ne vada<\/em> (congiuntivo, command reading) or simply Maria <em>dice a Luigi di uscire<\/em> if the verb itself resolves the scene.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Rule of thumb: when a reporting sentence names two people and the action could belong to either, drop <em>di + infinito<\/em> and use <em>che + indicativo<\/em> or <em>che + congiuntivo<\/em> depending on the reading you want. Ambiguity is not a feature of Italian indirect speech; it is a signal to reach for the explicit construction.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">What moves together when you report in the past?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>In Italian indirect speech with a past reporting verb (<em>ha detto<\/em>, <em>disse<\/em>, <em>aveva detto<\/em>, or <em>diceva<\/em>), six elements move at once.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>Direct: Mario mi ha detto: &#8220;Oggi vengo l&igrave; a casa tua, ho finito di lavorare e domani partir&ograve;&#8221;.<\/li><li>Indirect: Mario mi ha detto che <em>quel giorno<\/em> <em>sarebbe venuto qui<\/em> a casa <em>mia<\/em>, <em>aveva finito<\/em> di lavorare e <em>il giorno dopo<\/em> <em>sarebbe partito<\/em>.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Count the shifts: <em>oggi &rarr; quel giorno<\/em> (time deixis), <em>vengo &rarr; sarebbe venuto<\/em> (presente becomes condizionale passato because it refers to a future-in-the-past action), <em>l&igrave; &rarr; qui<\/em> (place deixis, reversed because the perspective now belongs to the reporter, not Mario), <em>casa tua &rarr; casa mia<\/em> (possessive shift), <em>ho finito &rarr; aveva finito<\/em> (passato prossimo becomes trapassato), <em>partir&ograve; &rarr; sarebbe partito<\/em> (futuro becomes condizionale passato).<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"gb-container gb-container-p15540-obs4\">\n\n<p>&#128269; <strong>Perspective anchor.<\/strong> <em>The place-deixis shift (l&igrave; &rarr; qui) is counterintuitive for English speakers. In the original sentence Mario was far from the house; in the reported sentence the reporter is at the house, so Mario was coming here from the new point of view. Always ask: where is the reporter standing?<\/em><\/p>\n\n<\/div>\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">How do time and place words shift in reported speech?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>A compact reference for the deictic shifts that come up most often in Italian indirect speech.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-table is-style-stripes\"><table class=\"has-fixed-layout\"><thead><tr><th>Original<\/th><th>Shifts to<\/th><th>Notes<\/th><\/tr><\/thead><tbody><tr><td>oggi<\/td><td>quel giorno<\/td><td>the specific day of the reported event<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>ieri<\/td><td>il giorno prima<\/td><td>or la vigilia<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>domani<\/td><td>il giorno dopo<\/td><td>or l&#8217;indomani<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>adesso \/ ora<\/td><td>allora<\/td><td>&#8220;at that moment&#8221;<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>fra tre giorni<\/td><td>tre giorni dopo<\/td><td>any &#8220;fra + period&#8221; &rarr; &#8220;period + dopo&#8221;<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>tre giorni fa<\/td><td>tre giorni prima<\/td><td>&#8220;fa&#8221; &rarr; &#8220;prima&#8221;<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>qui \/ qua<\/td><td>l&igrave; \/ l&agrave;<\/td><td>unless the reporter is at the original place<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>questo \/ questa<\/td><td>quel \/ quella<\/td><td>distance shift<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>casa mia (speaker was Mario)<\/td><td>casa sua<\/td><td>possessive re-anchoring<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>il mio libro<\/td><td>il suo libro<\/td><td>first person becomes third<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>The shifts are obligatory when the reporting moment is clearly separated from the reported event. They become optional, or are skipped, when the two moments overlap. &#8220;Mario ha detto oggi che oggi non sta bene&#8221; is acceptable because &#8220;oggi&#8221; is the same day for everyone. Same goes for &#8220;qui&#8221; when reporter and original speaker are in the same room.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">How do you report a question in Italian?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>In Italian indirect speech, a direct question has inverted or marked word order (&#8220;Dove sei?&#8221;, &#8220;Hai fame?&#8221;). The indirect version uses a subordinator and straight word order, with the same tense-shift logic as statements.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li><strong>Yes\/no questions with se.<\/strong> Direct: &#8220;Hai fame?&#8221; &rarr; Indirect: Mi ha chiesto <em>se avessi fame<\/em>.<\/li><li><strong>Wh-questions with dove, come, perch&eacute;, quando, chi, cosa.<\/strong> Direct: &#8220;Dove sei?&#8221; &rarr; Indirect: Mi ha chiesto <em>dove fossi<\/em>.<\/li><li><strong>Identifying questions.<\/strong> Direct: &#8220;Chi &egrave; quella persona?&#8221; &rarr; Indirect: Mi ha chiesto <em>chi fosse quella persona<\/em>.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Italian is flexible here, and the choice between subjunctive and indicative depends on register rather than grammar. The same reported question can appear in two forms, and both are accepted.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li><em>Mi ha chiesto dove <strong>fossi<\/strong>.<\/em> (careful, educated, standard in writing and formal speech)<\/li><li><em>Mi ha chiesto dove <strong>ero<\/strong>.<\/em> (natural, conversational, common in everyday speech)<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Same contrast with yes\/no questions: <em>Mi ha chiesto se avessi fame<\/em> sounds careful; <em>Mi ha chiesto se avevo fame<\/em> sounds natural. Pick the register to match the context. In academic writing or careful journalism the subjunctive is expected; in dialogue, text messages, and reported conversation among friends the indicative is perfectly idiomatic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">How do you report a command in Italian?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>In Italian indirect speech, a direct command uses the imperativo (&#8220;Vai!&#8221;, &#8220;Non parlare!&#8221;). Italian has two ways to report it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li><strong>di + infinito.<\/strong> Mi ha detto: &#8220;Vai a casa&#8221; &rarr; Mi ha detto <em>di andare a casa<\/em>. This is the default and the most common in everyday speech.<\/li><li><strong>che + congiuntivo.<\/strong> Mi ha detto: &#8220;Vai a casa&#8221; &rarr; Mi ha detto <em>che andassi a casa<\/em>. More formal, and required when the subject of the command is different from the person being addressed.<\/li><li><strong>Negation.<\/strong> Mi ha detto: &#8220;Non parlare!&#8221; &rarr; Mi ha detto <em>di non parlare<\/em> (or <em>che non parlassi<\/em>).<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Different subjects force the che + congiuntivo option, because di + infinito can only report a command whose subject is the same as the person being addressed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>Direct: Mi ha detto: &#8220;Di&#8217; a Luca di venire&#8221;.<\/li><li>Indirect with che + congiuntivo (clearer): Mi ha detto <em>che dicessi a Luca di venire<\/em>.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">What happens to the subjunctive inside a reported clause?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>In Italian indirect speech, if the direct speech already contained a subjunctive (Penso che Mario sia tornato), the backshift compounds: the reporting verb goes past, and the embedded subjunctive shifts one step earlier.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>Direct: Marta ha detto: &#8220;Penso che Mario sia tornato&#8221;. &rarr; Indirect: Marta ha detto <em>che pensava che Mario fosse tornato<\/em>.<\/li><li>Direct: Marta dice: &#8220;Vorrei che tu venissi&#8221;. &rarr; Indirect (present reporting): Marta dice <em>che vorrebbe che tu venissi<\/em>. (no shift, present reporting)<\/li><li>Direct: Marta ha detto: &#8220;Voglio che tu venga&#8221;. &rarr; Indirect: Marta ha detto <em>che voleva che io andassi<\/em>. (present subjunctive venga &rarr; imperfetto subjunctive andassi; also subject shift tu &rarr; io)<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>This is where our companion post on the <a href=\"https:\/\/dante-learning.com\/eng\/italian-subjunctive-tenses\/\">Italian subjunctive tenses<\/a> becomes essential. The double shift makes sense only once the four-tense subjunctive system is solid.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">What is discorso indiretto libero?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Italian narrative prose uses a third option alongside direct and indirect speech: the <em>discorso indiretto libero<\/em> (free indirect speech). It reports a character&#8217;s words or thoughts without a reporting verb or subordinator, while keeping the third-person grammar and past tenses of indirect speech.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>Direct: Luca pens&ograve;: &#8220;Che cosa devo fare adesso?&#8221;<\/li><li>Indirect: Luca si chiese cosa dovesse fare allora.<\/li><li>Free indirect: Che cosa doveva fare adesso?<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Free indirect style preserves the immediacy of the original voice while staying inside the third-person narration. Italian literature uses it heavily: Giovanni Verga pioneered it in the late nineteenth century, Italo Svevo and Luigi Pirandello refined it in the modernist period, and contemporary novelists still rely on it to blur the line between narrator and character. You will see <em>discorso indiretto libero<\/em> almost exclusively in literary prose and advanced journalism, but recognising it is essential when reading Italian fiction.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"gb-container gb-container-p15540-dialog\"><div class=\"gb-inside-container\">\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Dialog: Giulia and Matteo at Napoli Centrale, reporting the boss&#8217;s phone call<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>&#128105;&#127996; Giulia: Allora, Carla mi ha appena chiamato. Ha detto <em>che il cliente non aveva firmato<\/em> il contratto ieri.<br><em>So, Carla just called me. She said the client had not signed the contract yesterday.<\/em><\/li><li>&#128104;&#127995; Matteo: Capito. E ha detto qualcosa sul prossimo incontro?<br><em>Got it. And did she say anything about the next meeting?<\/em><\/li><li>&#128105;&#127996; Giulia: S&igrave;. Mi ha detto <em>che avrebbe riprogrammato<\/em> tutto per gioved&igrave; e <em>che sarebbe venuta<\/em> lei stessa all&#8217;appuntamento.<br><em>Yes. She told me she would reschedule everything for Thursday and that she herself would come to the meeting.<\/em><\/li><li>&#128104;&#127995; Matteo: Ottimo. Mi ha anche chiesto <em>se avessi preparato<\/em> i documenti.<br><em>Great. She also asked me if I had prepared the documents.<\/em><\/li><li>&#128105;&#127996; Giulia: Mi ha detto <em>di mandarti<\/em> una copia per email <em>quel giorno stesso<\/em>, quindi guarda la casella.<br><em>She told me to send you a copy by email that same day, so check your inbox.<\/em><\/li><li>&#128104;&#127995; Matteo: Perfetto. E del budget? Carla non ha detto <em>se fosse stato approvato<\/em>?<br><em>Perfect. And about the budget? Did Carla not say whether it had been approved?<\/em><\/li><li>&#128105;&#127996; Giulia: Ha detto <em>che probabilmente non lo sarebbe stato<\/em> prima della fine del mese.<br><em>She said it probably would not have been before the end of the month.<\/em><\/li><li>&#128104;&#127995; Matteo: Ha aggiunto altro?<br><em>Did she add anything else?<\/em><\/li><li>&#128105;&#127996; Giulia: Solo <em>che non mi preoccupassi<\/em> e <em>che ne avremmo parlato<\/em> al rientro.<br><em>Only that I should not worry and that we would talk about it when we got back.<\/em><\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Count the shifts: condizionale passato (<em>avrebbe riprogrammato, sarebbe venuta, sarebbe stato, avremmo parlato<\/em>) every time a future is reported in the past. Trapassato (<em>aveva firmato, fosse stato approvato<\/em>) for what happened before the reporting. Congiuntivo trapassato (<em>avessi preparato, fosse stato<\/em>) inside reported questions. Imperfetto subjunctive for a reported command (<em>non mi preoccupassi<\/em>). Infinito for a reported command to a third party (<em>di mandarti<\/em>).<\/p>\n\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n<div class=\"gb-container gb-container-p15540-cheat\"><div class=\"gb-inside-container\">\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">&#128204; Cheat sheet: Italian indirect speech in eight moves<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>Reporting verb in present &rarr; no tense shift, only subject and deixis shifts.<\/li><li>Reporting verb in past &rarr; tense shift table applies to the embedded clause.<\/li><li>Futuro and condizionale presente both shift to condizionale passato (future-in-the-past).<\/li><li>Imperativo shifts to di + infinito (default) or che + congiuntivo (formal or different subjects).<\/li><li>Yes\/no questions use se; wh-questions keep the wh-word with straight word order. Subjunctive for careful register, indicative for conversational.<\/li><li>Deixis re-anchors to the reporter: oggi &rarr; quel giorno, qui &rarr; l&igrave;, questo &rarr; quello, casa mia &rarr; casa sua.<\/li><li>When subjects match, prefer the implicit di + infinito over the explicit che + tensed verb.<\/li><li>When two people are in play and the action could belong to either, drop di + infinito and use che + tensed verb to pin down who does what.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"mini-challenge\">&#x1F3AF; Mini challenge: Italian indirect speech<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"mini-challenge\" style=\"border:1px solid #dddddd;border-radius:8px;padding:20px 25px;margin:20px 0\">\n<p>&#x1F3AF; <strong>Mini-challenge: rewrite each direct sentence in indirect speech.<\/strong><br><em>Riscrivi ogni frase in discorso indiretto.<\/em><\/p>\n<p>Assume the reporting verb is &#8220;Mario ha detto&#8221; (or &#8220;Mario ha chiesto&#8221; for questions):<\/p>\n<ol>\n<li>&#8220;Domani verr&ograve; a Bologna&#8221;.<\/li>\n<li>&#8220;Oggi sto male, non posso uscire&#8221;.<\/li>\n<li>&#8220;Hai visto il mio libro?&#8221; (Mario asked his sister)<\/li>\n<li>&#8220;Chiamami quando arrivi!&#8221;<\/li>\n<li>&#8220;Voglio che tu mi aspetti qui&#8221;.<\/li>\n<li>&#8220;Penso che Luca sia gi&agrave; partito&#8221;.<\/li>\n<li>&#8220;Dove sei stato ieri?&#8221; (Mario asked his brother, careful register)<\/li>\n<li>Disambiguate: Maria dice a Luigi di andarsene. Rewrite twice: once so that Maria is the one leaving, once so that Luigi is being told to leave.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<details><summary>Show answers<\/summary>\n<ol>\n<li>Mario ha detto che il giorno dopo sarebbe venuto a Bologna.<\/li>\n<li>Mario ha detto che quel giorno stava male e non poteva uscire.<\/li>\n<li>Mario ha chiesto a sua sorella se avesse visto il suo libro.<\/li>\n<li>Mario mi ha detto di chiamarlo quando sarei arrivato.<\/li>\n<li>Mario ha detto che voleva che io lo aspettassi l&igrave;.<\/li>\n<li>Mario ha detto che pensava che Luca fosse gi&agrave; partito.<\/li>\n<li>Mario ha chiesto a suo fratello dove fosse stato il giorno prima.<\/li>\n<li>Maria is leaving &rarr; Maria dice a Luigi che se ne va. Luigi is told to leave &rarr; Maria dice a Luigi che se ne vada (or Maria dice a Luigi di uscire).<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/details>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"gb-container gb-container-p15540-qc-wrap\"><div class=\"gb-inside-container\">\n<div class=\"gb-grid-wrapper gb-grid-wrapper-p15540-qc-grid\">\n<div class=\"gb-grid-column gb-grid-column-p15540-qc-left\"><div class=\"gb-container gb-container-p15540-qc-left\">\n\n<h2 class=\"gb-headline gb-headline-p15540-qc-title gb-headline-text\">Quattro<br>Chiacchiere<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center has-text-color has-medium-font-size\" style=\"color:#597e4d\"><strong>Conversazione italiana su Zoom<\/strong><br>Livello B2 &#8211; C1<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"300\" src=\"https:\/\/dante-learning.com\/eng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/4-chiacchiere-donne.webp\" alt=\"Quattro Chiacchiere Italian course on Zoom\" class=\"wp-image-50464\" style=\"width:200px;height:auto\" srcset=\"https:\/\/dante-learning.com\/eng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/4-chiacchiere-donne.webp 300w, https:\/\/dante-learning.com\/eng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/4-chiacchiere-donne-150x150.webp 150w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n<div class=\"gb-grid-column gb-grid-column-p15540-qc-right\"><div class=\"gb-container gb-container-p15540-qc-right\">\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" style=\"font-style:normal;font-weight:600\">Vuoi finalmente <em>parlare<\/em> italiano?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Quattro Chiacchiere &egrave; il nostro corso di conversazione in piccolo gruppo su Zoom. Lezioni tematiche, insegnante madrelingua, tanto spazio per parlare.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>100% italiano, insegnante madrelingua<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Massimo 4 studenti per classe<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>4 nuove lezioni al mese (lettura, vocabolario, grammatica, ascolto)<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Unisciti o lascia quando vuoi<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n<div class=\"gb-container gb-container-p15540-qc-btn-wrap\">\n\n<a class=\"gb-button gb-button-p15540-qc-btn gb-button-text\" href=\"\/eng\/quattro-chiacchiere-intro\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Scopri di pi&ugrave;<\/a>\n\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"faq\">FAQ: Italian indirect speech<\/h2>\n\n\n<div id=\"rank-math-faq\" class=\"rank-math-block\">\n<div class=\"rank-math-list \">\n<div id=\"faq-q1\" class=\"rank-math-list-item\">\n<h3 class=\"rank-math-question \">What is the difference between discorso diretto and discorso indiretto in Italian?<\/h3>\n<div class=\"rank-math-answer \">\n\n<p>Discorso diretto quotes the speaker verbatim in quotation marks (Mario ha detto: voglio andare a Roma). Discorso indiretto reports the same content from the perspective of the reporter, shifting tenses, subjects, time words, place words and sometimes mood (Mario ha detto che voleva andare a Roma).<\/p>\n\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"faq-q2\" class=\"rank-math-list-item\">\n<h3 class=\"rank-math-question \">How do Italian tenses shift when I report in the past?<\/h3>\n<div class=\"rank-math-answer \">\n\n<p>Presente becomes imperfetto, passato prossimo becomes trapassato, futuro becomes condizionale passato, congiuntivo presente becomes congiuntivo imperfetto, congiuntivo passato becomes congiuntivo trapassato. Imperfetto and trapassato do not shift further. The imperativo becomes either di + infinito or che + congiuntivo imperfetto.<\/p>\n\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"faq-q3\" class=\"rank-math-list-item\">\n<h3 class=\"rank-math-question \">What happens to domani and ieri in reported speech?<\/h3>\n<div class=\"rank-math-answer \">\n\n<p>Domani shifts to il giorno dopo, ieri to il giorno prima, oggi to quel giorno, adesso to allora, fra tre giorni to tre giorni dopo, tre giorni fa to tre giorni prima. The shift is obligatory when the reporting moment is clearly separated from the reported event.<\/p>\n\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"faq-q4\" class=\"rank-math-list-item\">\n<h3 class=\"rank-math-question \">How do I report a question in Italian?<\/h3>\n<div class=\"rank-math-answer \">\n\n<p>Yes\/no questions become se + subjunctive or indicative (Mi ha chiesto se avessi fame). Wh-questions keep the wh-word (dove, come, perche, quando) with straight word order and usually the subjunctive in careful writing (Mi ha chiesto dove fossi). In conversational Italian the indicative is equally acceptable: Mi ha chiesto dove ero is natural everyday speech.<\/p>\n\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"faq-q5\" class=\"rank-math-list-item\">\n<h3 class=\"rank-math-question \">How do I report a command in Italian?<\/h3>\n<div class=\"rank-math-answer \">\n\n<p>Two options: di + infinito (Mi ha detto di andare) which is the default, or che + congiuntivo imperfetto (Mi ha detto che andassi) which is more formal and required when subjects differ. Negation: Mi ha detto di non parlare or Mi ha detto che non parlassi.<\/p>\n\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"faq-q6\" class=\"rank-math-list-item\">\n<h3 class=\"rank-math-question \">Can I report a statement with di + infinito instead of che?<\/h3>\n<div class=\"rank-math-answer \">\n\n<p>Yes, when the subject of the reported clause is the same as the subject of the reporting verb. Paolo disse che era stanco becomes Paolo disse di essere stanco. For an anterior action use the infinito passato: Paolo disse di aver sbagliato. If the subjects differ, the che construction is mandatory.<\/p>\n\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"faq-q7\" class=\"rank-math-list-item\">\n<h3 class=\"rank-math-question \">What is discorso indiretto libero?<\/h3>\n<div class=\"rank-math-answer \">\n\n<p>Free indirect speech reports a character&#8217;s words or thoughts without a reporting verb or subordinator, keeping the third-person grammar and past tenses of indirect speech. Italian writers from Verga to Pirandello and contemporary novelists use it to blend narrator and character voice. It is a literary device, not used in everyday speech.<\/p>\n\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"faq-q8\" class=\"rank-math-list-item\">\n<h3 class=\"rank-math-question \">Does Italian follow the same no-backshift rule as English when the content is still true?<\/h3>\n<div class=\"rank-math-answer \">\n\n<p>No. English often keeps tenses unchanged in reported speech when what was said is still true (He said the earth is round). Italian applies the backshift more rigidly: after a past reporting verb, the embedded presente becomes imperfetto even for stable truths. Disse che la Terra era rotonda is standard, while Disse che la Terra e rotonda sounds off in careful Italian. This is one of the biggest English-Italian interference traps in reported speech.<\/p>\n\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"faq-q9\" class=\"rank-math-list-item\">\n<h3 class=\"rank-math-question \">When I use di + infinito, how do I avoid subject confusion?<\/h3>\n<div class=\"rank-math-answer \">\n\n<p>Check whether more than one person is named in the reporting sentence. Maria dice a Luigi di andarsene is ambiguous: either Maria announces that she is leaving or she tells Luigi to leave. When in doubt, swap the infinitive for che + tensed verb. Maria dice a Luigi che se ne va pins the action on Maria; Maria dice a Luigi che se ne vada or Maria dice a Luigi di uscire pins it on Luigi. Ambiguity is a signal to reach for the explicit construction.<\/p>\n\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p>This guide pairs naturally with the <a href=\"https:\/\/dante-learning.com\/eng\/italian-subjunctive-tenses\/\">Italian subjunctive tenses<\/a> reference, the <a href=\"https:\/\/dante-learning.com\/eng\/italian-subordinating-conjunctions\/\">subordinating conjunctions hub<\/a>, and the deep dive on <a href=\"https:\/\/dante-learning.com\/eng\/italian-concessive-clauses-sebbene-benche-anche-se\/\">concessive clauses<\/a>. For further reading, the Treccani encyclopaedia covers <a href=\"https:\/\/www.treccani.it\/enciclopedia\/discorso-indiretto_%28Enciclopedia-dell%27Italiano%29\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">discorso indiretto<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.treccani.it\/enciclopedia\/consecutio-temporum_%28Enciclopedia-dell%27Italiano%29\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">consecutio temporum<\/a> in detail.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Italian indirect speech (discorso indiretto) is the system for reporting what someone else said or thought without quoting them word for word. In English the tense backshift is light (He said he was tired). In Italian the shift is deeper: verbs, demonstratives, time words, place words, and sometimes even the mood all move together. This &#8230; <a title=\"Italian Indirect Speech: The Complete Tense and Deixis Shift Guide\" class=\"read-more\" href=\"https:\/\/dante-learning.com\/eng\/italian-indirect-speech\/\" aria-label=\"Read more about Italian Indirect Speech: The Complete Tense and Deixis Shift Guide\">Read more \u226b<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10020,"featured_media":15554,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_bbp_topic_count":0,"_bbp_reply_count":0,"_bbp_total_topic_count":0,"_bbp_total_reply_count":0,"_bbp_voice_count":0,"_bbp_anonymous_reply_count":0,"_bbp_topic_count_hidden":0,"_bbp_reply_count_hidden":0,"_bbp_forum_subforum_count":0,"pmpro_default_level":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[1125,1126,1127,982],"class_list":["post-15540","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-lingua","tag-discordo-indiretto","tag-indirect-speech","tag-italian-indirect-speech","tag-italian-sequence-of-tenses","no-featured-image-padding","pmpro-has-access"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dante-learning.com\/eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15540","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dante-learning.com\/eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dante-learning.com\/eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dante-learning.com\/eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/10020"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dante-learning.com\/eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=15540"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/dante-learning.com\/eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15540\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":59366,"href":"https:\/\/dante-learning.com\/eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15540\/revisions\/59366"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dante-learning.com\/eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/15554"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dante-learning.com\/eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=15540"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dante-learning.com\/eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=15540"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dante-learning.com\/eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=15540"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}