Ասաց, որ կգա: other people's words in your mouth
To pass on someone's words, you do not shift the tense: it stays put. Ասաց՝ «Կգամ» becomes Ասաց, որ կգա. A future stays a future; only 'I' turns into 'he'. For example: “Լրագրողն ասաց, որ ռեպորտաժը ուղիղ եթերում կլինի” — The journalist said the report would be live on air. A rule from the Armenian course: worked out on examples, not memorized as a wording.
How it works
To pass on someone's words, you do not shift the tense: it stays put. Ասաց՝ (asats) «Կգամ (kgam)» becomes Ասաց (asats), որ կգա (vor kga). A future stays a future; only 'I' turns into 'he'.
The conjunction is որ (vor). Verbs of speech have their own mark as well, ՝: Ասաց՝ կուշանա, he said he'd be late. It stands in for the comma and the conjunction at once.
A question takes թե (t'e) instead of որ, and the ՞ mark drops out: Հարցրեց (hartsrets), թե երբ եմ գալիս (t'e yerb em galis). That is 'he asked when I was coming'. Թե is the Armenian 'whether'.
The trap: որ կգա is 'that he will come', որ գա (vor ga) is 'that he should come'. One letter կ divides a report from a demand.
Table
| Direct speech | Reported | What changed |
|---|---|---|
| «Կգամ» | Ասաց, որ կգա | only the person; the tense stayed |
| «Ուշանում եմ» | Ասաց, որ ուշանում է | only the person |
| «Ե՞րբ ես գալիս» | Հարցրեց, թե երբ եմ գալիս | որ → թե, the ՞ mark removed |
| «Գնա՞լ եմ» | Հարցրեց, թե արդյոք գնամ | թե + արդյոք — the Armenian whether |
| «Արի» | Ասաց, որ գամ | command → the form without կ- |
| «Կուշանամ» | Ասաց՝ կուշանա | the mark ՝ instead of որ |
By example
- Լրագրողն ասաց, որ ռեպորտաժը ուղիղ եթերում կլինիlragroghn asats, vor rreportazhə ughigh yet'erum kliniThe journalist said the report would be live on air
- Հարցրեց, թե որտեղից է այս լուրըhartsrets, t'e vorteghits e ays lurəHe asked where this news came from
- Խմբագիրն ասաց՝ վերնագիրը փոխիրkhmbagirn asats — vernagirə p'okhirThe editor said: change the headline
How the rule settles in your head
A rule is not memorized from an explanation. It is memorized from an attempt to use it and a mistake — that is why the app delivers it mixed in with words, not as a separate lesson: it resurfaces exactly where you forgot it.
Frequently asked
other people's words in your mouth: how does it work in Armenian?
To pass on someone's words, you do not shift the tense: it stays put. Ասաց՝ «Կգամ» becomes Ասաց, որ կգա. A future stays a future; only 'I' turns into 'he'.
What does it look like in an example sentence Armenian?
“Լրագրողն ասաց, որ ռեպորտաժը ուղիղ եթերում կլինի” (lragroghn asats, vor rreportazhə ughigh yet'erum klini) — The journalist said the report would be live on air. A rule is easier to test on sentences like this than to memorize as a wording: what surfaces in conversation is the sentence.