Reported speech: the tense does not shift
In reported speech the tense does not move. Whatever the person said stays in that tense: Rekel je: Sem utrujen becomes Rekel je, da je utrujen. The present stays present, although 'said' is past. For example: “Novinar je rekel, da vira ne bo razkril” — The journalist said he would not reveal the source. A rule from the Slovenian course: worked out on examples, not memorized as a wording.
How it works
In reported speech the tense does not move. Whatever the person said stays in that tense: Rekel je: Sem utrujen becomes Rekel je, da je utrujen. The present stays present, although 'said' is past.
What changes is the person and the words for time and place: Rekel je, da mi naslednji dan prinese tja. The pronoun moves to the listener, jutri becomes naslednji dan, sem becomes tja.
A question with kje, kdaj or zakaj keeps its word: Vprašal je, kje stanujem. A question without one takes ali: Vprašal je, ali pridem — he asked whether I was coming.
An order goes over through naj plus the present: Rekel je, naj počakam. Naj follows the person told: naj počaka, naj počakajo. The comma before da, ali and naj is always there.
Table
| direct speech | reported | what changed |
|---|---|---|
| "Sem utrujen." | Rekel je, da je utrujen | only the person |
| "Pridem jutri." | Rekel je, da pride naslednji dan | the person and “tomorrow” |
| "Bil sem tam." | Rekel je, da je bil tam | nothing, the tense stays |
| "Kje si?" | Vprašal je, kje sem | the question word holds |
| "Prideš?" | Vprašal je, ali pridem | ali added |
| "Počakaj!" | Rekel je, naj počakam | imperative → naj |
| "Ne hodi tja." | Rekel je, naj ne hodim tja | naj + ne |
By example
- Novinar je rekel, da vira ne bo razkrilThe journalist said he would not reveal the source
- Vprašali so me, ali sem že vložil vlogoThey asked me whether I had already filed the application
- Uradnica je rekla, naj prinesem še overjeno kopijoThe clerk told me to bring another certified copy
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
Reported speech: how does it work in Slovenian?
In reported speech the tense does not move. Whatever the person said stays in that tense: Rekel je: Sem utrujen becomes Rekel je, da je utrujen. The present stays present, although 'said' is past.
What does it look like in an example sentence Slovenian?
“Novinar je rekel, da vira ne bo razkril” — The journalist said he would not reveal the source. A rule is easier to test on sentences like this than to memorize as a wording: what surfaces in conversation is the sentence.