Lesson 6

Quoting & Reported Speech

Report what someone said using indirect quotation patterns.

Reporting what someone said in Korean uses indirect quotation patterns that differ slightly by sentence type. For statements: verb stem + -다고 + 하다 (-다고 해요 = 'they said that ~'). For questions: verb stem + -냐고 + 하다 (or 묻다). For commands: verb stem + -(으)라고 + 하다. For suggestions: verb stem + -자고 + 하다.

Example: 선생님이 한국어를 공부하라고 했어요 (The teacher told me to study Korean). 친구가 영화를 보자고 했어요 (My friend suggested we watch a movie). These patterns let you describe conversations rather than just participating in them, which is essential for narrative speech and writing. The grammatical structure is regular once you identify the underlying sentence type, but each pattern needs separate drilling because choosing the wrong one changes the meaning significantly.

~다고 하다 — Reporting Statements

For verbs: ~(ㄴ/는)다고 하다. Present: 간다고 (says [they] go), 먹는다고 (says [they] eat). Past: 갔다고 (said [they] went). Adjectives: ~다고. 좋다고 (says it's good). Nouns: ~(이)라고. 학생이라고 (says [they're] a student).

오빠가 바쁘다고 했어요.oppaga bappeudago haesseoyoMy brother said he's busy.

의사라고 소개했어요.uisarago sogaehaesseoyoThey introduced themselves as a doctor.

~냐고 / ~자고 / ~(으)라고 — Questions, Suggestions, Commands

Questions: ~냐고 하다 (asked if/what). 뭐 먹냐고 물었어요 (asked what I'm eating). Suggestions: ~자고 하다. 같이 가자고 했어요 (suggested going together). Commands: ~(으)라고 하다. 빨리 오라고 했어요 (told to come quickly).

어디 사냐고 물어봤어요.eodi sanyago mureobyosseoyoThey asked where I live.

엄마가 빨리 오라고 했어요.eommaga ppalli orago haesseoyoMom told me to come quickly.

말하다malhadato say / to tell

Examples친구가 내일 온다고 말했어요.chinguga naeil ondago malhaesseoyoMy friend said they're coming tomorrow.

물어보다mureobodato ask (a question)

Examples어디 가냐고 물어봤어요.eodi ganyago mureobyosseoyoThey asked where I'm going.

부탁하다butakhadato request / to ask a favor

Examples같이 가자고 부탁했어요.gachi gajago butakhaesseoyoI asked them to go together.

대답하다daedaphadato answer / to reply

Examples괜찮다고 대답했어요.gwaenchantadago daedaphaesseoyoI answered that it's fine.

소문somunrumor

Examples그 가게가 맛있다는 소문이 있어요.geu gagega masitdaneun somuni isseoyoThere's a rumor that the store is delicious.

뉴스nyuseunews

Examples뉴스에서 내일 비가 온다고 했어요.nyuseueseo naeil biga ondago haesseoyoThe news said it will rain tomorrow.

Cultural & Language Note

Korean indirect quotation is grammaticalised to a degree English is not — the ending itself tells you whether the original was a statement, question, suggestion, or command. In speech these contract heavily: 간다고 해요 becomes 간대요, 가냐고 해요 becomes 가냬요. Recognising the contracted forms matters more for listening than producing the full ones.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

The four endings must match the original utterance type: 다고 for statements, 냐고 for questions, 자고 for suggestions, 으라고 for commands. Using 다고 for everything is the most common shortcut learners take, and it produces sentences that are grammatical but report the wrong speech act.