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).
~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).
How It Works
Korean reports speech indirectly, and the form of the quotation depends on what kind of sentence was originally said. There are four types and each has its own marker.
Statements use -다고 하다, but the exact shape depends on the word class. Action verbs in the present insert ㄴ/는: 간다고, 먹는다고. Adjectives take plain -다고: 좋다고. Past tense uses -았/었다고 for everything: 갔다고, 먹었다고. Nouns use -(이)라고: 학생이라고.
Questions use -냐고: 뭐 먹냐고 물었어요 ('asked what I was eating'). Suggestions use -자고: 같이 가자고 했어요 ('suggested we go together'). Commands use -(으)라고: 빨리 오라고 했어요 ('told me to come quickly').
Notice that the suggestion and command markers are built on the 반말 forms you learned in the previous lesson — -자 and the imperative — which is why that lesson comes first.
The reporting verb varies with the act being reported: 하다 for general saying, 물어보다 for asking, 말하다 for stating. In speech, -다고 하다 frequently contracts to -대요, and -(으)라고 하다 to -(으)래요, so 간대요 and 오래요 are extremely common shortened forms you will hear far more often than the full versions.
Where You'll Hear It
Reported speech is how conversations about third parties work, and Koreans use it constantly. 친구가 내일 온대요 ('my friend says they're coming tomorrow') is the shape most such news takes, using the contracted form.
It is essential in workplace communication, where relaying instructions is routine. 팀장님이 회의를 미루자고 하셨어요 reports a suggestion from a superior, and note that the honorific 하셨어요 attaches to the reporting verb because the person who spoke deserves elevation.
The contracted forms dominate casual speech to the point that the full versions can sound stilted. 뭐래? ('what did they say?') is an extremely common casual question built from this machinery, and 오래 means 'they said to come' rather than being a separate word.
Drama and variety dialogue is saturated with these forms, which makes them a good recognition target if you watch Korean media. A great deal of plot information is delivered as one character reporting what another said.
The four-way distinction also lets you report precisely. Saying someone 가자고 했어요 rather than 가라고 했어요 is the difference between an invitation and an order, and getting it wrong changes the social picture you are painting.
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.
How to Practice This Lesson
Organise by sentence type, not by verb. Make four rows — statement, question, suggestion, command — and put one example in each: 간다고, 가냐고, 가자고, 가라고. Seeing them side by side shows that you are learning four markers rather than a large table.
Learn the contractions early rather than as an advanced refinement, because they are what you will actually hear. Drill 간대요, 온대요, 오래요, 하재요 until they parse instantly.
Practise with real input. Take three sentences someone actually said to you today and report each one. Using genuine content forces you to choose the right sentence type, which is the part that requires thought.
Watch the honorific placement. When reporting what a senior person said, the elevation goes on the reporting verb, not inside the quotation. 하셨어요, not 가신다고 하셨어요 unless the subject of the quoted sentence also deserves elevation.