B1 Spanish grammar

Reported Questions in Spanish with Si and Question Words

Reported questions use preguntar si for yes-or-no content and retain an accented question word for information questions. They use statement-style order and no question marks.

reported questions Spanish: Use preguntar si for yes-or-no questions

Introduce a reported yes-or-no question with preguntar si, not preguntar que.

Preguntó: «¿Vienes?» → Preguntó si venía.
She asked, 'Are you coming?' → She asked if I was coming.Si introduces the answerable yes-or-no content.

Quick check

He asked if we had time.

Keep an information question word

Retain qué, quién, dónde, cuándo, cómo, cuánto, or por qué when reporting the requested information.

Me preguntó dónde vivía.
She asked me where I lived.Dónde introduces the reported information question.

Use statement order and no question marks

A reported question is grammatically embedded, so it does not retain direct-question punctuation or inversion conventions.

Quiso saber por qué Ana se había ido.
He wanted to know why Ana had left.The clause follows embedded statement order.

Common mistakes

Preguntó que venía.

Preguntó si venía.

A reported yes-or-no question needs si.

Me preguntó que dónde vivía.

Me preguntó dónde vivía.

Do not add que before the question word.

Quiso saber ¿por qué se había Ana ido?

Quiso saber por qué Ana se había ido.

Remove question marks and use natural clause order.

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Reported questions FAQ

What does reported questions cover?

Reported questions use preguntar si for yes-or-no content and retain an accented question word for information questions. They use statement-style order and no question marks.

What is the first rule to remember?

Introduce a reported yes-or-no question with preguntar si, not preguntar que.

What is another important B1 pattern?

Retain qué, quién, dónde, cuándo, cómo, cuánto, or por qué when reporting the requested information.

How can I practise reported questions Spanish?

Complete the focused round, review each correction, and repeat the lesson when its skills become due again.

Continue learning

Direct and reported speechChange quoted statements into reported clauses with decir que and appropriate person references.Reported commandsReport instructions with decir, pedir, or recomendar plus que and a subjunctive clause.Reported-speech tense changesAfter a past reporting verb, shift present ideas toward the imperfect and future ideas toward the conditional when the viewpoint requires it.Complete B1 Spanish grammar courseSee every B1 unit and continue through the course in order.Spanish tense guidesCompare the major tense systems used throughout this course.