Quoted and Reported Questions

Level 5

Direct quotation uses quotation marks and keeps the original question form. A reported question becomes an embedded clause with a question word or li.

How It Works

In direct speech, preserve the original pronouns and punctuation inside the quotation: Petra je pitala: „Dolaziš li?” Croatian quotation marks commonly have the form „…”. A question mark belongs to the quoted question.

In a report, adjust the person to match the narrator: Petra je pitala dolazim li. Do not add quotation marks around a paraphrase. The final punctuation follows the whole sentence, so this statement ends with a period.

An embedded question introduced by gdje, kada or zašto keeps that question word. A yes–no question uses li with the finite verb or auxiliary. Time references must remain clear, but Croatian does not impose an automatic English-style tense backshift.

Examples (3)

  1. Ana je pitala: „Gdje je ključ?”

    Ana asked, “Where is the key?”

  2. Ana je pitala gdje je ključ.

    Ana asked where the key was.

  3. Marko me pitao dolazim li sutra.

    Marko asked me whether I was coming tomorrow.

How It Connects

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Quoted and Reported QuestionsLevel 5

Learn This First

Quotation preserves an independent question while an embedded question belongs to a containing clause.

Words in This Pattern