Korean Indirect Speech: -다고, -냐고, -자고, -(으)라고 Explained
Written and reviewed by Jun and Jin, native Korean speakers
Published · How we write & review
After this page, you can report what someone said, asked, suggested, or commanded using -다고 / -냐고 / -자고 / -(으)라고.
10-second answer
The short answer
To report speech, Korean drops the politeness and attaches one of four endings before 하다 (hada): -다고 (-dago) for statements ("said that…"), -냐고 (-nyago) for questions ("asked whether…"), -자고 (-jago) for suggestions ("suggested that we…"), and -(으)라고 (-(eu)rago) for commands and requests ("told me to…"). 친구가 바쁘다고 했어요 (chinguga bappeudago haesseoyo) = "My friend said she was busy." The quoted part always goes back to plain form — no 요 (yo), no 습니다 (seumnida) — even if the original speaker was being polite.
Quick check — did that land?
1. How do you report the question "몇 시예요?" (What time is it?)
How do Koreans say what someone else said?
The Four Endings
| Original speech | Ending | Reported form | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| Statement: 바빠요. | -다고 (verb) / -(이)라고 (noun) | 바쁘다고 했어요 | said (that) they're busy |
| Question: 어디 가요? | -냐고 | 어디 가냐고 물었어요 | asked where I'm going |
| Suggestion: 같이 가요! | -자고 | 같이 가자고 했어요 | suggested going together |
| Command / request: 빨리 오세요. | -(으)라고 | 빨리 오라고 했어요 | told me to come quickly |
Verbs vs. adjectives vs. nouns with -다고
Action verbs in the present take -ㄴ/는다고 (가다 → 간다고, 먹다 → 먹는다고). Adjectives keep plain -다고 (바쁘다 → 바쁘다고). Nouns take -(이)라고 (학생 → 학생이라고). Past tense is the same for all: -았/었다고 (갔다고, 바빴다고, 학생이었다고).
See also: Korean Sentence Structure
Quick Examples
동생이 내일 온다고 했어요.
dongsaeng-i naeil ondago haesseoyo.
My younger sibling said they're coming tomorrow.
오다 (action verb, present) → 온다고. The original was probably "내일 가요" — direction and politeness both adjust to the reporter's viewpoint.
선생님이 숙제 했냐고 물어보셨어요.
seonsaengnim-i sukje haennyago mureobosyeosseoyo.
The teacher asked whether I'd done the homework.
Past-tense question: 했어? → 했냐고. 물어보다 (to ask) is the natural verb after -냐고, though 하다 works too.
친구들이 주말에 등산 가자고 해요.
chingudeul-i jumare deungsan gajago haeyo.
My friends are suggesting we go hiking this weekend.
-자고 only works with action verbs — you can suggest doing something, not being something.
엄마가 일찍 자라고 하셨어요.
eommaga iljjik jarago hasyeosseoyo.
Mom told me to go to bed early.
자다 → 자라고. After a consonant use -으라고: 먹다 → 먹으라고, 읽다 → 읽으라고.
그 사람이 의사라고 들었어요.
geu saram-i uisarago deureosseoyo.
I heard that person is a doctor.
Noun + -(이)라고. 듣다 (to hear) is another common reporting verb — "I heard that…".
The Shortcut Everyone Uses in Speech
In conversation, -다고 하다 contracts: 바쁘다고 해요 → 바쁘대요, 간다고 해요 → 간대요, 가냐고 해요 → 가냬요, 가자고 해요 → 가재요, 가라고 해요 → 가래요. You'll hear these contracted forms constantly in K-dramas ("온대" = "they say he's coming"). Learn the full forms first so you can recognize what the contractions came from, then start using the short ones yourself — see 해요체 endings for how politeness attaches on top.
-다고 also shows up without any reporting verb at the end of a sentence, to insist or repeat yourself: 바쁘다고! = "I said I'm busy!" — a slightly impatient tone, so use it with friends, not your boss.
Common Mistakes
Mistake #1 — Keeping 요 inside the quote
바빠요라고 했어요 ✗ → 바쁘다고 했어요 ✓. The quoted clause is always plain form; politeness goes on the final verb only.
Mistake #2 — Using -다고 for a question
어디 가다고 물었어요 ✗ → 어디 가냐고 물었어요 ✓. Each sentence type has its own ending; -다고 is for statements only.
Mistake #3 — Forgetting -ㄴ/는 on present-tense action verbs
가다고 ✗ → 간다고 ✓, 먹다고 ✗ → 먹는다고 ✓. Only adjectives keep bare -다고 in the present tense.
Mini Quiz
2. Which is the correct reported form of "같이 먹어요!" (Let's eat together!)?
3. What does 온대요 mean?
Related Knowledge
Learn Next
Korean Causative and Passive Verbs
Both are 'advanced verb machinery' — once you can report what people said, learn how Korean says who made whom do what.
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