First choose a reporting frame—usually ρωτάω/ρωτώ “ask,” θέλω να μάθω “want to find out,” or αναρωτιέμαι “wonder.” Then adjust person, tense, place, and time only where the new viewpoint requires it.
The internal grammar of embedded questions—αν for yes/no questions, a retained question word for information questions, statement-like order, and matrix punctuation—belongs to Indirect Questions. This page concentrates on the reporting layer around that embedded clause.
Reporting who asked whom
Ρωτάω and ρωτώ are both standard present-tense forms. The person who receives the question is a direct accusative object: με ρώτησε “asked me,” τον ρώτησε “asked him,” ρώτησε τη Μαρία “asked Maria.” This differs from μου είπε “told me,” where λέω uses a genitive recipient.
Ο Μάριος με ρώτησε: «Θέλεις έναν καφέ;»
o Mários me rótise: «thélis énan kafé;»
Marios asked me, ‘Would you like a coffee?’
Ο Μάριος με ρώτησε αν θέλω έναν καφέ.
o Mários me rótise an thélo énan kafé
Marios asked me whether I wanted a coffee.
The direct θέλεις addresses “you.” Once the person answering reports the question, that person is “I,” so the verb becomes θέλω. Greek does not need to change the present merely because ρώτησε is past.
Η Ράνια με ρώτησε: «Πού δουλεύεις τώρα;»
i Ránia me rótise: «pu dhulévis tóra;»
Rania asked me, ‘Where do you work now?’
Η Ράνια με ρώτησε πού δουλεύω τώρα.
i Ránia me rótise pu dhulévo tóra
Rania asked me where I work now.
Here the work situation is still current, so δουλεύω and τώρα remain appropriate. If the question concerned an earlier job, the reporter could deliberately use πού δούλευα τότε “where I was working then.”
Other natural reporting frames
Not every report uses ρωτάω. Θέλω να μάθω is neutral and goal-oriented; αναρωτιέμαι presents an internal question. Formal θέλησε να πληροφορηθεί “wished to be informed” sounds bureaucratic in conversation.
Ήθελε να μάθει τι έγινε μετά τη συνεδρίαση.
íthele na máthi ti éyine metá ti sinedhríasi
He wanted to know what happened after the meeting.
Αναρωτιόταν μήπως είχε ξεχάσει το κινητό στο ταξί.
anarotjótan mípos íche ksechási to kinitó sto taksí
She wondered whether she might have left her phone in the taxi.
The last example does not assert that the phone was forgotten. Μήπως presents a possibility with doubt or apprehension. This is common in everyday speech and reflective narration. Its expectation patterns are explained on μήπως questions.
Tense belongs to the reported situation
English often backshifts Where do you live? to He asked where I lived. Greek instead selects tense according to the time meant. A present can remain present when the answer is still valid; an imperfect or other past form places it in an earlier period.
Με ρώτησε αν μένω ακόμα στην Πάτρα.
me rótise an méno akóma stin Pátra
She asked me whether I still live in Patras.
Με ρώτησε αν έμενα στην Πάτρα όταν σπούδαζα.
me rótise an émena stin Pátra ótan spúdhaza
She asked me whether I lived in Patras when I was studying.
These are not stylistic variants. Μένω makes the residence current; έμενα locates it in the past. For the full contrast, see Tense and Deixis in Reported Speech.
Recalculate here, now, and tomorrow when needed
A reporter standing somewhere else or speaking later normally updates deictic expressions. Εδώ may become εκεί, αύριο may become την επόμενη μέρα, and a motion verb may change because the destination is viewed differently.
Η Έλενα με ρώτησε χθες: «Θα έρθεις εδώ αύριο;»
i Élena me rótise chthes: «tha érthis edhó ávrio;»
Elena asked me yesterday, ‘Will you come here tomorrow?’
Η Έλενα με ρώτησε αν θα πήγαινα εκεί την επόμενη μέρα.
i Élena me rótise an tha píyena ekí tin epómeni méra
Elena asked me whether I would go there the next day.
This version assumes the reporter is no longer at Elena’s location and views the projected visit from a later past point. If the reporter is still there before the visit, αν θα έρθω εδώ αύριο is natural. Deictic adjustment follows reality, not a substitution chart.
A question inside a longer report
Real reports often mix statements, commands, and questions. Each clause keeps the connector appropriate to its speech act.
Η Δανάη μου είπε ότι είχε κλείσει τραπέζι και μετά με ρώτησε αν μπορούσα να είμαι εκεί στις οκτώ.
i Dhanái mu ípe óti íche klísi trapézi ke metá me rótise an borúsa na íme ekí stis októ
Danai told me that she had booked a table and then asked whether I could be there at eight.
The whole report ends with a full stop; its embedded question does not retain a Greek question mark. If the matrix itself is a question—Θυμάσαι αν συμφώνησε;—the whole sentence ends in ;.
Common Mistakes
1. Failing to put the person asked in the accusative. The article and name must both carry the case selected by ρωτάω.
❌ Η Νίκη ρώτησε τον Μάριος αν έχει χρόνο το απόγευμα.
Incorrect — accusative article τον requires the accusative name Μάριο.
✅ Η Νίκη ρώτησε τον Μάριο αν έχει χρόνο το απόγευμα.
i Níki rótise ton Mário an échi chróno to apóyevma
Niki asked Marios whether he has time in the afternoon.
2. Treating αναρωτιέμαι like a verb of asking someone. It presents the subject's own doubt and does not take the person wondered about as a direct object.
❌ Η Εύα αναρωτιόταν την Άννα μήπως είχε αργήσει.
Incorrect — αναρωτιέμαι introduces an internal question; την Άννα cannot be its direct object.
✅ Η Εύα αναρωτιόταν μήπως η Άννα είχε αργήσει.
i Éva anarotjótan mípos i Ána íche aryísi
Eva wondered whether Anna might be running late.
3. Making an explicit subject disagree with the embedded verb.
❌ Η δημοσιογράφος ρώτησε τον υπουργό πότε θα μιλήσεις ο ίδιος.
Incorrect — ο ίδιος refers to the minister, so the verb must be third person.
✅ Η δημοσιογράφος ρώτησε τον υπουργό πότε θα μιλήσει ο ίδιος.
i dhimosioghráfos rótise ton ipurghó póte tha milísi o ídhios
The journalist asked the minister when he himself would speak.
Key Takeaways
- Ρωτάω/ρωτώ takes the person asked in the accusative.
- Use αν for polar reports and retain the wh-expression for information reports.
- Adjust tense and deixis only when meaning or reporting circumstances change.
Related Topics
- Indirect (Embedded) QuestionsB1 — Embed yes/no questions with αν and information questions with their original wh-word, retaining ordinary Greek word order and interrogative accents but following the matrix sentence’s punctuation.
- Reported (Indirect) SpeechB1 — Report Greek statements with ότι or πως while adjusting speakers, place, and time without automatic English-style tense backshift.
- Tense and Deixis in Reported SpeechB2 — Choose Greek reported tense, person, time, and place from the intended viewpoint rather than applying English sequence-of-tenses rules.
- Polite and Tentative Questions With μήπωςB1 — Use μήπως to present a yes/no question as tentative, hopeful, or suspicious—often corresponding to English ‘by any chance’ or ‘could it be that.’