The Oblique Mood for Reporting
Grammar Rule in 30 Seconds
Use the Oblique Mood to report what someone else said without using direct quotes.
- Use the particle 'lai' for commands: 'Viņš teica, lai es nāku' (He said I should come).
- Change the verb ending to the -ot form for present tense: 'Viņš saka, ka viņš strādājot' (He says he is working).
- Use the -šot form for future tense: 'Viņš teica, ka viņš došoties' (He said he would go).
Oblique Mood Suffixes
| Tense | Suffix | Example (Verb: Iet) | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Present
|
-ot
|
Ejot
|
Is said to go
|
|
Future
|
-šot
|
Iešot
|
Is said will go
|
|
Negative Present
|
ne- + -ot
|
Neejot
|
Is said not to go
|
|
Negative Future
|
ne- + -šot
|
Neiešot
|
Is said will not go
|
Meanings
The Oblique Mood is a grammatical category in Latvian used to report information that the speaker has heard from someone else, rather than witnessed personally.
Reported Present
Reporting an ongoing action or state.
“Viņa saka, ka lasot grāmatu.”
“Viņi apgalvo, ka dzīvojot Rīgā.”
Reported Future
Reporting a future intention or prediction.
“Viņš teica, ka došoties uz veikalu.”
“Viņa solīja, ka atnākšot.”
Reported Command
Reporting an order or request.
“Viņš lika, lai es ejot.”
“Viņa lūdza, lai mēs paliekot.”
Reference Table
| Form | Structure | Example |
|---|---|---|
|
Affirmative
|
Verb + ot
|
Viņš strādājot
|
|
Negative
|
ne + Verb + ot
|
Viņš nestrādājot
|
|
Future
|
Verb + šot
|
Viņš strādāšot
|
|
Future Negative
|
ne + Verb + šot
|
Viņš nestrādāšot
|
|
Question
|
Vai + Verb + ot
|
Vai viņš strādājot?
|
|
Command
|
lai + Verb + ot
|
Viņš teica, lai ejot
|
Formalitätsspektrum
Viņš apgalvo, ka viņš nākot. (General)
Viņš saka, ka viņš nākot. (General)
Viņš saka, ka nākot. (General)
Viņš saka, ka nākot. (General)
Oblique Mood Concept
Usage
- Hearsay Rumors
- News Reports
Suffixes
- -ot Present
- -šot Future
Beispiele nach Niveau
Viņš saka, ka strādājot.
He says he is working.
Viņa saka, ka lasot.
She says she is reading.
Viņi saka, ka ejot.
They say they are going.
Viņš saka, ka ēdot.
He says he is eating.
Viņš teica, ka došoties mājās.
He said he would go home.
Viņa solīja, ka atnākšot.
She promised she would come.
Viņi teica, ka pirkšot mašīnu.
They said they would buy a car.
Saka, ka rīt līšot.
They say it will rain tomorrow.
Viņš apgalvo, ka nezinot atbildi.
He claims he doesn't know the answer.
Viņa teica, ka esot ļoti nogurusi.
She said she was very tired.
Viņi teica, ka neiešot uz ballīti.
They said they wouldn't go to the party.
Māte teica, lai bērni ejot gulēt.
Mother said the children should go to sleep.
Tiek ziņots, ka valdība pieņemšot jaunu likumu.
It is reported that the government will pass a new law.
Viņš teica, ka esot dzirdējis šo ziņu.
He said he had heard this news.
Viņa apgalvoja, ka neesot bijusi tur.
She claimed she hadn't been there.
Viņi teica, ka darīšot visu iespējamo.
They said they would do everything possible.
Baumo, ka uzņēmums bankrotēšot.
Rumor has it the company will go bankrupt.
Viņš uzstāja, ka neesot vainīgs.
He insisted he was not guilty.
Tika teikts, ka viņi esot atgriezušies.
It was said that they had returned.
Viņa apgalvoja, ka nezinot, kur atrodas.
She claimed she didn't know where she was.
Tiek lēsts, ka inflācija pieaugšot.
It is estimated that inflation will rise.
Viņš apgalvoja, ka neesot saņēmis vēstuli.
He claimed he hadn't received the letter.
Saka, ka viņš esot bijis ļoti vīlies.
They say he was very disappointed.
Viņa teica, ka neiešot uz kompromisu.
She said she would not compromise.
Leicht verwechselbar
Both use suffixes.
Häufige Fehler
Viņš saka, ka viņš strādā.
Viņš saka, ka viņš strādājot.
Viņš strādāšot (when he is working now).
Viņš strādājot.
Es strādājot (when reporting myself).
Es strādājot (only if reporting what someone said about me).
Viņš teica, ka viņš būtu strādājis.
Viņš teica, ka viņš esot strādājis.
Satzmuster
Viņš saka, ka ___.
Real World Usage
Tiek ziņots, ka līšot.
Don't conjugate!
Smart Tips
Always use -ot.
Aussprache
Suffix stress
The stress remains on the stem, not the suffix.
Reporting
Viņš saka, ka... ↘
Falling intonation at the end of the reported clause.
Einprägen
Eselsbrücke
Think of 'OT' as 'Other Talk'. If it's Other Talk, use -OT.
Visuelle Assoziation
Imagine a telephone wire connecting two people. The person on the other end is holding a sign that says '-OT'.
Rhyme
When you hear a story told, add -ot to be bold.
Story
Jānis told me he was hungry. I told my friend, 'Jānis saka, ka viņš esot izsalcis.' My friend understood immediately that I didn't see Jānis eat, I just heard it from him.
Word Web
Herausforderung
For the next 5 minutes, try to report everything you hear using the Oblique Mood.
Kulturelle Hinweise
Journalists are required to use this mood to avoid legal trouble for defamation.
Derived from ancient Baltic participle forms.
Gesprächseinstiege
Ko viņš teica?
Tagebuch-Impulse
Häufige Fehler
Test Yourself
Viņš saka, ka viņš ___ (strādāt).
Score: /1
Ubungsaufgaben
1 exercisesViņš saka, ka viņš ___ (strādāt).
Score: /1
FAQ (1)
Only if you are reporting what someone else said about you.
Scaffolded Practice
1
Mastery Progress
Needs Practice
Improving
Strong
Mastered
In Other Languages
Konjunktiv I
German conjugates for person.
Conditionnel
French uses it for conditional too.
Subjunctive
Latvian is specific to reporting.
Sou-da
Japanese is a particle, Latvian is a suffix.
Qila
Arabic is a verb phrase.
Tingshuo
Chinese has no mood.
