B1 Passive & Reported Speech 7 min read آسان

Reported Speech with 'niyeay-tha' (Saying that)

Report speech easily by adding niyeay-tha before any statement without changing the original verb's form.
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Grammar Rule in 30 Seconds

Use 'niyeay-tha' to report what someone else said by placing it between the speaker and the reported statement.

  • Use 'niyeay-tha' after the subject: 'Sok niyeay-tha...' (Sok says that...)
  • Keep the original tense of the reported statement in most Khmer contexts.
  • Use 'tha' alone for shorter, informal reports like 'He said that...'
Subject + niyeay-tha + [Reported Statement]

مرور کلی

Ever felt like you were stuck in the middle of a game of telephone? Reporting what someone else said is a huge part of daily life. In Khmer, the heavy lifter for this is niyeay-tha.
Think of it as the 'that' in 'He said that...' It is your primary tool for sharing news, relaying messages, or even spreading a little bit of harmless gossip. Unlike English, where you have to worry about shifting tenses from 'is' to 'was,' Khmer keeps it wonderfully simple. You just take the original sentence and glue it onto the phrase niyeay-tha.
It is like building with Lego blocks. You have the speaker, the action of speaking, and the message. This pattern works in the office, at the market, or while hanging out with friends.
It is one of the most versatile tools in your linguistic toolbox. Whether you are reporting a boss's instructions or a friend's dinner plans, this grammar point has your back. It makes you sound more fluent and connected to the conversation.
Plus, it saves you from having to mimic everyone's voice perfectly!

این گرامر چطور کار می‌کنه

This grammar acts like a bridge between the person who spoke and the information they shared. The word niyeay means 'to speak' or 'to say.' The word tha acts as a complementizer, which is just a fancy way of saying it’s a 'linker.' Together, niyeay-tha signals to your listener that 'Hey, the next few words aren't mine; I'm just the messenger.' One of the best things about Khmer is that it is a 'non-inflected' language. This means the verb niyeay doesn't change if it happened yesterday, today, or tomorrow.
You might add a time marker like ban to show the past, but the core structure remains the same. It is a very stable and predictable pattern. Think of it like a grammar traffic light that always stays green for you.
You don't need to do mental gymnastics to change 'I like coffee' into 'He said he liked coffee.' You just say 'He say that he like coffee.' It is straightforward, efficient, and very logical. This simplicity allows you to focus on the actual content of the message rather than worrying about complex verb conjugations.

الگوی ساخت

1
Creating a reported speech sentence in Khmer follows a very reliable 4-step recipe:
2
Start with the Subject (the person who originally spoke).
3
Add the verb niyeay (to say).
4
Insert the connector tha (that).
5
Finish with the Original Message (exactly as it was said, or slightly adjusted for pronouns).
6
The basic formula looks like this: [Subject] + និយាយ (niyeay) + ថា (tha) + [Message].
7
For example, if Dara says 'I am hungry,' you report it as: Dara + niyeay + tha + koat khlean (Dara says that he is hungry). Notice how we changed 'I' to 'he' to keep things clear. If you want to make it past tense, you can just add ban before niyeay. It becomes Dara ban niyeay tha... (Dara said that...). It is as simple as adding a topping to a pizza. The base stays the same, but you can add a little extra flavor if you need to specify the time.

کی استفاده کنیم

You will use niyeay-tha in almost every social scenario imaginable. Use it when you are at work and need to tell your manager what a client said. Use it when you are ordering food for a friend who is too shy to speak up.
It is perfect for sharing news you heard on the radio or read on social media. In Khmer culture, sharing information is a way of building rapport. By using niyeay-tha, you show that you are paying attention to others.
It is also the go-to phrase for 'passive' reporting. If you want to say 'It is said that...' or 'People say that...', you simply use the generic subject ke (they/people). So, ke niyeay tha translates to 'People say that.' This is very common when talking about rumors, traditions, or general facts.
It’s the 'they' in 'They say it might rain today.' It is a very polite and indirect way to share information without taking full responsibility for its accuracy. Yes, even native speakers use this to avoid being blamed if the news turns out to be wrong!

کی استفاده نکنیم

While niyeay-tha is a superstar, it shouldn't be in every sentence. Don't use it when you are giving a direct command or an order. For that, you would typically use prap (to tell) or bang-koap (to order).
Also, avoid using it when you are talking about your own thoughts. If you want to say 'I think that...', use kit tha instead of niyeay tha. Using 'say' when you mean 'think' makes it sound like you are talking to yourself out loud—which might be true, but it's not what you usually want to communicate!
Another time to avoid it is when you are using direct quotes with a lot of emotion. If you want to mimic someone's exact tone, you might just use the person's name and then the quote directly, skipping the tha for a more dramatic effect. Think of niyeay-tha as the 'standard' mode.
If you need something more specific, like 'shouted' or 'whispered,' you should use those specific verbs instead.

اشتباهات رایج

The most common slip-up is forgetting the tha. In English, we often drop 'that' (e.g., 'He said he's coming'). In Khmer, dropping the tha makes the sentence feel 'naked' and a bit confusing. It is the glue that holds the two parts together. Another mistake is over-complicating the tenses. Learners often try to change the verb inside the reported message to the past tense. Remember: Khmer verbs are chill. They don't change. If the original person said 'I go,' you report it as 'He said that he go.' Don't try to find a past tense version of 'go.' Lastly, be careful with pronouns. If you use the wrong pronoun, you might accidentally report that *you* are the one who is hungry or late, instead of your friend. Always double-check who 'I' and 'you' refer to in the new context. It’s like a grammar mirror; everything is flipped!

مقایسه با الگوهای مشابه

You might get niyeay-tha mixed up with prap-tha. Here is the easy way to remember the difference: niyeay-tha is about the act of speaking (Saying), while prap-tha is about the act of informing someone (Telling). If you have a specific listener in mind, like 'He told *me*,' you must use prap.
If you are just reporting the words in general, like 'He said...', use niyeay. It is also different from chue-tha (believe that) or khun-tha (see that). While they all use the connector tha, the starting verb changes the whole meaning.
niyeay-tha is purely for verbal communication. If you see someone doing something and want to report it, you wouldn't use 'say' unless they actually spoke. Use the verb that matches the action.

سؤالات رایج

Q

Is niyeay-tha formal or informal?

It is both! It is perfectly neutral and works in any setting.

Q

Can I use it for 'It is said that'?

Yes, just use ke as the subject: ke niyeay tha.

Q

Do I need to change the word order?

No, the word order stays exactly the same as a normal sentence.

Q

Can I use it for questions?

For questions, it is better to use sour tha (ask that), but niyeay tha can work if you are just reporting the fact that they spoke.

Q

What if I want to say 'He said to me'?

In that case, use koat niyeay mork knhom tha... or more commonly koat prap knhom tha...

Reported Speech Structure

Speaker Reporting Verb Reported Content
គាត់ (He)
និយាយថា (says that)
គាត់រវល់ (he is busy)
ម៉ាក់ (Mom)
និយាយថា (says that)
គាត់ទៅផ្សារ (she goes to market)
គេ (They)
និយាយថា (say that)
វាឆ្ងាញ់ (it is delicious)

Meanings

This structure is used to relay information, opinions, or statements made by another person.

1

Direct Reporting

Reporting a specific statement made by someone.

“ម៉ាក់និយាយថាគាត់ហត់។ (Mom says that she is tired.)”

“គ្រូនិយាយថាថ្ងៃនេះឈប់សម្រាក។ (The teacher says that today is a holiday.)”

2

General Belief

Reporting a common belief or rumor.

“គេនិយាយថាហាងនេះឆ្ងាញ់។ (People say that this shop is delicious.)”

“គេនិយាយថាវានឹងភ្លៀង។ (They say that it will rain.)”

Reference Table

Reference table for Reported Speech with 'niyeay-tha' (Saying that)
Form Structure Example
Affirmative
Subj + niyeay-tha + Clause
គាត់និយាយថាគាត់មក
Negative
Subj + niyeay-tha + min + Clause
គាត់និយាយថាគាត់មិនមក
Question
Subj + niyeay-tha + Clause + te?
គាត់និយាយថាគាត់មកទេ?
Past
Subj + niyeay-tha + Clause
គាត់និយាយថាគាត់បានមក
Future
Subj + niyeay-tha + nung + Clause
គាត់និយាយថាគាត់នឹងមក

طیف رسمیت

رسمی
គាត់ជម្រាបថាគាត់រវល់។

គាត់ជម្រាបថាគាត់រវល់។ (Reporting status)

خنثی
គាត់និយាយថាគាត់រវល់។

គាត់និយាយថាគាត់រវល់។ (Reporting status)

غیر رسمی
គាត់ថាគាត់រវល់។

គាត់ថាគាត់រវល់។ (Reporting status)

عامیانه
គាត់ថាគាត់រវល់ណាស់។

គាត់ថាគាត់រវល់ណាស់។ (Reporting status)

Reported Speech Flow

niyeay-tha

Speaker

  • គាត់ He

Action

  • និយាយថា says that

Content

  • គាត់រវល់ he is busy
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مثال‌ها بر اساس سطح

1

គាត់និយាយថាគាត់ឃ្លាន។

He says that he is hungry.

2

ម៉ាក់និយាយថាគាត់ទៅផ្សារ។

Mom says that she is going to the market.

1

គ្រូនិយាយថាថ្ងៃនេះយើងរៀន។

The teacher says that today we study.

2

គេនិយាយថាហាងនេះឆ្ងាញ់។

They say that this shop is delicious.

1

មិត្តភក្តិរបស់ខ្ញុំនិយាយថាគាត់នឹងមកដល់ម៉ោងប្រាំ។

My friend says that he will arrive at five.

2

នាយកនិយាយថាការប្រជុំនឹងចាប់ផ្តើមឆាប់ៗ។

The director says that the meeting will start soon.

1

គេនិយាយថាគម្រោងនេះនឹងត្រូវពន្យារពេល។

They say that this project will be delayed.

2

គាត់និយាយថាគាត់មិនបានឃើញរឿងនោះទេ។

He says that he did not see that thing.

1

អ្នកភូមិនិយាយថាមានខ្មោចនៅក្នុងផ្ទះនោះ។

The villagers say that there is a ghost in that house.

2

មន្ត្រីនិយាយថាគោលនយោបាយនេះនឹងផ្លាស់ប្តូរ។

The official says that this policy will change.

1

អ្នកជំនាញនិយាយថាការវិនិយោគនេះមានហានិភ័យខ្ពស់។

Experts say that this investment has high risk.

2

គេនិយាយថាប្រវត្តិសាស្ត្រតែងតែដដែលៗ។

They say that history always repeats itself.

به‌راحتی اشتباه گرفته می‌شود

Reported Speech with 'niyeay-tha' (Saying that) در مقابل Kmean-tha

Both use 'tha', but one is for speech and one for thought.

اشتباهات رایج

✗

Sok niyeay Sok chheu

✓

Sok niyeay-tha Sok chheu

Missing 'tha'.
✗

Sok niyeay-tha Sok was sick

✓

Sok niyeay-tha Sok chheu

Unnecessary tense change.
✗

Sok tha niyeay

✓

Sok niyeay-tha

Word order error.
✗

Ke niyeay-tha ke niyeay

✓

Ke niyeay-tha...

Redundant subject.
✗

Sok niyeay-tha te

✓

Sok niyeay-tha...

Incorrect particle usage.
✗

Sok niyeay-tha nung

✓

Sok niyeay-tha...

Grammar structure error.
✗

Sok niyeay-tha 100%...

✓

Sok niyeay-tha...

Mixing numbers/logic.
✗

Sok niyeay-tha kmean-tha

✓

Sok niyeay-tha...

Mixing reporting verbs.
✗

Sok niyeay-tha nung-nung

✓

Sok niyeay-tha...

Repetition error.

الگوهای جمله‌سازی

___ niyeay-tha ___

___ niyeay-tha ___ nung ___

___ niyeay-tha ___ min ___ te

Real World Usage

Social Media very common

គេនិយាយថាហាងនេះល្អណាស់។

Job Interview common

អ្នកគ្រប់គ្រងនិយាយថាខ្ញុំធ្វើការបានល្អ។

Texting constant

គាត់ថាគាត់មកដល់ហើយ។

برای دیدن همه مثال‌ها رایگان ثبت‌نام کنید
💡

Don't backshift

Unlike English, you don't need to change tenses. Keep it simple!
⚠️

Don't forget 'tha'

It's the glue that holds the sentence together.
🎯

Use 'ke' for rumors

When you don't want to name a source, 'ke' is your best friend.

Smart Tips

Use 'ke' to sound natural and avoid naming sources.

Sok niyeay-tha... → Ke niyeay-tha...

Drop 'niyeay' to save time.

Sok niyeay-tha... → Sok tha...

Use full 'niyeay-tha' for clarity.

Sok tha... → Sok niyeay-tha...

تلفظ

ni-yeay-tha

niyeay-tha

Pronounce as 'ni-yeay-tha'. The 'y' is soft.

Statement

Sok niyeay-tha Sok chheu ↘

Neutral reporting.

حفظ کنید

روش یادسپاری

Think of 'niyeay-tha' as a 'speech sandwich' where the bread is the speaker and the filling is the message.

تداعی تصویری

Imagine a person holding a megaphone (niyeay) with a speech bubble (tha) coming out of it.

Rhyme

To report what they say, use niyeay-tha every day.

Story

Sok tells me he is tired. I tell my friend: 'Sok niyeay-tha Sok hat'. My friend understands perfectly.

شبکه واژگان

niyeaythakesokniyeay-tha

چالش

Tell three people what someone else said today using 'niyeay-tha'.

نکات فرهنگی

Using 'ke' (they/people) to report rumors is very common to avoid naming specific sources.

Derived from the verb 'niyeay' (to speak) and the complementizer 'tha' (that).

شروع‌کننده‌های مکالمه

“

តើអ្នកបានឮអ្វីខ្លះថ្ងៃនេះ?

“

តើគ្រូនិយាយថាអ្វី?

“

តើមិត្តរបស់អ្នកនិយាយថាអ្វី?

موضوعات نگارش

Write about a rumor you heard recently.
Report what your teacher said in class today.
Summarize a news story you heard.

اشتباهات رایج

Incorrect

صحیح

Incorrect

صحیح

Incorrect

صحیح

Incorrect

صحیح

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Test Yourself

Fill in the missing word.

Sok ___ Sok chheu.

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: niyeay-tha
The correct reporting verb is 'niyeay-tha'.
Fix the sentence. Error Correction

Find and fix the mistake:

Sok niyeay Sok chheu.

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: Sok niyeay-tha Sok chheu
Must include 'tha'.
Choose the correct sentence. چند گزینه‌ای

Which is correct?

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: Sok niyeay-tha Sok nung mok
Correct future tense placement.
Translate to Khmer. ترجمه

He says that he is busy.

Answer starts with: គាត...

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: គាត់និយាយថាគាត់រវល់
Correct translation.

Score: /4

تمرین‌های عملی

4 exercises
Fill in the missing word.

Sok ___ Sok chheu.

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: niyeay-tha
The correct reporting verb is 'niyeay-tha'.
Fix the sentence. Error Correction

Find and fix the mistake:

Sok niyeay Sok chheu.

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: Sok niyeay-tha Sok chheu
Must include 'tha'.
Choose the correct sentence. چند گزینه‌ای

Which is correct?

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: Sok niyeay-tha Sok nung mok
Correct future tense placement.
Translate to Khmer. ترجمه

He says that he is busy.

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: គាត់និយាយថាគាត់រវល់
Correct translation.

Score: /4

سوالات متداول (6)

No, Khmer does not require backshifting tenses like English.

Yes, in informal speech, 'niyeay' is often dropped.

It is neutral and can be used in most situations.

Use 'ke' (they/people) as the subject.

Yes, 'niyeay-tha' is for speech, 'kmean-tha' is for thoughts.

Yes, just add 'te' at the end of the reported clause.

Scaffolded Practice

1

1

2

2

3

3

4

4

Mastery Progress

Needs Practice

Improving

Strong

Mastered

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In Other Languages

Spanish high

decir que

Khmer does not change verb tenses or moods.

French high

dire que

French requires agreement in some contexts.

German moderate

sagen dass

Khmer maintains standard word order.

Japanese high

to iu

Japanese puts the reporting verb at the end.

Arabic moderate

qala anna

Khmer is more flexible with informal usage.

Learning Path

Prerequisites

Previous
Classifiers for Vehicles and Machinery 'kroeung' (Appliances/Cars)
Next
Indefinite Pronouns 'na-mouy' and 'ey-kor-ban' (Any/Either)

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