The french verb reporter has two main families of meaning. It can mean to postpone something, or it can mean to carry or transfer something. The reflexive form se reporter also has specific uses.

Reporter: to postpone or delay

This is the most common meaning. It is used when you move an event to a later time.

• Ils ont reporté la réunion à vendredi.
  “They postponed the meeting to Friday.”
• Le match a été reporté à cause de la pluie.
  “The game was postponed because of the rain.”
• Nous devons reporter notre départ.
  “We have to delay our departure.”

Reporter: to transfer or carry over

This meaning is about moving something from one place to another, or from one context to another. It can be physical or abstract.

• Vous pouvez reporter cette somme sur l’année prochaine.
  “You can carry this amount over to next year.”
• Il a reporté sa colère sur son collègue.
  “He took his anger out on his colleague.” (He transferred his anger onto him.)
• Elle a reporté les résultats sur un tableau.
  “She transferred the results onto a chart.”

Se reporter à: to refer to

The reflexive form se reporter à means to consult something, or to refer to a source of information. It is very common in written French.

• Veuillez vous reporter à la page dix.
  “Please refer to page ten.”
• Pour plus de détails, reportez-vous au manuel.
  “For more details, refer to the manual.”
• Je me suis reporté à nos précédents accords.
  “I referred to our previous agreements.”

Se reporter à: to mentally place oneself back in time

It can also mean to imagine oneself in the past.

• Reportez-vous à l’époque de votre enfance.
  “Think back to the time of your childhood.”
• Elle se reportait toujours à ses années de collège.
  “She was always going back in her mind to her middle school years.”

Synonyms and alternatives

• For postpone: remettre à plus tard (to put off until later), décaler (to shift), ajourner (to adjourn).
• For transfer (money) : transférer (to transfer), reporter is the precise term for accounting carry-overs.
• For refer to (a document) : consulter (to consult), voir (to see), se référer à (to refer to).

Summary

• Reporter can mean to postpone an event.
• It can also mean to transfer something, like money or feelings.
• The reflexive form se reporter à means to consult a document or to think back to a past time.