Just like when you tell a story in English, when you tell a story in Japanese, a big part of that will be telling your listener what someone said. In grammar, this is known as reported speech. When you quote someone else, there are two main ways to do it:
A direct quotation is used to report exactly what somebody said, as in:
Tom said, "I will study today."An indirect quotation is used to report what someone said without using their exact words, as in:
Tom said that he would study today.
In this post, we'll go over how to use both kinds of reported speech in Japanese. While there are some similarities with English, there are also some pretty big differences! Ready to have a look? Let's dive in!
How to provide a direct quote in Japanese?
To provide a direct quotation of someone's words in Japanese follow these steps:
put their exact words in quotation marks, which look like this: 「…」
attach the quotation marker と transcribed to to the end of the quote
end the sentence with the verb 言う transcribed iumeaning to say.
If you want to include the name of the person you're quoting, you can include them as the subject of the sentence, before the quote, marked by by は transcribed wa or が transcribed ga, like this:
Speaker + は/が
「Quote」*
The basic structure is pretty simple, right? Now, let's go through some special use cases and tricks that will help you use direct quotes as naturally as possible!
Tense: When did they speak?
The tense of 言う transcribed iu can change to reflect when the person you're quoting spoke.
- present tense日本人はご飯を食べる時に「いただきます」と言います。Transcription: Nihonjin wa gohan o taberu toki ni, "itadakimasu" to iimasu.Translation: Japanese people say, "itadakimasu" before they eat.いただきます means "humbly receive the meal"
- te-iru form田中さんが「ちょっと来てくれませんか」と言っていますよ。Transcription: Tanaka san ga “Chotto kite kuremasen ka” to itte imasu yo.Translation: Mr. Tanaka is saying, “Can you come (here)?”
When talking about what someone said in the past, we generally put the te-iru form of 言う transcribed iu into the past tense: 言っていた transcribed itte itameaning said
te-ita form母が「今日の晩ご飯はカレーにしようかな」と言っていた。Transcription: Haha ga “kyō no ban gohan wa karē ni shiyō kana” to itte ita.Translation: My mom said, “I guess I’ll make curry for dinner tonight.”Questions: What did they say?
To ask what someone said, you can replace the quotation with the question word, 何 transcribed nanmeaning what.
question word / quoteQuestion:日本では、家に帰った時、何と言いますか。Transcription: Nihon de wa, ie ni kaetta toki, nan to iimasu ka.Translation: In Japan, what do you say after you get home?Answer:「ただいま」と言います。Transcription: “Tadaima” to iimasu.Translation: We say, “I’m home.”Respect: Are you quoting someone important?
When quoting a respected or high-status person, you should use the verb おっしゃる transcribed ossharu, which is the respectful form of 言う transcribed iu.
私のピアノの先生はいつも「毎日の練習が大事です」とおっしゃいます。Transcription: Watashi no piano no sensei wa itsumo “mainichi no renshū ga daiji desu” to osshaimasu.Translation: My piano teacher always says, “It’s important to practice every day.”Informality: Is the conversation casual?
In conversation, the quotation marker と transcribed to is often replaced by って transcribed tte. In the past tense you can shorten the whole endingと言っていた transcribed to itte ita, down to just だって transcribed datte.
casual とcasual と言っていたMother:お姉ちゃん、何食べたいって言って(い)た？Transcription: Onēchan, nani tabetai tte itte(i)ta?Translation: What did your older sister say she wanted to eat?Child:「おすしが食べたいな」だって。Transcription: “Osushi ga tabetai na” datte.Translation: She said, “I want to eat sushi.”
How to provide an indirect quote in Japanese?
Most of the time, it's not important to report someone's exact words, and what is important is the gist or message of what someone said. If this is the case, you'll probably want to quote someone indirectly, using a sentence structure like John said he was tired or Beth says she can bring drinks.
The most basic way to indirectly quote someone in Japanese is to use the plain form before と言う transcribed to iu.
Speaker
What they said
(plain form)
Let's look at some direct quotations next to how you might quote them indirectly, following the pattern above. Notice that the plain form is used in the indirect quote, even if the original speaker used a polite form!
| Direct quote | Indirect quote |
|---|---|
「明日パーティに行きます」 Transcription: “Ashita pātī ni ikimasu.” Translation: “I’m going to the party tomorrow.” | 田中さんは明日パーティに行くと言っていました。 Transcription: Tanaka san wa ashita pātī ni iku to itte imashita. Translation: Mr. Tanaka said that he was going to the party tomorrow. |
「私は大学生です」 Transcription: “Watashi wa daigakusei desu.” Translation: “I’m a college student.” | 山田さんは大学生だと言っていました。 Transcription: Yamada san wa daigakusei da to itte imashita. Translation: Mr. Yamada said that he was a college student. |
「アルバイトに行かなきゃいけません」 Transcription: “Arubaito ni ikanakya ikemasen.” Translation: “I have to go to my part-time job.” | 佐藤さんはアルバイトに行かなきゃいけないと言っていました。 Transcription: Satō san wa arubaito ni ikanakya ikenai to itte imashita. Translation: Mr. Sato said that he had to go to his part-time job. |
Below are some trickier endings which may come at the end of someone's original quote. It may not be obvious how to make these endings "plain," in order to use them to indirectly quote them. Have a look!
〜ましょう transcribed mashō form → volitional form
The ましょう transcribed mashō form is used to form "let's" invitations in Japanese.
ましょう [mashō] form「週末バーベキューをしましょう」Transcription: “Shūmatsu bābekyū o simashō.”Translation: “Let’s have a BBQ this weekend.”When you indirectly quote someone who used the ましょう transcribed mashō form, you'll replace it with the plain volitional form, which is usually used to show someone is resolved to do something.
plain volitional form田中さんは週末バーベキューをしようと言っていました。Transcription: Tanaka san wa shūmatsu bābekyū o shiyō to itte imashita.Translation: Mr. Tanaka said that we should have a BBQ this weekend.〜でしょう transcribed deshō → 〜だろう transcribed darō
The polite ending〜でしょう transcribed deshō has a few uses, but most often it marks something that the speaker thinks will probably happen.
polite form「明日雨が降るでしょう」Transcription: “Ashita ame ga furu deshō.”Translation: “It will (most likely) be rainy tomorrow.”The ending 〜でしょう transcribed deshō has a plain form, with exactly the same meaning: 〜だろう transcribed darō. This is the ending you should use in an indirect quote
plain form天気予報は明日雨が降るだろうと言っていました。Transcription: Tenki yohō wa ashita ame ga furu darō to itte imashita.Translation: The weather forecast said that it would (most likely) be rainy tomorrow.Sentence-final particles → Dropped
If the original quote ends in a sentence-ending particle, like ね transcribed ne or よ transcribed yo, you'll drop these in the indirect quote.
sentence-ending particleOriginal Quote:「夏休みは旅行に行こうよ」Transcription: “Natsuyasumi wa ryokō ni ikō yo.”Translation: “Let’s go on a trip during summer break.”Indirect Quote:小島さんは夏休みは旅行に行こうと言っていました。Transcription: Kojima san wa natsuyasumi wa ryokō ni ikō to itte imashita.Translation: Mr. Kojima said that we should go on a trip during summer break.Honorific expressions → Dropped
If the original speaker uses an honorific expression, you won't generally use that when you indirectly quote them.
- Original Quote:honorific expression「先生は今会議に出ていらっしゃいます」Transcription: “Sensei wa ima kaigi ni dete irasshaimasu.”Translation: “The professor is in the meeting now.”
- Indirect Quote:plain expression助手の人が先生は今会議に出ていると言っていました。Transcription: Joshu no hito ga sensei wa ima kaigi ni dete iru to itte imashita.Translation: The assistant said that the professor was in the meeting now.
Remember, though, that if you want to express your own respect for the person being quoted, you can still use the respectful verb おっしゃる transcribed ossharu rather than the plain verb 言う transcribed iu.
How to report someone's request?
To report that someone has asked or ordered somebody to do something, as in John asked Beth to bring drinks, you'll need to use a slightly different pattern:
The requester is the subject, marked by は transcribed wa or が transcribed ga.
⭐ The person being asked to do something is marked by the particle に transcribed ni
The request is the quoted expression, so this should always be in the plain form.
⭐ The quote is followed by the marker ように transcribed yōni, rather than と transcribed to.
You have a choice of reporting verbs, either 言う transcribed iumeaning say or 頼む transcribed tanmumeaning ask. Use 言う transcribed iu for "told someone to..." and 頼む transcribed tanmu for "asked someone to..."
Let's look at an example!
Requester + は / が
Do-er + に
Request
(plain form)
Here's the original quote that the statement above reports:
If someone asked someone not to do something, you'll just use the plain negative form before ように transcribed yōni.
How to report someone's question?
To report that someone has asked a question, as in Beth asked what John wanted to drink follow the rules below:
The asker is the subject, marked by は transcribed wa or が transcribed ga.
The question is the quoted expression, so this will end in a plain form.
⭐ The quote is followed by か transcribed ka or かどうか transcribed ka dōka, rather than と transcribed to.
か transcribed ka is used after wh- questions
かどうか transcribed ka dōka is used after "yes-no" questions
⭐ Use the verb 聞く transcribed kikumeaning to ask, rather than 言う transcribed iumeaning to say.
Let's see an example!
Asker + は/が
Question
(plain form)
Compare the example above with the original quotation below. Notice that the plain form is used in the indirect quote, but not in the original.
You may remember that the ending だ transcribed da is dropped before the question particle か transcribed ka. This ending is also dropped in reported questions, whether it comes before か transcribed ka or かどうか transcribed ka dōka.
How to report what someone thinks?
When you want to tell what someone thinks or what they thought at some time in the past, follow these rules:, you can use 思っている transcribed omotte iru, the te iru form of 思う transcribed omoumeaning to think. The plain form 思う is used for the speaker’s own opinion. For a third person, you have to change it to its te iru form. Please note that it’s usually in the present tense because the person still has the thought.
The thinker is the subject, marked by は transcribed wa or が transcribed ga.
The thought is the quotation, so it should end in the plain form.
Use the marker と transcribed to , or the casual って transcribed tte, after the thought (just like speech!)
⭐ Use forms of the verb 思う transcribed omoumeaning to think where you might otherwise use 言う transcribed iumeaning say.
思う transcribed omou: Use the plain form to report your own thoughts.
思っている transcribed omotte iru: Use the te-iru form to report someone else's thoughts.
Let's look at some examples:
Thinker + は/が
Thought
(plain form)
You'll use the past tense, 思っていた transcribed omotte itameaning (had) thought, to imply that the person no longer holds the same opinion.
There are other verbs that can be used instead of 思う:
考える transcribed kangaerumeaning to think, to consider
考える transcribed kangaeru is more formal than 思う transcribed omou and is often used in formal settings.
政府は早期の話し合いが大切だと考えています。Transcription: Seifu wa sōki no hanashiai ga taisetsu da to kangaete imasu.Translation: The government thinks that early discussions are important.信じる transcribed shinjirumeaning to believe
信じる transcribed shinjiru is used when the thinker is more confident than 思う transcribed omou. It’s not used very often in daily conversations.
コーチはあの選手なら世界で活躍できると信じています。Transcription: Kōchi wa ano senshu nara sekai de katsuyaku dekiru to shinjite imasu.Translation: The coach believes that that player can make it in the world.見る transcribed mirumeaning to consider, to estimate
見る transcribed miru is used to describe somebody’s perspective. It’s often used in formal settings such as the news.
警察は犯人は男性だと見ています。Transcription: Keisatsu wa han’nin wa dansei da to mite imasu.Translation: The police believe that the perpetrator is a man.
How to describe a noun using a quote?
Though it's not the most common way to report what someone said, it's also possible to use a quote as part of a noun phrase, as in I heard a rumor that Beth will be here tonight.. In these cases, the message you're reporting modifies a noun. Here are some examples of Japanese nouns that are often modified this way.
The quotation will always come before the noun, using the pattern below:
Quotation
(plain form)
Noun
In conversation, と transcribed to is frequently replaced by って transcribed tte, and いう transcribed iu can be dropped.
Here are some phrases that you can use after the quote, besides という transcribed to iu.
といった transcribed to itta / というような transcribed to iu yōna / といったような transcribed to itta yōna:
という transcribed to iu is used when the modified noun has only one description, whereas といった transcribed to itta, というような transcribed to iu yōna, or といったような transcribed to itta yōnaimply that there might be other ways to describe the noun.
会議では、新しい部署を作るべきだという意見が出た。Transcription: Kaigi de wa, atarashii busho o tsukuru beki da to iu iken ga deta.Translation: At the meeting, there was an opinion that we should create a new department.This was the only opinion.会議では、新しい部署を作るべきだといった意見が出た。Transcription: Kaigi de wa, atarashii busho o tsukuru beki da to itta iken ga deta.Translation: At the meeting, there were some opinions, such as creating a new department.There were several opinions, but we're just reporting one of them.との transcribed to no
との transcribed to no can be used to describe nouns that are more closely related to somebody’s utterance or thought, like 意見 transcribed ikenmeaning opinion, 考え transcribed gangaemeaning thought, 連絡 transcribed renrakumeaning contact; communication, and 命令 transcribed meireimeaning order. It's a bit formal.
部長から、明日のミーティングに来られないとの連絡がありました。Transcription: Buchō kara ashita no mītingu ni korarenai to no renraku ga arimashita.Translation: We received communication from our director that he will not be able to attend tomorrow's meeting.
To sum up
In this post, we talked about how you can report what someone else said in Japanese. Here are the two most important patterns to remember:
Direct quotes: Someone's exact words
Speaker + は / が
「Quote」
と言うTranscription: to iuTranslation: saidIndirect quotes: The message of someone's words
Speaker + は / が
Message
(plain form)と言うTranscription: to iuTranslation: said thatDon't forget that if you're reporting that someone made a request, gave an order, asked a question, or expressed a thought, you may have to use a verb other than 言う transcribed iumeaning say, or mark the quotation with something other than と transcribed to!
Ready to practice what you've learned? Check out our Japanese reported speech activities to test your skills! Happy learning!
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