1. 言う(iu) – To say or to tell – How to quote someone
One of the primary uses of “iu” is to express “to say” in the sense of quoting or paraphrasing another person. The sentence pattern for quoting or paraphrasing is typically:
[Person who said it]は「quoted phrase」と言いました。
[Person who said it] wa “[quoted phrase]” to iimashita ([Person who said it] said that “[quoted phrase].”)
You may encounter variations on this pattern depending on how casual the sentence is and whether additional qualifying words or descriptive words are included, but this is a good base sentence to start with.
The particle “to” between the quoted phrase and the “iu” verb indicates that the phrase is being quoted. You may have encountered the particle “to” before with the meaning “with” (e.g. 友達と行きました, “I went with my friend”); but when “to” is followed by “iu” its “with” meaning is not applied.
Here is an example of a quotation sentence:
山田さんは「６時に会議がある」と言いました。Yamada-san wa “roku ji ni kaigi ga aru” to iimashita (Yamada-san said it there is a meeting at 6 o’clock).
Note that when you are quoting or paraphrasing, you almost always want the sentence or phrase being quoted to be spoken/written using casual/short form verbs and copulas. The politeness level of a Japanese sentence is determined largely by the politeness level of the final verb in the sentence, so as long as the “iu” is in -masu form (“iimasu”), the overall sentence will remain polite even though the verbs and copulas within the quoted phrase are in casual/short forms. Plus, if the verbs and copulas in the quoted phrase are written out in -masu form, it can make the sentence stiff and overly long.
Also note also that the quotation particle “to” is often pronounced “tte,” particularly if the rest of the sentence around the quotation is phrased casually.
For example:
山田さんは「６時に会議がある」と言いました。
Yamada-san wa “roku ji ni kaigi ga aru” to iimashita.
山田さんは「６時に会議がある」って言った。
Yamada-san wa “roku ji ni kaigi ga aru” tte itta.
Both these sentences have the same meaning, but the second sentence is more casual because it ends with the short form past tense of “iu” rather than the -masu form past tense of “iu.”
2. 言う(iu) – Uses other than quotation
One additional use for “to iu” is to tell someone what the name of a person or thing is.
Examples:
私はリリーと言います。
Watashi wa Riri- to iimasu (I am called Lily). (Note that “iimasu” does not literally mean “called” in the English sense of “to be called” (a passive tense sentence) here, although it can be used to express the same idea).
「Cat」は日本語で何と言いますか？“Cat” wa nihongo de nan to iimasu ka?
(What is “cat” in Japanese?)
「Cat」は「猫」と言います。“Cat” wa “neko” to iimasu
(“Cat” is [called/pronounced/said/etc] “neko”).
Another use for “iu,” when directly preceded by the expression “you ni” rather than the particle “to,” is to express the idea of someone being told to do something.
For example:
ママは私に宿題をするように言いました。Mama wa watashi ni shukudai o suru you ni iimashita (My mom told me to do my homework).
A final note about “iu”: Occasionally, you may run across “to iu” in the middle or latter half of a sentence rather than at the end of the sentence. In these cases, the “to iu” may be written only in hiragana rather than a mix of hiragana and kanji, and is probably being used to mean something similar to the English “called” or “like” rather than being used to indicate a quotation or paraphrasing.
For example:
「トットちゃん」という本を読みました。Totto-chan toiu hon o yonda
(I read a book called “Toto-chan”)
(again, note that “toiu” does not lierally mean “called,” although it is expressing the same concept).
自分の手でセーターを編むという事は本当に難しいですね。Jibun no te de se-ta- o amu toiu koto wa hontou ni muzukashii desu ne (To knit a sweater with one’s own hands is truly difficult, huh?)
3. 話す (hanasu) & 喋る (shaberu) – To speak or to talk
Japanese has two relatively common verbs meaning “to speak” or “to talk.” These are “hanasu” and “shaberu.” Depending on the situation, they can also mean “to chat.” These verbs are frequently interchangeable.
Examples:
彼はスペイン語を話しています。彼はスペイン語を喋っています。Kare wa Spain-go o hanashiteimasu. Kare wa Spain-go o shabetteimasu (He is talking in Spanish).
友達と電話で何時間も話していました。友達と電話で何時間も喋っていました。Tomodachi to denwa de nan jikan mo hanashiteimashita. Tomodachi to denwa de nan jikan mo shabetteimashita (I talked with my friend on the phone for many hours).
Though these verbs are very similar, “shaberu” has slightly more of a nuance of “chat” than “hanasu” does, and so there are some situations in which “hanasu” is appropriate, but not “shaberu.”
For example:
部長に話した方がいいですよ。Buchou ni hanashita hou ga ii desu yo
(You should speak to your boss).
ブラウン様と話したいのですが。Brown-sama to hanashitai no desu ga
(I want to speak to Mr. Brown).
“Hanasu” is also commonly used in its noun form (“hanashi,” 話) to mean “story.” “Shaberu,” too, can be used in noun form (“oshaberi,” お喋り); and when it is means “chatting” or “chitchat.”
4. 語る (kataru)
“Kataru” is yet another “speak” verb! It is not as useful as the other “say/speak” verbs in ordinary conversation and so we will not be covering it in as much detail, but will give a brief summary of its meaning and general usage:
“Kataru” also means “to speak” or “to talk,” but it is less commonly encountered than “hanasu” or “shaberu.” “Kataru” is more of a literary word than a spoken one, and when “kataru” is interchanged with “hanasu” in spoken (or written) Japanese it can make the sentence sound more formal, literary, or even proverbial.
While “kataru” can be interchanged with “hanasu” in many situations, bear in mind that it also carries more of a nuance of “tell” than the other “speak” verbs; and you may find it used more frequently to describe one person who is talking, lecturing, or telling a story to another person or group of people (as opposed to two or more people all talking amongst each other) compared with the other “speak” verbs.
For example:
佐藤さんは旅行について語っていました。Satou-san wa ryokou nit suite katatteimashita (Satou-san told about his/her trip).
Similar to “hanasu” and “shaberu,” “kataru” can also be used in its noun form (“katari,” 語り), and when it is means “a talk” or “a narration.” It is more common, though, to see its noun form in compound words such as “monogatari” (meaning “tale;” for instance in the Japanese title of “The Tale of Genji”: Genji Monogatari 源氏物語).
