彼女は言った
kanojo wa itta
In Japanese, "she said" is 彼女は言った (kanojo wa itta).
The phrase 彼女は言った is used to report that a female person spoke. When quoting direct speech in Japanese, the particle と is used to mark the quoted words before the reporting verb, following the pattern 「…」と彼女は言った.
Which one should you use?
The choice of particle changes the nuance of the sentence. Using 彼女は言った marks "she" as the topic, while 彼女が言った shifts the focus to emphasize that it was specifically *she* who said it. Additionally, the verb 言った is an informal way to say "said" or "told".
Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?
For a polite way to say "she said," use 彼女は言いました. If you need a formal expression, use おっしゃいました.
How does it change in a sentence?
In the phrase 彼女は言った, the particle は marks 彼女 (she) as the topic of the sentence.
How do you pronounce it?
kanojo wa itta
Did you know?
- While 彼女 (kanojo) means 'she', it is also the standard word for 'girlfriend'. Depending on the context, 彼女は言った could be interpreted as 'my girlfriend said', rather than just a female person.
- The word 彼女 (kanojo) is a relatively modern creation. Before the Meiji era, Japanese did not have a direct equivalent for the third-person pronoun 'she' and used descriptions like 'that woman' instead.
- In Japanese literature, the word 彼女 (she) is rarely used to refer to a specific woman in a story. Instead, authors typically use the woman's name or a title like 'the teacher' to avoid sounding like a direct translation from English.
Examples in context
- 「忘れちゃった」と彼女は言った。"I forgot," she said.This sentence shows how to use the reporting particle with the phrase 彼女は言った.Tatoeba #10194695 by small_snow, translation #267302 by CM
- ジョンはその知らせを聞いて喜んでいるに違いない、と彼女は言った。She said that John must be very glad to hear the news.This sentence demonstrates reporting a statement with the phrase 彼女は言った.Tatoeba #215390 by bunbuku, translation #52691 by Swift
- 「泣かないで」と彼女は言った。"Don't cry," she said.This sentence shows how to report a command using the phrase 彼女は言った.Tatoeba #236360 by mookeee, translation #73727 by Zifre
- 4 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Kenta is talking to Yui about a mutual friend's comment.
- 健太 Kenta彼女は言ったの？Kanojo wa itta no?Did she say that?
- 結衣 Yuiうん、彼女は言ったよ。Un, kanojo wa itta yo.Yes, she said it.
- 健太 Kenta具体的に何て言ったの？Gutaiteki ni nante itta no?What specifically did she say?
- 結衣 Yui明日行くって彼女は言った。Ashita iku tte kanojo wa itta.She said she would go tomorrow.
Sources
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
