言う

• 読み: いう
• ローマ字: iu
• 漢字の分解: 言 (gen/i) — to say, words
• 発音: /i.ɯ/

意味

To say; to utter; to declare; to state. Focuses on the content of what is spoken.

A Group 1 (godan) transitive verb with a u-stem. Historically written as 言ふ. The te-form is 言って. Often used with the quotation particle と to mark what was said (先生が来ると言った). Different from 話す, which emphasises the act of speaking; 言う emphasises what is being expressed.

例文

1. 先生は何と言いましたか。
2. 日本語でどう言いますか。
3. 彼は明日来ると言った。

使い方ガイド

場面: conversation, reporting, daily life

トーン: neutral

起源と歴史

From Old Japanese ifu. The kanji 言 depicts words (horizontal lines) coming from a mouth, representing the act of verbalising thoughts.

文化的背景

時代: Ancient

世代: All ages

社会的背景: Universal