とQuotation marker
と marks words or ideas as the content of saying, thinking, hearing, writing, or naming. It comes after the quoted content and before the reporting verb.
How it works
Think of the material before と as the content being reported. The verb after it tells you what happened to that content: someone said it, thought it, heard it, wrote it, or used it as a name.
Direct and indirect reports
A direct quotation preserves the speaker's actual wording. An indirect report presents the content as a plain-form clause.
Quotation marks
Quotation marks help show exact words in writing, but they are not part of the grammar itself. Indirect reports normally appear without quotation marks.
Thoughts and labels
The same quotation frame can introduce a thought or a name, provided that the following verb fits the kind of content.
More examples
弟は「あとで電話する」と言いました。
My younger brother said, “I’ll call later.”
Analyze友達は試験は難しくなかったと言いました。
My friend said that the exam was not difficult.
Analyze新聞に、駅は来月完成すると書いてありました。
The newspaper said that the station would be completed next month.
Analyze天気予報で、午後から雨が降ると聞きました。
I heard in the weather forecast that it would rain from the afternoon.
Analyzeこの道具は「急須」と言います。
This tool is called a kyusu.
Analyze私はこの部屋は静かだと思います。
I think this room is quiet.
Analyze