って

See also: つて

Japanese

Etymology

Contracted from とて (tote), itself a compound of quotative particle と (to) and conjunctive particle て (te).[1][2]

Another etymology lists って as a shift from てふ (tefu), a contraction of と言う (to iu, “said that...”) in its Classical Japanese form.[3]

  • /to ifu/ → /toifu/ → /tefu/ → /tte/

When following a word ending in ん (n), manifests without gemination as just て (te).[3]

First cited to the late 1800s.[3]

Pronunciation
  • IPA(key): [t̚te̞]
  • Can be used with a rising intonation to indicate a question.[3]

Particle

って • (tte) 

  1. [from late 1800s] he/she/I/they/we said: a type of verbal quotation mark used for direct and indirect quotes, also similar to that when used as a coordinating conjunction
    すぐ来(き)ますって。
    Sugu kimasu tte.
    He said (that) he'd come soon.
    お母(かあ)さんに聞(き)いたら、だめだって。
    Okāsan ni kiitara, dame da tte.
    When I asked my mom, she said no.
    あいつ病気(びょうき)なんだって。
    Aitsu byōki nanda tte.
    They say they're sick.
  2. [from early 1900s] used to emphasize a word
    アラビア語(ご)って、難(むずか)しくない？
    Arabia-go tte, muzukashikunai?
    Arabic, you say? Isn't that difficult?
    これって何(なん)て名(な)前(まえ)？
    Kore tte nante namae?
    What is this called?

Usage notes

The particle often appears as て (te) when following a word ending in ん (n).[3]

彼(かれ)が行(い)かんて言(い)うんだよ。
Kare ga ikan te iu n da yo.
She says (that) he's not coming!

See also

Interjection

って • (tte) 

  1. Used to draw attention to something objectionable in a discussion.
    黙(だま)れ。ってなんでお前(まえ)がここに！
    Damare.Tte nande omae ga koko ni!
    Shut up. And why are you even here!

References
  1. Matsumura, Akira, editor (2006), 大辞林 [Daijirin] (in Japanese), Third edition, Tōkyō: Sanseidō, →ISBN
  2. Matsumura, Akira (1995) 大辞泉 [Daijisen] (in Japanese), First edition, Tōkyō: Shogakukan, →ISBN
  3. “って”, in 日本国語大辞典 (Nihon Kokugo Daijiten, “Nihon Kokugo Daijiten”)‎ (in Japanese), concise edition, Tōkyō: Shogakukan, 2000
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