Reporting what someone said

By Speak Indo, from the Speak Indo Indonesian course.

kata, bilang, menurut. Reporting other people's words.

How it works

Indonesian reported speech is refreshingly simple: no tense changes. Just quote what was said. • kata [person], 'said [person]' (formal-neutral) • bilang [person], 'said [person]' (casual) • menurut [person], according to [person] Word order: the speaker usually comes AFTER the verb.

Examples

• Kata ibu, kita makan malam jam tujuh.
  Mom said we eat dinner at seven.
• Dia bilang dia sibuk.
  She said she's busy.
• Menurut berita, akan hujan besok.
  According to the news, it'll rain tomorrow.