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言付ける

ことづける

to send word, to leave a message with someone

By Nihongo PathUpdated

Examples

  1. 妹に言付けて、母に伝えてもらった。

    いもうとにことづけて、ははにつたえてもらった。

    I left a message with my sister and had her pass it to my mother.

  2. 留守だったので、隣の人に言付けておいた。

    るすだったので、となりのひとにことづけておいた。

    Nobody was home, so I left word with the neighbor.

  3. 帰りが遅くなると、同僚に言付けてもらえますか。

    かえりがおそくなると、どうりょうにことづけてもらえますか。

    Could you get a colleague to pass on word that I'll be back late?

Common patterns

言付けを頼む
to ask someone to pass on a message
～に言付ける
to leave a message with someone
言付けを預かる
to take a message for someone

Memory tip

The point is the middleman: you hand a message to a person who will relay it. Do not confuse it with 言いつける (いいつける), which means to order someone about or to tell on them — a different verb entirely. The noun 言付け (ことづけ) is more common than the verb today.

Kanji in this word

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What does 言付ける mean?