Phrase (Basic ㊦ 556)
Tell someone in such a way that he will do something.
Equivalent: Tell ~ to ~; say ~ in such a way
| Vinformal nonpast | ように言う | |
| 話すように言う | Tell someone to talk | |
| 食べるように言う | Tell someone to eat |
1. ように言う can be used either as an indirect imperative as in Key Sentence and Examples (a) and (b), or to mean 'say in such a way that ~,' i.e., the use of ように1 (⇨ ように1) In the former case, the verb must be a controllable verb a verb that represents something controllable by human volition, such as する 'do', 待つ 'wait', 来る 'come', 読む 'read' and 買う 'buy'. In the latter case the verb must be a noncontrollable verb, such as 分かる 'understand', 聞こえる 'be audible' (Example (c)), or a potential form of verbs.
2. When ように言う is used as an indirect imperative, the verb 言う can be replaced by other verbs such as 頼む 'ask', 命じる 'order' and 求める 'request'.
The direct imperative versions of (1) are something like (2). Notice that there is more than one direct imperative form if the directive verb is 言う.