deya

Literary Quotation with Deya

Level 6

Quoted words + deya + verb: «Keling», deya taklif qildi (She invited them, saying «Come»). Deya means the same as deb but sounds literary.

How It Works

Same job as deb. What deb does in a sentence, deya can do in writing. The quoted words come first, then deya, then the main verb:

  • «Keling», deya taklif qildi. (She invited them, saying «Come».)
  • «Bu yil hosil moʻl boʻladi», deya taʼkidladi vazir. («The harvest will be rich this year,» the minister stressed.)

In the news. Uzbek news sites use deya all the time after a quotation: ... deya taʼkidladi (stressed), ... deya xabar berdi (reported), ... deya javob berdi (answered). The speaker often comes after the verb, as with vazir above.

Purpose with -sin. Like -sin deb, -sin deya gives a goal: Bolalar uygʻonmasin deya, sekin gapirdi (She spoke quietly so the children would not wake up).

Naming. Deya also joins a name or label to atamoq (to call): Uni «xalq shoiri» deya atashadi (They call him «the people's poet»).

Do not double the verb say. With dedi (said), no deya is needed: «Keling», dedi u. Use deya only when a different verb follows. Also, deya olmoq is a different use of the same form: de- with -a olmoq (can): Uni doʻst deya olmayman (I can't call him a friend).

Examples (6)

  1. «Keling», deya taklif qildi.

    She invited them, saying «Come».

    Word by Word: «Come», saying invitation made.

  2. «Bu yil hosil moʻl boʻladi», deya taʼkidladi vazir.

    «The harvest will be rich this year,» the minister stressed.

    Word by Word: «This year harvest plentiful will-be», saying stressed minister.

    News style: the speaker comes after the verb.

  3. «Hammasi joyida», deya javob berdi u.

    «Everything is fine,» she answered.

    Word by Word: «All-of-it its-place-in», saying answer gave she.

  4. Bolalar uygʻonmasin deya, sekin gapirdi.

    She spoke quietly so the children would not wake up.

    Word by Word: Children let-them-not-wake saying, quietly spoke.

    -sin deya gives a purpose, just like -sin deb.

  5. Uni «xalq shoiri» deya atashadi.

    They call him «the people's poet».

    Word by Word: Him «people poet-its» saying they-call.

  6. U «Rahmat» deya jilmaydi.

    She smiled and said «Thank you».

    Word by Word: She «Thanks» saying smiled.

Common Mistakes

  • Putting deya before dedi, which repeats the verb say.

    «Keling», deya dedi u.
    «Keling», dedi u.

    Deya means saying, so it needs a different verb after it, such as taklif qildi or javob berdi. With dedi alone, leave deya out.

  • Putting deya at the end of the sentence.

    «Keling», taklif qildi deya.
    «Keling», deya taklif qildi.

    Deya links the quoted words to the verb that follows, so it comes right after the quotation.

How It Connects

Tap a pattern to see what it builds on and what it leads to.

deyaLevel 6Literary Quotation with Deya

Learn This First

Builds on Quoting With deb.

Words in This Pattern

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