Grammar Info

N3 Lesson 3: 14/22

といえばSpeaking of, If it were the case that

Structure

Noun + と言(い)えば(1)

(1) と言(い)うと、と言(い)ったら

Details

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About といえば

と言(い)えば, と言(い)うと, and と言(い)ったら are all expressions that are translated quite closely to 'speaking of (A)', or 'if it were the case that (A)'. Each of these structures has a slightly different nuance, but are largely used in the same situations.

と言(い)えば - More hypothetical, 'were it (A)'.

と言(い)うと - More concrete, 'if it's (A)'.

と言(い)ったら - More situational, 'when it's (A)'.

These constructions are most commonly used after nouns, in response to something that has already been mentioned in the conversation (usually by someone else). The thing that has already been said is quite often the 'trigger' for someone remembering something, causing them to interject with と言(い)えば.

Caution

Although these phrases are used in response to something that has already been mentioned, their purpose is to change the topic of the conversation somehow (or to add new information), rather than continuing along with the same subject.

  • 夏(なつ)と言(い)ったら祭(まつ)りだから、明日(あした)の祭(まつ)りに一緒(いっしょ)に行(い)かない？
    Speaking of summer, since it's a festival, do you want to go to the festival tomorrow?
  • キクチ君(くん)といえば、幾(いく)つなんだろう？
    Speaking of Kikuchi-kun, I wonder how old he is.

Examples

--:--

    A: 「夏休(なつやす)み、海(うみ)に行(い)きたいわ。」
    B: 「夏(なつ)といえばかき氷(ごおり)だよね。」

    A: 'I want to go to the beach during summer vacation.'
    B: 'Speaking of summer, shaved ice!'

    A: 「コーヒーがほしい！」
    B: 「コーヒーといえば、新(あたら)しい喫茶店(きっさてん)が開店(かいてん)した。じゃあ、一緒(いっしょ)に喫茶店(きっさてん)に行(い)こうか？」

    A: 'I want coffee.'
    B: 'Speaking of coffee, a new coffee shop just opened. Wanna go?'

    A: 「ビットコインの評価(ひょうか)は最近(さいきん)下(さが)ったみたい...。」
    B: 「ビットコインといえば、今(いま)、売(う)るべきなの？」

    A: 'It looks like the value of bitcoin has recently decreased...'
    B: 'Speaking of bitcoin, should I sell now?'

    A：「最近(さいきん)、アニメは国際的(こくさいてき)に人気(にんき)になっていくよ。」
    B：「アニメといえばドラグーンボールの新(あたら)しいシーズンが放送(ほうそう)されているね。」

    A: 'Recently anime is getting popular internationally.'
    B: 'Speaking of anime, a new season of 'Dragoon ball' has aired, right?'

    A：「カナダではオーロラや野生(やせい)動物(どうぶつ)がよく見(み)られるらしい。」
    B：「オーロラの美(うつく)しさといったら、言葉(ことば)では表現(ひょうげん)できませんなあ。」

    A: 'I have heard that you can see auroras and wild animals in Canada.'
    B: 'Speaking of the beauty of auroras, it cannot be described with words.' (if you were to speak of...)

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といえば – Grammar Discussion

Most Recent Replies (4 in total)

  • mrnoone

    mrnoone

    Hey

    I have seen it used like this few times, but そういえば is far more common and natural.

    そういえば トム・クルツは知っているの？

    Cheers

  • MegaZeroX

    MegaZeroX

    According to Edawakaru, there is a nuance to というと and といえば in that といえば can’t be used for questions about the topic while というと can. So maybe that should be added to the reading, or a Japanese Stack Exchange question answering the same thing.

    Also, is there a known difference between といったら and the others?

  • Daru

    Daru

    It’s because you’re no longer guessing or setting up a conditional/hypothetical. It’s very similar to the rules used to ‘respect’ これ・それ・あれ.

    The nuance between といったら・というと・といえば inherit their respective conditional’s nuance.

    This very same reason is why you can’t use といえば in conversation as the resource you pointed out states, as と forebodes a 100% likely event in terms of conditional. といえば・といたら give t a softer tone as they’re less ‘definitive’ conditionals, といえば being softer.

    Hope this helps! I’ve added your resource to the Grammar Point!

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