said; [someone] saidThis sequence consists of the topic particle は followed by 言った, the past tense of 言う (“to say”). It is used after the speaker’s name or pronoun, often following a quotation: 「…」とトムは言った (“Tom said, ‘…’”).
JA: 「その本をくれるなら、私は欲しい」とトムは言った。
EN: Tom said, “If you’ll give me that book, I want it.”