This is the 5485th most frequent Korean word.
말했다는
"말했다는" means "said that" in English.
Here, '말했다는' is used to introduce the reported speech or claim being understood.
그가 왜 그렇게 말했다는 것을 이해할 수 있다.
I can understand why he said that.
In this sentence, '말했다는' connects the verb '말하다' with the subsequent clause about a story being heard.
친구가 나에게 그곳에 가지 말라고 말했다는 이야기를 들었다.
I heard the story that my friend told me not to go there.
Here, '말했다는' expresses the recalled statement made by the teacher regarding an obligation.