Say or tell ? english grammar today a reference to written and spoken english grammar and usage cambridge dictionary. Say vs. tell “say” and “tell” have a difference in meaning but are both ways of reporting information or ideas that have been communicated verbally. the major difference is that when you use “say,” it is not necessary to specify with whom the thoughts or information were discussed. when you use “tell,” you must do so.
Say and tell are irregular reporting verbs. both have fairly the same meaning and are used in reported speech. “say” means: to utter words in order to communicate information, an opinion, or a feeling. example: “i am fed up with this life,” he said. “ tell” means: to communicate something to someone in spoken or written forms. The verbs say and tell have similar meanings. they both mean "to communicate verbally with someone". but we often use them differently. the simple way to think of say and tell is: you say something. you tell someone something. you say something. you tell someone something. ram said that he was tired. The word ‘say’ is used to state something, specifically opinion, feelings, suggestions and so forth. on the other hand, tell is used to say something to a person, i.e. provide information or narrate something. while say can be used as a noun, verb and interjection, tell can only be used as a verb. when you use the word ‘say’, we needn. Remember that “say” often focuses more on the actual words that someone says. she’s detail oriented. “tell” is better if you want to focus on the information more than the actual words. that’s why it’s usually much better to use “say” when we’re reporting someone’s direct words. so, we can say:.
The word ‘say’ is used to state something, specifically opinion, feelings, suggestions and so forth. on the other hand, tell is used to say something to a person, i.e. provide information or narrate something. while say can be used as a noun, verb and interjection, tell can only be used as a verb. when you use the word ‘say’, we needn. Remember that “say” often focuses more on the actual words that someone says. she’s detail oriented. “tell” is better if you want to focus on the information more than the actual words. that’s why it’s usually much better to use “say” when we’re reporting someone’s direct words. so, we can say:. We tell someone something. we say something to someone. "say" and "tell" have other meanings. 1. “say” focuses on words. “tell” focuses on information. at their core, "say" and "tell" mean different things. "say" means "to express a thought in words" and focuses on the words people use when they talk. When you have to decide whether to use say or tell, think about the focus of your sentence. if you want to put the emphasis on the information (what you say) first, you should use say. if you want to put the emphasis on the listener (whom you tell) first, you should use tell. these were the differences between say and tell .
We tell someone something. we say something to someone. "say" and "tell" have other meanings. 1. “say” focuses on words. “tell” focuses on information. at their core, "say" and "tell" mean different things. "say" means "to express a thought in words" and focuses on the words people use when they talk. When you have to decide whether to use say or tell, think about the focus of your sentence. if you want to put the emphasis on the information (what you say) first, you should use say. if you want to put the emphasis on the listener (whom you tell) first, you should use tell. these were the differences between say and tell .
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