The verbs "say" and "tell" are very similar in that they both describe communication between people. But we use them quite differently.
Look at this conversation between two friends, A and B, about a third friend, C. Friend A uses the verb “say”, while B uses “tell”. Can you figure out why?
A: I think C said she was going to be here.
B: She told me she wasn’t.
A: Really? I was sure she said she was.
B: Well, I’m pretty sure she told me she wasn’t. I'd better call her.
Both A & B are reporting what C said, so why does A use “said” and B use “told”?
Simply put
Here's a simple way to remember the difference is:
- You say something.
- You tell someone something.
Another way of thinking about this is to consider two questions.
- Say what?
- Tell who?
Deeper explanation
This is the more grammatical explanation.
To understand this, you have to understand direct objects and indirect objects.
Here's a simple subject-verb-object (S-V-O) sentence: I called my boss. In this sentence, my boss is the direct object.
We can add an indirect object: I told you I called my boss. In this sentence, you are the indirect object, and the point of the sentence—my boss—is the same as the previous example.
- “To say” is a transitive verb that takes a direct object = what was said.
- Eg: I said I was finished.
- “To tell” is a two-object verb, which means it needs to be followed by both an indirect object and a direct object = who you told, and what you told them.
- Eg: I told you I was finished.
Let’s look at the first two lines of the conversation again to see how it works.
A: I think C (subject) said (verb) she was going to be here (direct object).
B: She (subject) told (verb) me (indirect object) she wasn’t (direct object).
So ask yourself: Do you simply have something to say? Or do you want to tell someone about it? The answer to that question will help you find the right verb to use.
