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Grammar: Differences between say, tell, talk and speak

Published 03/08/2015 In Blog

 

Like many English learners, you might have trouble knowing when to use the verbs: say, tell, speak and talk correctly. 

 

In the post you will find an explanation of when to use each verb together with some examples. 

 

You can also find a poster above talking about these differences, make sure to click on it and save it on your computer!

 

TELL

 

- To give information to somebody by speaking or writing.

 

        tell someone something:

 

              ‘I told him the truth’

 

 

         tell something to somebody:

 

              ‘He told the truth to his boss’

 

 

- We usually say WHO is told and WHAT.

           

         ‘I told HIM (who) THE TRUTH (what)

 

Like many English learners, you might be having trouble when to use say, tell, speak and talk.

 

In this post you will find an explanation of the situations in which we use each verb and 

 

SAY

 

- To simply say something or say something to somebody

 

            ‘I said what I wanted for dinner’

 

            ‘I want to say something about the project’

 

 

- The construction ‘She said that..’ is very common, but that can be omitted in informal writing OR in speech.

    

          ‘He said to her (that) she was invited to the party’

 

          ‘She said that she didn’t want to go to the party’

 

 

 

SPEAK

  

- We often use it for one-way communication, and also for more serious or formal communications.

 

           ‘I have to speak to you after the class’        

      

           ‘He spoke for two hours about his book’

 

 

- It refers to a person’s ability to speak a language.

      

‘Mary speaks six languages fluently’

 

 

 

TALK

 

- It is used to talk about a general topic and it usually refers to two or more people exchanging or sharing information.

 

    

‘We talked about his experience in China’

 

‘Let’s talk about your plans for the Summer’

 

 

Hopefully this post will have helped you understand the differences between these verbs. If you have any related questions, don't hesitate to contact me at info@keelyalgarlanguages.com

I will be more than happy to clarify any doubts!

english grammar say tell speak talk differences between say tell speak and talk


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