Say or Tell? The Listener Trick

Your best friend just got engaged!

Sahabatmu baru saja bertunangan!

You rush home and say, I said him the news!

Kamu bergegas pulang dan bilang, "I said him the news!"

Hmm... something sounds wrong, doesn't it?

Hmm... ada yang kedengarannya salah, kan?

Here's the trick.

Ini triknya.

Tell needs a listener. Say doesn't.

"Tell" butuh pendengar. "Say" tidak.

With tell, you name the person straight away.

Dengan "tell", kamu langsung menyebut orangnya.

Tell me. Tell her. Tell your boss.

"Tell me." "Tell her." "Tell your boss."

With say, the words come first.

Dengan "say", kata-katanya yang datang duluan.

She said hello. He said it was late.

"She said hello." "He said it was late."

Want to add a person? Use to.

Mau menambahkan orang? Pakai "to".

He said sorry to me.

"He said sorry to me."

Wait, what about tell a story?

Tunggu, bagaimana dengan "tell a story"?

Good catch! A few fixed phrases break the rule.

Jeli sekali! Ada beberapa frasa tetap yang melanggar aturan ini.

Tell a story, tell the truth, tell a lie, tell a joke.

"Tell a story", "tell the truth", "tell a lie", "tell a joke".

So when you're stuck, look for the listener.

Jadi kalau bingung, cari pendengarnya.

Is a person right after the verb? Then tell.

Ada orang tepat setelah kata kerjanya? Berarti "tell".

No person? Then say.

Tidak ada orang? Berarti "say".

Go on, tell someone what you just learned!

Ayo, ceritakan ke seseorang apa yang baru kamu pelajari!