say or tell?
You say something, but you tell someone something
He said he was coming.
He told me he was coming.
You use ‘say’ to report any sort of speech.
You can say what you like.
‘Tell’ is used for information, instructions and orders.
Can you tell me where the train station is?
He told him to finish it by Friday.
Tell Daniel not to wait.
These phrases always use ‘tell’
tell a story
tell a lie
tell the truth
tell the future
tell the time
Don’t say I didn’t tell you.