Practice
Said or told: choosing the right verb
Your coworker reports a call: "Lina said the delivery was late." If the coworker names the person who heard the news, say "Lina told me the delivery was late." The meaning is close, but the listener has a different place in each pattern.
Choose said or told by checking whether the sentence names the listener and what was communicated.
Read and practice
Read the examples and try the written questions in this guide. Listening recordings are not available for this lesson yet.
Try the written questions
said and told /sɛd/ and /toʊld/
The short answer
Use said + message, or said to + person. Use told + person + message. Write He said that he was tired and He told us that he was tired. Do not write He told to us that he was tired.
Nora told her supervisor that the report was ready.
Why it works: Her supervisor is the listener, so it comes directly after told.
5 more examples
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I said that the meeting started at nine.
The sentence reports the message. It does not identify a listener.
Not this:I
told the team that the meeting started at nine. What changes: The team is the listener, so it follows told directly. -
Omar said to his neighbor that the package had arrived.
After said, use to before the person who heard the message.
Not this:Omar
told his neighborthat the package had arrived. What changes: After told, the listener comes directly after the verb. -
The guide said, "Please stay with the group."
Said is common when the speaker's exact words follow.
Not this:The guide
told us to staywith the group. What changes: Told can introduce a person and an instruction with to plus a verb. -
She told me the address before she left.
Me is the listener. The address is the information that she gave.
Not this:She
said the addressbefore she left. What changes: This can be grammatical, but it focuses on her words rather than on giving the address to a listener. -
They said they would call again tomorrow.
The clause contains the reported information. A listener is not named.
Not this:They
told us they would call againtomorrow. What changes: Us is the listener, so told fits the pattern.
Read the full guide
Find the listener before you choose the verb. If the listener is part of the sentence, told is often the clearest choice. If you only report the message, said usually works. Then check the word order.
Start with the listener
Ask whether the sentence names the person who received the information. When it does, told is a useful pattern: told me, told the manager, or told our neighbors. Put that person directly after told.
The nurse told the patient that the test was finished.
The patient receives the information, so the noun comes directly after told.
Complete the sentence: Kai told ___ that the office was closed.
Use us: Kai told us that the office was closed.
Use to after said when you name a person
Said can also name a listener, but it needs to before that person. The message can follow in the same sentence. Do not use said me or said her when you mean that someone spoke to that person.
I said to my brother that I would arrive late.
To connects said to my brother.
Choose the missing word: She said ___ her friend that the bus was delayed.
Use to: She said to her friend that the bus was delayed.
Report a message with said
When no listener is important, said often introduces the words or a that clause. The word that is optional in many reported-speech sentences. Both She said that she was ready and She said she was ready are standard.
Arun said that the keys were on the desk.
The sentence reports Arun's message without telling us who heard it.
Choose the verb: Priya ___ that she had sent the form.
Use said if the listener is not named: Priya said that she had sent the form.
Use told for information and instructions
Told can introduce information or an instruction. With an instruction, use a person, then to plus the base verb: told me to wait. With information, use a person, then a clause or noun: told me that the shop was open or told me the time.
The coach told the players to bring water.
The players are the people receiving the instruction.
Complete the sentence: The doctor told him ___ rest for two days.
Use to: The doctor told him to rest for two days.
Correct the word order
Two mistakes are common: told to someone and said someone. For told, remove to before the listener. For said, add to before the listener, or change said to told. Read the sentence once more to check that the person and message are both clear.
Incorrect: Rosa told to me that the train had left.
Standard edit: Rosa told me that the train had left.
Edit the sentence: The receptionist said us that the clinic was full.
Write: The receptionist told us that the clinic was full, or said to us that the clinic was full.
Before you go
Remember this
Use said when you report a message without naming the listener directly, or use said to + person. Use told when the listener comes directly after the verb. Check the pattern before you write: said to her, but told her.
Practice with the written examples
You can practice with the written questions in the Learn tab. Each answer includes an explanation.
Try the written questionsListening test not available yet
This lesson does not have the recordings needed for a listening test. Use the written questions in the guide to check your understanding.
Try the written questionsQuestions about "Said or told: choosing the right verb"
What is the main difference between said and told?
Said usually reports words or information without naming a listener directly. Told usually names the listener directly: She said that she was tired, but She told me that she was tired.
I said that the meeting started at nine.
Can I say told to me?
Use told me, not told to me, when me is the listener. Tell takes the person directly after the verb: The guide told us the time.
I told the team that the meeting started at nine.
Can I say said me?
No. When you name the listener after said, use to: He said to me that the store was closed. In many situations, He told me that the store was closed is more natural.
Omar said to his neighbor that the package had arrived.
Do I need that after said or told?
No. In many reported-speech sentences, that is optional: She said that she was ready and She said she was ready are both standard. The listener pattern still matters after told.
Omar told his neighbor that the package had arrived.
Can told introduce an instruction?
Yes. Use told + person + to + base verb for an instruction: The manager told the staff to lock the door. The person receives the instruction.
The guide said, "Please stay with the group."