Vocabulary Exercise: Say, tell, speak, talk

These four verbs can cause problems for English learners. Practise using them in the quiz below!

Level: Pre-intermediate and above

1. So then Melissa __ ''I hate doing homework!''

said
spoke
told
We use the verb ''say'' in both direct and indirect English. We follow it with the words that the person spoke. For example: He said, ''How are you?'' (direct speech) or ''He said that he was happy.'' (indirect speech)

2. He __ his brother that he wanted an ice-cream.

said
spoke
told
You tell someone (something). After the verb ''tell'' often comes the person. For example, he told me, he told his teacher. If we report the conversation, we can use ''that'': ''He told his teacher that he didn't understand.''

3. He didn't __ anything to me!

4. I think you need to __ something to the police about what you saw last night.

5. His teacher __ him to study for the exam.

said
spoke
told
We use ''tell'' for reported commands. ''Study for the exam!'' = She told him to study for the exam.

6. How many languages can you __ ?

7. What are you two __ about?

saying
talking
telling
We generally use the verb ''talk'' when we refer to conversations. For example, ''They're always talking together in class'' or ''Nobody ever talks to strangers on public transport!'' You can ''talk to'' or ''talk with'' another person.

8. ''Can we __?''

say
tell
talk
If you want a conversation with another person, you can say ''Can we talk?'' The verb ''talk'' doesn't need an object. For example, ''Let's talk!''. You can also ''talk about'' something. ''I'd like to talk about the summer holiday.''

9. ''Can I __ to you in private?'' Lucy asked her boss.

speak
talk
tell
We often use ''speak'' for more formal situations, or for more formal subjects of conversation.

10. I can't trust John. He never __ the truth.

11. He __ a funny story about living in Paris.

12. How do you __ ''bread'' in Italian?

13. They're always ___ politics!

saying
speaking
talking
There are some expressions with ''talk'', such as ''talk business'', ''talk shop'' or ''talk politics''.

14. Fran: ''Mr Jones is so difficult to work with!''
Mel: '' __ about it!''

Say
Speak
Tell
''Tell me about it!'' = when you agree with a person because you also have the same experience. (In this example, Mel also understands that Mr Jones is difficult to work with, because she has also had problems with him.)

15. Can you __ up, please? I can't hear you.''

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