说 (shuō) — say / speak / talk | Chinese (Mandarin) Grammar

说 (shuō) is the everyday verb for producing speech — say, speak, talk. English lets you "tell him" with the listener as a direct object; Chinese does not. 说 can take what is said (a language, the truth, a whole reported clause) but the person you say it to is introduced by a coverb — 跟 or 对 — before 说. Get that one structural fact right and most 说 errors disappear. And note the trap in the title: bare 说 + a person does exist, but it means "scold that person," not "tell them something."

Sense 1: say / speak / talk

说 covers speaking in general (说话), speaking a language (说中文, 说英文), and saying content (说实话 "tell the truth"). To report what someone said, just drop the clause straight after 说 — no "that," no quotation frame.

别说话了，电影马上要开始了。

bié shuōhuà le, diànyǐng mǎshàng yào kāishǐ le

Stop talking — the movie's about to start. (informal)

你会说中文吗？说得真好！

nǐ huì shuō Zhōngwén ma? shuō de zhēn hǎo

Can you speak Chinese? You speak it really well!

他说他今天太忙了，来不了。

tā shuō tā jīntiān tài máng le, lái bu liǎo

He says he's too busy today and can't make it.

The listener, when named, rides in on 跟 (gēn) or 对 (duì):

我有件事想跟你说。

wǒ yǒu jiàn shì xiǎng gēn nǐ shuō

There's something I want to talk to you about.

老板对我说了半天，我一句都没听懂。

lǎobǎn duì wǒ shuō le bàntiān, wǒ yí jù dōu méi tīngdǒng

The boss talked at me for ages and I didn't catch a word.

Sense 2: tell off / scold

With a person as its object and usually a 一顿 "a round of" at the end, 说 means to give someone a talking-to. This is the sense that makes 说他 mean "scold him," which is exactly why it can't do double duty for "tell him (something)."

因为迟到，他被老板说了一顿。

yīnwèi chídào, tā bèi lǎobǎn shuō le yí dùn

He got a telling-off from the boss for being late. (informal)

别老说孩子，越说他越不听。

bié lǎo shuō háizi, yuè shuō tā yuè bù tīng

Stop nagging the kid — the more you scold him, the less he listens. (informal)

Sense 3: mean / refer to

说 also frames "what someone means" — 你说的是… "the one you mean / what you're referring to is…" Here 说 is nominalised with 的 and points at the intended referent.

你说的是哪个小王？我们公司有两个。

nǐ shuō de shì nǎge Xiǎo Wáng? wǒmen gōngsī yǒu liǎng ge

Which Xiao Wang do you mean? There are two in our company.

我不是那个意思，你别误会。

wǒ bú shì nàge yìsi, nǐ bié wùhuì

That's not what I meant — don't get me wrong. (informal)

Sense 4: the fixed 说-compounds

A cluster of high-frequency words is built on 说, and they behave as single units:

听说你要结婚了，恭喜恭喜！

tīngshuō nǐ yào jiéhūn le, gōngxǐ gōngxǐ

I hear you're getting married — congratulations! (informal)

据说那家店的包子特别地道。

jùshuō nà jiā diàn de bāozi tèbié dìdao

They say that shop's baozi are especially authentic.

说不定他已经在路上了，再等等。

shuōbudìng tā yǐjīng zài lùshang le, zài děngděng

Maybe he's already on his way — let's wait a bit longer. (informal)

Key collocations

Phrase	Pinyin	Meaning
说话	shuōhuà	speak, talk (no object)
说中文 / 说汉语	shuō Zhōngwén / Hànyǔ	speak Chinese
说实话	shuō shíhuà	tell the truth, honestly
跟…说 / 对…说	gēn… shuō / duì… shuō	say to / talk to sb
听说	tīngshuō	I hear that, reportedly
据说	jùshuō	it is said (that)
说不定	shuōbudìng	maybe, perhaps
说明	shuōmíng	explain; instructions
比如说	bǐrú shuō	for example
说了一顿	shuō le yí dùn	gave (sb) a telling-off

Grammar notes

说话 is a 离合词 (separable verb): the 话 is already its "object," so 说话 can't take a further object — you don't 说话中文, you 说中文. To describe how someone speaks, you must copy the verb: 他中文说得很好 — the degree complement attaches to a repeated 说, a pattern covered on the verb-copying page.

The near-synonym you must sort out is 告诉 (gàosu) "tell." 告诉 takes the listener as a direct object plus the information — 告诉我一件事 "tell me something" — exactly the double-object frame 说 refuses. Rule of thumb: to convey information to someone, use 告诉 (or 跟…说); reserve bare 说 + person for scolding. The full comparison is on the 说 vs 告诉 page, and the wider field of speech verbs — including 讲 (jiǎng) and asking with 问 — on the speech verbs page.

Common Mistakes

1. Using 说他 to mean "tell him (something)." Bare 说 + person = scold. To convey info, use 告诉他 or 跟他说.

❌ 我想说你一件重要的事。

Incorrect — 说你 = scold you. To tell you something: 告诉你 / 跟你说.

✅ 我想告诉你一件重要的事。

wǒ xiǎng gàosu nǐ yí jiàn zhòngyào de shì

I want to tell you something important.

2. Giving 说话 an object. 说话 is separable and intransitive; a language or content follows plain 说.

❌ 我会说话中文。

Incorrect — 说话 can't take an object; 'speak Chinese' is 说中文.

✅ 我会说中文。

wǒ huì shuō Zhōngwén

I can speak Chinese.

3. Marking the listener as a bare object. "Talk to someone" needs 跟 or 对.

❌ 我下午要说你。

Incorrect — 说你 sounds like 'scold you'; 'talk to you' is 跟你说 / 找你谈.

✅ 我下午要跟你说一下。

wǒ xiàwǔ yào gēn nǐ shuō yíxià

I need to have a quick word with you this afternoon.

4. Rating how well you speak without copying the verb. The degree complement forces a repeated 说.

❌ 他中文说很流利。

Incorrect — the degree complement needs 得 on a copied verb: 说得很流利.

✅ 他中文说得很流利。

tā Zhōngwén shuō de hěn liúlì

He speaks Chinese very fluently.

Key Takeaways

说 takes what is said (说中文, 说实话) and reported clauses (他说…), but the listener rides on 跟/对 before 说.
说话 is a separable, object-less verb — say 说中文, never 说话中文.
Bare 说 + person means scold; to tell someone information, use 告诉 or 跟…说.
To say how well someone speaks, copy the verb: 说得很好.
Learn 听说, 据说, 说不定, 说明 as fixed words, not as live "say" phrases.

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