Diri: To Say | Esperanto Grammar

Diri is the regular transitive verb for putting particular content into words: “say,” “state,” or, with a recipient, “tell.” Its direct object is what is said; the person who hears it is normally introduced with al. This division—diri ion al iu—is the key to avoiding English-driven errors.

Complete regular paradigm

The root dir- takes the same six basic verb endings as every regular Esperanto verb.

Form	Function	Typical translation
diri	infinitive	to say, to tell
diras	present indicative	say(s), is saying
diris	past indicative	said, told
diros	future indicative	will say, will tell
dirus	conditional	would say, would tell
diru	volitive	say!, tell!, let ... say

Mi diras tion nur unufoje.

I'm saying that only once.

Kion vi dirus en mia situacio?

What would you say in my situation?

The form never agrees with its subject: mi diras, ŝi diras, ili diras. Tense and mood belong to the ending; the participants are shown by pronouns, nouns, case, and prepositions.

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Build the frame from the content outward: diri ion al iu—say something to someone. The thing said is the direct object; the listener follows al.

The content is the direct object

A noun phrase or pronoun naming the message normally takes accusative -n.

Bonvolu diri la veron, eĉ se ĝi estas malagrabla.

Please tell the truth, even if it is unpleasant.

Ŝi nenion diris pri la ŝanĝo de plano.

She said nothing about the change of plan.

Mi jam diris tion hieraŭ, sed neniu aŭskultis.

I already said that yesterday, but nobody listened.

In diri la veron, the truth is the content. A topic about which something is said can follow pri: diri ion pri la propono. Do not confuse the topic with the message itself. Ŝi diris la rezulton states the result; ŝi diris ion pri la rezulto says something concerning it.

The content can be omitted when context supplies it:

— Ĉu vi jam sciigis al ŝi? — Ne, mi ankoraŭ ne kuraĝis diri.

— Have you told her yet? — No, I haven't dared to say it yet.

Here the missing content is recoverable from the conversation. Diri remains a transitive verb even when its object is unspoken.

The recipient follows al

English tell places the listener directly after the verb. Standard Esperanto normally marks that recipient with al.

Diru al mi la adreson, kaj mi enskribos ĝin en la mapon.

Tell me the address, and I'll enter it in the map.

La kuracisto diris al ŝi, ke ŝi ripozu kelkajn tagojn.

The doctor told her to rest for a few days.

Mi diros la novaĵon al la aliaj post la kunveno.

I'll tell the news to the others after the meeting.

Word order can change because the roles remain explicit: diri al ŝi la novaĵon and diri la novaĵon al ŝi. The first makes the recipient available early; the second keeps the content next to the verb. Neither turns the recipient into a direct object.

For a story or a connected account, rakonti is often more precise than diri: rakonti historion al infano. Diri focuses on the uttered content, from a single word to a complete statement.

Direct quotation

Diri naturally introduces a speaker's exact words. A colon before a following quotation and dialogue dashes are both common conventions.

Marta diris: “Mi revenos post la tagmanĝo.”

Marta said, “I'll return after lunch.”

— Mi ne povos veni hodiaŭ, — diris Amir. — Ĉu ni povas renkontiĝi morgaŭ?

— I won't be able to come today, — Amir said. — Can we meet tomorrow?

The quoted clause keeps the original speaker's viewpoint: Marta said mi, not ŝi. Punctuation practice varies somewhat across publications, but that does not change the verb's valency. The dedicated page on quotation marks and dashes covers editorial conventions.

The expression diri jes/ne treats jes or ne as quoted content:

Mi demandis, ĉu ŝi venos, sed ŝi diris nek jes nek ne.

I asked whether she would come, but she said neither yes nor no.

Diri, ke... for reported content

A ke-clause can supply the entire message. It corresponds to English “say that...” and is not marked with accusative -n.

La organizantoj diris, ke la evento komenciĝos je la naŭa.

The organizers said that the event would begin at nine.

Mi diris al ili, ke mi ne konsentas kun la propono.

I told them that I do not agree with the proposal.

Esperanto does not automatically backshift tense after past diris. In the first example, komenciĝos locates the event after the relevant speech time. In the second, ne konsentas presents the disagreement as current from the reporting viewpoint. Choose the subordinate tense for the intended time, not merely because English often uses a past form after “said.”

Reported instructions normally use ke plus -u:

La teknikisto diris al ni, ke ni rekomencu la komputilon.

The technician told us to restart the computer.

This pattern reports desired action, not a factual statement. Compare diris, ke ni rekomencis “said that we restarted” with diris, ke ni rekomencu “told us to restart.” See reported commands for the larger system.

Questions and useful collocations

Several very frequent expressions use diri without changing its grammar:

kiel oni diras ...? — how does one say ...?
tio estas / alivorte dirite — that is / put differently
verdire — truthfully, to tell the truth
por tiel diri — so to speak
facile diri, malfacile fari — easy to say, hard to do

Kiel oni diras “tre laca” per unu vorto? — Oni povas diri “elĉerpita”.

How can you say “very tired” in one word? — You can say “exhausted.”

Verdire, mi ne atendis tiel rapidan respondon.

To tell the truth, I didn't expect such a quick reply.

Verdire and por tiel diri are neutral conventional expressions. Alivorte dirite is particularly common in explanatory and (formal) prose when a writer reformulates a point.

Participles and the productive family

As a transitive verb, diri forms active and passive participles.

Time relation	Active	Passive
ongoing	diranta — saying	dirata — being said
earlier/completed	dirinta — having said	dirita — said
later/intended	dironta — about to say	dirota — to be said

La jam diritaj vortoj ne povas esti reprenitaj.

Words already spoken cannot be taken back.

Dirinte sian opinion, ŝi trankvile eksidis.

Having stated her opinion, she calmly sat down.

Useful transparent family members include rediri “say again,” eldiri “utter, state explicitly,” antaŭdiri “predict,” kontraŭdiri “contradict,” diraĵo “utterance/statement,” and dirmaniero “manner of speaking.”

La analizisto antaŭdiris prezaltiĝon, sed poste rediris la prognozon pli singarde.

The analyst predicted a price rise but later restated the forecast more cautiously.

These compounds are regular, but their prefixes contribute real meaning. Eldiri often suggests bringing a thought fully into words; rediri can mean repeat or say again; kontraŭdiri iun aŭ ion presents opposition to a person or claim.

Register and frequency

Diri is extremely frequent and neutral in conversation, correspondence, journalism, literature, and academic prose. More specific verbs add communicative force: demandi asks, respondi answers, klarigi explains, anonci announces, deklari makes a deliberate or official statement, and rakonti narrates. Choose them for precision, not because diri is informal.

The root dir- and the regular verbal endings are foundational. The content-object and al-recipient frame is standard; quotation-mark and dialogue-dash choices are editorial variation. For learners, the safest recommendation is to preserve diri ion al iu even when English “tell” places the listener directly after the verb.

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English “say” and “tell” divide by construction; Esperanto divides the roles inside one frame. Use diri la mesaĝon, diri la mesaĝon al ŝi, and diri al ŝi, ke....

Common Mistakes

Treating the recipient as the direct object

❌ Mi diris ŝin la novaĵon.

Incorrect — the listener needs al, while the news is the direct object.

✅ Mi diris al ŝi la novaĵon.

I told her the news.

Omitting accusative from stated content

❌ Bonvolu diri via nomo.

Incorrect — the name being said is a direct object.

✅ Bonvolu diri vian nomon.

Please say your name.

Copying English tense backshift mechanically

❌ Li diris, ke la kunveno estis morgaŭ.

Incorrect for a meeting still in the future — estis places it in the past.

✅ Li diris, ke la kunveno estos morgaŭ.

He said that the meeting would be tomorrow.

Using an indicative for a reported instruction

❌ La kuracisto diris, ke mi restas hejme.

Incorrect for an instruction — restas reports a fact or current state.

✅ La kuracisto diris, ke mi restu hejme.

The doctor told me to stay home.

Using paroli for one specific utterance

❌ Kion ŝi parolis, kiam ŝi vidis la fakturon?

Incorrect for asking what exact words or message she said.

✅ Kion ŝi diris, kiam ŝi vidis la fakturon?

What did she say when she saw the bill?

Key Takeaways

Diri is regular and normally transitive: the stated content takes accusative -n.
A listener is introduced with al: diri ion al iu.
Exact words can follow as a quotation; reported content follows ke.
Ke ... -u reports an instruction, while an indicative reports a statement.
The participles and compounds follow the productive Esperanto system without irregular forms.

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