The Difference between SAY and TELL

Although both of these words are used in both direct and indirect speech, say is more usual than tell in direct speech. This is because say can refer to any sort of speech, while tell always means "instruct" or "inform".

• "Put the money in the slot", he said.
• "Put the money in the slot", he told me.
• "You have to leave now", she said.
• "You have to leave now", she told me.
• We said, "Happy birthday!" (NOT We told him, "Happy birthday").
• "Where do you live?" he said. (NOT "Where do you live?" he told me).

The verb tell is usually followed by an object, that is, we usually say who is told.

• I told her that she was wrong.
• They told us that we could keep the objects.

Say is more commonly used without an object, but when it does have one, we use the word "to".

• I said that she was wrong. (NOT I said her that …).
• I said to her that she was wrong.

When tell has the meaning of "instruct", it can be followed by an object and an infinitive.

• She told me to leave.
• They told us to keep the objects.

We cannot use say in this way.

Tell is used (with or without a personal object) in some common expressions:

• Tell a story (He told (us) a frightening story).
• Tell a joke (I'll tell (you) a joke I heard today).
• Tell a lie (She told (me) a lie).
• Tell the truth (Next time, she will tell (me) the truth).
• Tell the difference (Can you tell (me) the difference between a frog and a toad?).
• Tell the time (I can't tell (you) the time because it's too dark).

DIFFERENT USES FOR ‘LIKE’

The word like is extremely flexible: it can be used as a verb, to say what we enjoy or prefer; and as an adjective, adverb, preposition, conjunction, noun or suffix. In all of these cases, it is used to talk about things which are similar. Like is also used in some common expressions, and can be used informally as a filler.

Briefly, its uses are as follows:

The verb like

As a verb, like is used to talk about enjoyment and preferences. In British English, it is usual to use like + 'ing' to say what we enjoy, and like + infinitive to say what we prefer. In American English, like + infinitive is used for both:

British English

• He likes swimming in the sea.
• He likes to eat fruit for breakfast.

The expression would like is used when we make requests and offers:

• I'd like some more potatoes, please.
• Would you like to come to the cinema with me?

Like meaning 'similar'

The words like and as can both be used to talk about things that are similar. (More uses of as).In this use, like is similar to a preposition, and comes before a noun or pronoun.

• This tastes like lobster.

Note that as is a conjunction, and comes before a clause, or a prepositional phrase:

• When in Rome , do as the Romans do.

In American English, it is common to use like instead of as in this way, but it's not normally thought to be correct in formal English:

• When in Rome, do like the Romans do.

As an adjective, like is also used to mean 'similar':

• Like minds can work well together.

As an adverb, like is used to give examples, in the same way as 'such as':

• Many people think sports like rugby and American football are violent.

As a noun, like means someone/thing that is similar:

• Did you ever see the like of it?
• I enjoy art, literature and the like.

As a suffix, like also means 'similar to' or 'resembling':

• Although he's sixteen, he's still very childlike.
• She dances with catlike grace.

Common expressions with like

The expression 'What … like?' is used to ask about people's reactions to things, in the same way as 'How?':

• What was the film like? (How was the film?)
• What's your meal like? (How's your meal?)

Like is used in very informal speech as a filler, in the same way as 'as it were' is used slightly more formally:

• We were just standing around, like, looking at the people going by.
• I thought he seemed a bit … confused, as it were.