Describe, say and tell are all verbsof communication. Describe means "explain the detailsof an item or a situation." If the receiver of the description ismentioned, the receiver must be preceded by to.
The design team described the goals of theproject.The team described the goals of the projectto the assembled managers.
Say is used to introduce a message. The message (usuallya noun clause or a They said to us, "We promise to complete thefinal report by next Monday." Tell is used to explain to whom a message was given aswell as to introduce the message. The receiver of the message isusually present in the sentence. If the receiver precedes themessage, the preposition to is not used. If the receiverfollows the message, to must precede the receiver. They told the long, sad story to themembers of the board, who sat stoically waiting for thebottom line. Long messages, such as stories or anecdotes, are typicallyintroduced with tell, whereas say is used forsingle sentences or words. Copyright ©2001 The McGraw-Hill Companies. Any use is subject to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. McGraw-Hill Higher Education is one of the many fine businesses of They said that the project had beencanceled.They told us why the project had beencanceled.
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