SAY

say

(noun) the chance to speak; “let him have his say”

order, tell, enjoin, say

(verb) give instructions to or direct somebody to do something with authority; “I said to him to go home”; “She ordered him to do the shopping”; “The mother told the child to get dressed”

suppose, say

(verb) express a supposition; “Let us say that he did not tell the truth”; “Let’s say you had a lot of money--what would you do?”

say

(verb) indicate; “The clock says noon”

say

(verb) communicate or express nonverbally; “What does this painting say?”; “Did his face say anything about how he felt?”

say

(verb) recite or repeat a fixed text; “Say grace”; “She said her ‘Hail Mary’”

pronounce, articulate, enounce, sound out, enunciate, say

(verb) speak, pronounce, or utter in a certain way; “She pronounces French words in a funny way”; “I cannot say ‘zip wire’”; “Can the child sound out this complicated word?”

state, say, tell

(verb) express in words; “He said that he wanted to marry her”; “tell me what is bothering you”; “state your opinion”; “state your name”

allege, aver, say

(verb) report or maintain; “He alleged that he was the victim of a crime”; “He said it was too late to intervene in the war”; “The registrar says that I owe the school money”

read, say

(verb) have or contain a certain wording or form; “The passage reads as follows”; “What does the law say?”

Source: WordNet® 3.1

Etymology 1

Verb

say (third-person singular simple present says, present participle saying, simple past and past participle said)

(transitive) To pronounce.

(transitive) To recite.

(transitive) To tell, either verbally or in writing.

(transitive) To indicate in a written form.

(impersonal, transitive) To have a common expression; used in singular passive voice or plural active voice to indicate a rumor or well-known fact.

(informal, imperative, transitive) Suppose, assume; used to mark an example, supposition or hypothesis.

(intransitive) To speak; to express an opinion; to make answer; to reply.

(transitive, informal, of a possession, especially money) To bet as a wager on an outcome; by extension, used to express belief in an outcome by the speaker.

Noun

say (plural says)

A chance to speak; the right or power to influence or make a decision.

Adverb

say (not comparable)

For example; let us assume.

Interjection

say

(colloquial) Used to gain someone's attention before making an inquiry or suggestion

Synonyms

• (used to gain attention): hey

Etymology 2

Noun

say (countable and uncountable, plural says)

A type of fine cloth similar to serge.

Etymology 3

Verb

say (third-person singular simple present says, present participle saying, simple past and past participle sayed)

To try; to assay.

Noun

say (plural says)

Trial by sample; assay; specimen.

Tried quality; temper; proof.

Essay; trial; attempt.

Etymology 4

Noun

say (plural says)

(Scotland) A strainer for milk.

Anagrams

• AYs, ays, yas

Source: Wiktionary

Say, obs. imp. of See.

Definition: Saw. Chaucer.

Say, n. Etym: [Aphetic form of assay.]

1. Trial by sample; assay; sample; specimen; smack. [Obs.] if those principal works of God . . . be but certain tastes and saus, as if were, of that final benefit. Hooker. Thy tongue some say of breeding breathes. Shak.

2. Tried quality; temper; proof. [Obs.] he found a sword of better say. Spenser.

3. Essay; trial; attempt. [Obs.] To give a say at, to attempt. B. Jonson.

Say, v. t.

Definition: To try; to assay. [Obs.] B. Jonson.

Say, n. Etym: [OE. saie, F. saie, fr. L. saga, equiv. to sagum, sagus, a coarse woolen mantle; cf. Gr. Sagum.]

1. A kind of silk or satin. [Obs.] Thou say, thou serge, nay, thou buckram lord! Shak.

2. A delicate kind of serge, or woolen cloth. [Obs.] His garment neither was of silk nor say. Spenser.

Say, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Said, contracted from sayed; p. pr. & vb. n. Saying.] Etym: [OE. seggen, seyen, siggen, sayen, sayn, AS. secgan; akin to OS. seggian, D. zeggen, LG. seggen, OHG. sag, G. sagen, Icel. segja, Sw. säga, Dan. sige, Lith. sakyti; cf. OL. insece teil, relate, Gr. Saga, Saw a saying.]

1. To utter or express in words; to tell; to speak; to declare; as, he said many wise things. Arise, and say how thou camest here. Shak.

2. To repeat; to rehearse; to recite; to pronounce; as, to say a lesson. Of my instruction hast thou nothing bated In what thou hadst to say Shak. After which shall be said or sung the following hymn. Bk. of Com. Prayer.

3. To announce as a decision or opinion; to state positively; to assert; hence, to form an opinion upon; to be sure about; to be determined in mind as to. But what it is, hard is to say. Milton.

4. To mention or suggest as an estimate, hypothesis, or approximation; hence, to suppose; -- in the imperative, followed sometimes by the subjunctive; as, he had, say fifty thousand dollars; the fox had run, say ten miles. Say, for nonpayment that the debt should double, Is twenty hundred kisses such a trouble Shak. It is said, or They say, it is commonly reported; it is rumored; people assert or maintain.

– That is to say, that is; in other words; otherwise.

Say, v. i.

Definition: To speak; to express an opinion; to make answer; to reply. You have said; but whether wisely or no, let the forest judge. Shak. To this argument we shall soon have said; for what concerns it us to hear a husband divulge his household privacies Milton.

Say, n. Etym: [From Say, v. t.; cf. Saw a saying.]

Definition: A speech; something said; an expression of opinion; a current story; a maxim or proverb. [Archaic or Colloq.] He no sooner said out his say, but up rises a cunning snap. L'Estrange. That strange palmer's boding say, That fell so ominous and drear Full on the object of his fear. Sir W. Scott.

Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition

SAY

Etymology 1

Verb

Noun

Adverb

Interjection

Synonyms

Etymology 2

Noun

Etymology 3

Verb

Noun

Etymology 4

Noun

Anagrams

Recent Word Finds

Word of the Day

OBSERVE

Coffee Trivia