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say

 [sey]   Example Sentences Origin

say

1   [sey] verb, said, say·ing, adverb, noun, interjection
verb (used with object)
1.
to utter or pronounce; speak: What did you say? I said “Hello!”
2.
to express in words; state; declare; word: Say it clearly and simply. It's hard to know how to say this tactfully.
3.
to state as an opinion or judgment: I say her plan is the better one.
4.
to be certain, precise, or assured about; determine: It is hard to say what is wrong.
5.
to recite or repeat: to say one's prayers.
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6.
to report or allege; maintain: People say he will resign.
7.
to express (a message, viewpoint, etc.), as through a literary or other artistic medium: a writer with something to say.
8.
to indicate or show: What does your watch say?
9.
to assume as a hypothesis or estimate: Let's say, for the sake of argument, that it's true.
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verb (used without object)
10.
to speak; declare; express an opinion.

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Say is one of our favorite verbs.
So is lollygag. Does it mean:
to chew (food) slowly and thoroughly.
to spend time idly; loaf.
LEARN MORE FUN, UNUSUAL VERBS WITH WORD DYNAMO...
adverb
11.
approximately; about: It's, say, 14 feet long.
12.
for example: If you serve, say tuna fish and potato chips, it will cost much less.
noun
13.
what a person says or has to say.
14.
the right or opportunity to speak, decide, or exercise influence: to have one's say in choosing the candidate.
15.
a turn to say something: It is now my say.
interjection
16.
(used to express surprise, get attention, etc.)
Idiom
17.
that is to say, that is what is meant; in other words: I believe his account of the story, that is to say, I have no reason to doubt it.
Origin:
before 900; Middle English seyen, seggen, Old English secgan; cognate with Dutch zeggen, German sagen, Old Norse segja; akin to saw3

Related forms
say·er, noun
Example Sentences
  • That's a myth, say physicists studying the national pastime.
  • It determines the quality of the sparkler, to say nothing of the taste of its champion.
  • Cocoa growing will now spread to other countries if their climate changes as you say it will.
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Dictionary.com Unabridged

say

2   [sey]
verb (used with object), noun British Dialect.
assay.
Origin:
1350–1400; Middle English sayen, aphetic variant of assayen to assay

say

3   [sey]
noun
a thin silk or woolen fabric similar to serge, much used in the 16th century.
Origin:
1250–1300; Middle English < Old French saie < Latin saga, plural of sagum woolen cloak, said to be < Gaulish

Say

   [sey]
noun
1.
Jean Bap·tiste  [zhahn ba-teest] , 1767–1832, French economist. Compare Say's law.
2.
Thomas, 1787–1834, U.S. entomologist.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
Cite This Source Link To Say
Collins
World English Dictionary
say1 (seɪ)
 
—vb , says, saying, said
1.  to speak, pronounce, or utter
2.  (also intr) to express (an idea) in words; tell: we asked his opinion but he refused to say
3.  (also intr; may take a clause as object) to state (an opinion, fact, etc) positively; declare; affirm
4.  to recite: to say grace
5.  (may take a clause as object) to report or allege: they say we shall have rain today
6.  (may take a clause as object) to take as an assumption; suppose: let us say that he is lying
7.  (may take a clause as object) to convey by means of artistic expression: the artist in this painting is saying that we should look for hope
8.  to make a case for: there is much to be said for either course of action
9.  (Irish) (usually passive) to persuade or coax (someone) to do something: If I hadn't been said by her, I wouldn't be in this fix
10.  go without saying to be so obvious as to need no explanation
11.  informal chiefly (Brit) I say! an exclamation of surprise
12.  not to say even; and indeed
13.  that is to say in other words; more explicitly
14.  to say nothing of as well as; even disregarding: he was warmly dressed in a shirt and heavy jumper, to say nothing of a thick overcoat
15.  to say the least without the slightest exaggeration; at the very least
 
—adv
16.  approximately: there were, say, 20 people present
17.  for example: choose a number, say, four
 
—n
18.  the right or chance to speak: let him have his say
19.  authority, esp to influence a decision: he has a lot of say in the company's policy
20.  a statement of opinion: you've had your say, now let me have mine
 
—interj
21.  informal (US), (Canadian) an exclamation to attract attention or express surprise, etc
 
[Old English secgan; related to Old Norse segja, Old Saxon seggian, Old High German sagēn]
 
'sayer1
 
—n

say2 (seɪ)
 
—n
archaic a type of fine woollen fabric
 
[C13: from Old French saie, from Latin saga, plural of sagum a type of woollen cloak]

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
Cite This Source
Etymonline
Word Origin & History

say
O.E. secgan "to utter, say," from P.Gmc. *sagjanan (cf. O.S. seggian, O.N. segja, O.Fris. sedsa, M.Du. segghen, Du. zeggen, O.H.G. sagen, Ger. sagen "to say"), from PIE *sokei-, probably from base *seq- "point out" (cf. Hitt. shakiya- "to declare," Lith. sakyti "to say," O.C.S. sociti "to vindicate,
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show," O.Ir. insce "speech," O.Latin inseque "to tell say"). Past tense said developed from O.E. segde. Not attested in use with inanimate objects (clocks, signs, etc.) as subjects before 1930. You said it "you're right" first recorded 1919; you can say that again as a phrase expressing agreement is recorded from 1942, Amer.Eng. You don't say (so) as an expression of astonishment (often ironic) is first recorded 1779, Amer.Eng.

say
"what someone says," 1570s, from say (v.). Extended form say-so is first recorded 1630s.
COLLAPSE
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
Cite This Source
FOLDOC
Computing Dictionary

say definition


A human may "say" things to a computer by typing them on a terminal. "To list a directory verbosely, say "ls -l"." Tends to imply a newline-terminated command (a "sentence").
A computer may "say" things to you, even if it doesn't have a speech synthesiser, by displaying them on a terminal in response to your commands. This usage often confuses mundanes.
[Jargon File]

The Free On-line Dictionary of Computing, © Denis Howe 2010 http://foldoc.org
Cite This Source
American Heritage
Idioms & Phrases

say

In addition to the idioms beginning with say, also see before you can say Jack Robinson; cry (say) uncle; do as I say; give (say) the word; go without (saying); have a say in; I dare say; I'll say; needless to say; never say die; never say never; not to mention (say nothing of); on one's say-so; strange to say; suffice it to say; that is (to say); to say the least; you can say that again; you don't say. Also see under said.

The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.
Copyright © 1997. Published by Houghton Mifflin.
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