Home/Vocabulary exercises/Word choice and word formation/Which verb: tell, speak, talk, or say? 2

TELL / SPEAK / SAY / TALK 2 (ESL)

level: Intermediate (B1/B2)
This second exercise continues practicing the differences between tell, speak, say, and talk with more challenging contexts. Start with exercise 1 first.


READY TO PRACTICE? LET’S GO!

Choose the correct word — say, tell, talk, or speak — to complete each sentence.

1. We weren't ___________ about these new requirements.
2. You'll have to ___________ to my manager about that.
3. No, that's not what I ________ to him.
4. Let's ________ over lunch.
5. Some of the things he ________ worry me.
6. You should ________ her that we're going to be late.
7. Do you ________ English?
8. I don't know what to ________ to you.
9. He has been ________ lies to everyone.
10. Let's ________ sports. = Let's talk about sports.
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Communication Conversation Questions 1. Do you think people today talk to each other less because of smartphones?
2. Have you ever told a lie to spare someone's feelings? How did it turn out?
3. What topics do you find easiest or hardest to talk about with strangers?
4. Is there a language you would love to speak fluently? Why that one?
5. Do you think the way people communicate has changed a lot in your lifetime?
6. What is the best piece of advice anyone has ever told you?
MORE LIKE THIS Say, tell, speak, or talk? 1
Life/live/living 1
Finish or end? 1
As or like? 1
Lay or lie? 1
Lay or lie? 2
Grammar review TELL fixed expressions: tell the truth, tell a lie, tell a story, tell a joke, tell the time, tell the difference.

SAY fixed expressions: say hello/goodbye, say a prayer, say something. Note: He said to me… NOT He said me…

SPEAK — preferred in formal/professional contexts: speak at a conference, speak to the board. Collocates with languages: speak Italian, speak fluently.

TALK — patterns: talk about (a topic), talk to/with (a person), talk over (discuss).
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