The Scientist
Coldplay
Come up to meet you
Tell you I'm sorry
You don't know how lovely you are
I had to find you
Tell you I need you
Tell you I set you apart
Tell me your secrets
And ask me your questions
Oh let's go back to the start
Running in circles, coming up tails
Heads on a science apart
Nobody said it was easy
It's such a shame for us to part
Nobody said it was easy
No one ever said it would be this hard
Oh take me back to the start
I was just guessing at numbers and figures
Pulling your puzzles apart
Questions of science, science and progress
Do not speak as loud as my heart
Tell me you love me
Come back and haunt me
Oh and I rush to the start
Running in circles, chasing our tails
Coming back as we are
Nobody said it was easy
Oh it's such a shame for us to part
Nobody said it was easy
No one ever said it would be so hard
I'm going back to the start
Songwriters: Christopher Anthony John Martin / Guy Rupert
Berryman / Jonathan Mark Buckland / William Champion
We say something.
We tell someone something.
We don’t use an indirect object with say. Instead we use a phrase with "to."
Correct: What did she say to you?
Incorrect: What did she say you?
We use an indirect object with tell when we report someone’s words:
Correct: She told me it would be easy.
Incorrect: She told it would be easy.
However, we use tell without an indirect object with words such as the truth, a lie, a joke, a story:
Correct: You should tell the truth.
Incorrect: You should say the truth.
Correct: Grandpa told a funny story.
Correct: Grandpa told us a funny story.
Incorrect: Grandpa say a funny story.
online practice activity:
https://www.grammarbank.com/say-vs-tell-exercises.html