Sunday, January 19, 2020

word usage - The difference between 'TALK' and 'SAY'


Q: Tell me about an uncomfortable situation you've had with a product.


A: I have been using iPhone 6 for about 6 months but I haven't had any uncomfortable situation with my phone. So,





  1. I really don't have anything to talk about.



I'm perfectly comfortable saying like #1, but what about #2?




  1. I really don't have anything to talk about an uncomfortable situation I've had with my phone.




I think the preposition 'about' already has it's object 'anything', so I think it is not right. but how about #3?



3.I really don't have anything to say about an uncomfortable situation I've had with my phone.



Since 'anything' is the object of the verb 'say', I feel we can add about an uncomfortable situation I've had with my phone.


So, I think #1,3 are possible to use and grammatically correct. Am I right to think this way?



Answer



The main difference between talk and say is that to talk is to "to speak about, to converse" and to say is "to state something, to affirm or deny something".


I was talking with customer service about my new phone's bad sound quality.
--What did the customer service rep say? Did he give you a new phone?



I find your #2 ungrammatical.


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