tell

1

She told that everything was OK.
She told me that everything was OK.
She said that everything was OK.

Tell is normally followed by the person who receives the information. Use tell someone that + clause: ‘She told me that everything was OK.’

With say, do not put the person directly after the verb: ‘She said that everything was OK.’ ‘She said to me that everything was OK.’

2

She told to me that she had a problem.
She told me that she had a problem.

Do not use to between tell and the person: tell someone, not tell to someone.

We can use tell without a person in common expressions such as ‘tell the truth’, ‘tell a lie’, ‘tell a story’ and ‘tell a joke’.

Check our grammar lesson on the difference between say and tell.

See SAY

3

My teacher told us open our books.
My teacher told us to open our books.

My mother told me don’t come home late.
My mother told me not to come home late.

Use tell someone to + infinitive when reporting an instruction or order: ‘The teacher told us to open our books.’

For a negative instruction, use tell someone not to + infinitive: ‘My mother told me not to come home late.’