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说shuōto speak; to talk; to say

HSK 1word

By Chinese Copilot · Last updated

说 (shuō) means "to speak," "to talk," or "to say." Put it before a language to say which language someone speaks, or before the content of speech. It can also mean to explain or to comment on something someone has said.

What does 说 mean?

  1. 1.

    to speak; to talk; to sayverb

  2. 2.

    to explain; to commentverb

What does the character 说 mean?

  • 说to speak; to talk; to say

How do you use 说?

Grammar patterns

  1. 1

    Subj. + 说 (+ Obj.)

    Use 说 alone or with an object for speaking or saying something. With a language name it means "speak (that language)."

说 usually takes what is spoken as its object; for a learned skill of speaking a language, beginners often combine it with 会, as in 会说中文.

Patterns

  • 会 + 说 + Language

    我会说汉语。

    Wǒ huì shuō Hànyǔ.

    I can speak Chinese.

  • 说 + 什么

    你说什么？

    Nǐ shuō shénme?

    What did you say?

What are some examples of 说 in a sentence?

  1. HSK 1

    他说中文。

    Tā shuō Zhōngwén.

    He speaks Chinese.

  2. HSK 1

    你会说中文吗？

    Nǐ huì shuō Zhōngwén ma?

    Can you speak Chinese?

  3. HSK 1

    他们在说什么？

    Tāmen zài shuō shénme?

    What are they saying?

  4. HSK 2

    请你说慢一点。

    Qǐng nǐ shuō màn yī diǎn.

    Please speak a little more slowly.

How is 说 different from 会?

说 is the action of speaking or saying. 会 marks a learned skill. 会说中文 means "can speak Chinese"; 说中文 alone is just "speak Chinese."

Only 说 fits here

他说中文。

Tā shuō Zhōngwén.

He speaks Chinese.

How is 说 used in a conversation?

  1. Speaker A:

    你会说中文吗？

    Nǐ huì shuō Zhōngwén ma?

    Can you speak Chinese?

  2. Speaker B:

    会，我说一点儿。

    Huì, wǒ shuō yìdiǎnr.

    Yes, I speak a little.

  3. Speaker A:

    他说什么？

    Tā shuō shénme?

    What is he saying?

  4. Speaker B:

    他说他是老师。

    Tā shuō tā shì lǎoshī.

    He says he is a teacher.

  5. Speaker A:

    请你说慢一点。

    Qǐng nǐ shuō màn yī diǎn.

    Please speak a little more slowly.

  6. Speaker B:

    好，我说慢一点。

    Hǎo, wǒ shuō màn yī diǎn.

    OK, I'll speak a little more slowly.

Can you use 说 correctly?

0 of 3 answered
  1. 1.Fill in the blank: 他___中文。
  2. 2.Fill in the blank: 你会___汉语吗？
  3. 3.Which sentence means "What are they saying?"

What should you learn next?

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English glosses on this page are adapted from CC-CEDICT, published by MDBG (snapshot 2026-10-23), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Glosses were edited for learners.