The Spanish Verb DECIR
Decir means to say, to tell, and sometimes to mean. It is irregular, but its patterns are predictable: digo, dije, diré, diría, diga.
Tell me
Dime la verdad.
Tell me the truth.
Report speech
Te dije que no.
I told you no.
Meaning
¿Qué quiere decir?
What does it mean?
Correction
Quiero decir...
I mean...
Decir vs contar vs hablar
These three verbs are often translated with similar English words, but they do different jobs in Spanish. Decir transmits a message, contar tells a story or counts numbers, and hablar means to speak or talk.
| Verb | Use it for | Example | English |
|---|---|---|---|
| decir | a message, statement, opinion, command | No digas eso. | Don’t say that. |
| contar | a story, event, gossip, numbers | Cuéntame lo que pasó. | Tell me what happened. |
| hablar | speaking, talking, conversation | Hablamos luego. | We’ll talk later. |
The DECIR pattern: irregular but predictable
Decir changes its stem in the most useful tenses. Learn the stems first and the verb becomes much easier. Notice the repeating patterns: dig-, dij-, dir-.
Present
digo
I say / I tell
Preterite
dije
I said / I told
Future
diré
I will say / tell
Subjunctive
diga
that I say / tell
Conjugation cheat sheet
| Pronoun | Present | Preterite | Imperfect | Future | Conditional | Subjunctive |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| yo | digo | dije | decía | diré | diría | diga |
| tú | dices | dijiste | decías | dirás | dirías | digas |
| él/ella/Ud. | dice | dijo | decía | dirá | diría | diga |
| nosotros | decimos | dijimos | decíamos | diremos | diríamos | digamos |
| vosotros | decís | dijisteis | decíais | diréis | diríais | digáis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | dicen | dijeron | decían | dirán | dirían | digan |
Commands with decir
Commands are extremely common with decir. The two most useful chunks are dime and dígame.
Dime la verdad.
Tell me the truth.
Dímelo ahora.
Tell it to me now.
No digas eso.
Don’t say that.
No me digas.
Don’t tell me. / You don’t say.
Decir for meaning
In Spanish, querer decir often means to mean. This is essential for vocabulary questions and clarification.
- ¿Qué quiere decir esta palabra? What does this word mean?
- ¿Cómo se dice “however” en español? How do you say “however” in Spanish?
- No entiendo lo que dices. I don’t understand what you’re saying.
- Eso no quiere decir que sea fácil. That doesn’t mean it is easy.
Daily chunks with DECIR
Learn these chunks as complete phrases. They are much more useful than memorizing isolated conjugations.
Te dije que...
I told you that...
Ya te lo dije.
I already told you.
Me dijo que vendría.
He/She told me he/she would come.
Dicen que va a llover.
They say it will rain.
¿Qué estás diciendo?
What are you saying?
Te lo digo en serio.
I’m telling you seriously.
No sé qué decir.
I don’t know what to say.
Dicho y hecho.
No sooner said than done.
Lo dicho.
As agreed. / That’s what we said.
Decir que + indicative or subjunctive
This is a very important distinction. Decir que can report information, but it can also transmit a command or influence.
Reporting facts: indicative
Dice que viene.
He says he is coming.
Dijo que estaba cansado.
He said he was tired.
Command or influence: subjunctive
Dice que vengas.
He says you should come. / He tells you to come.
Dijo que lo hicieras.
He told you to do it.
Compare: Dijo que lo hiciste reports a fact; Dijo que lo hicieras reports a command.
Quiero decir, es decir, o sea
These phrases help you explain, reformulate, correct yourself, or make your meaning clearer.
Quiero decir que no estoy de acuerdo.
I mean that I don’t agree.
No voy mañana; es decir, estoy ocupado.
I’m not going tomorrow; in other words, I’m busy.
O sea, no quiero ir.
I mean, I don’t want to go.
The DECIR family
Several useful verbs are built from the same root. Some keep the irregular pattern of decir.
- predecir — to predict: El experto predice una crisis.
- contradecir — to contradict: No me contradigas.
- bendecir — to bless: El padre bendijo a los niños.
- maldecir — to curse: Maldijo su suerte.
Movie-style sentences with DECIR
Dime que no es verdad.
Tell me it isn’t true.
No me digas qué hacer.
Don’t tell me what to do.
Te dije que era peligroso.
I told you it was dangerous.
¿Qué quieres decir con eso?
What do you mean by that?
No dije nada.
I didn’t say anything.
Diga lo que diga, no le creas.
Whatever he says, don’t believe him.
¿Quién te dijo eso?
Who told you that?
Me lo dijeron demasiado tarde.
They told me too late.
He dicho.
I have spoken. / Final statement tone.
Common mistakes with DECIR
1. Using hablar for a message
Use decir when there is a specific message.
Me dijo la verdad.
He/She told me the truth.
2. Forgetting the indirect object
In Spanish, “tell someone” often needs me, te, le, nos, os, les.
Le dije que no.
I told him/her no.
3. Confusing dije and decía
Ayer dije la verdad.
Yesterday I told the truth. Completed action.
Siempre decía la verdad.
I always used to tell the truth. Habit/background.
4. Using indicative instead of subjunctive after a command meaning
When decir que means “to tell someone to do something”, the verb after que normally uses the subjunctive.
Not for command meaning:
Me dijo que venía.
He/She told me he/she was coming. Reporting information, not a command.
Command meaning:
Me dijo que viniera.
He/She told me to come.
Final summary
to say / to tell / sometimes to mean
I told you that...
they say that... / people say that...
how do you say...?
that is to say / in other words
as agreed / as said before