Practise the thinking. Keep the judgement.
说 and 讲: speak, say and tell
Original Chinese study material with English explanations. Simplified Chinese with pinyin; beginner, intermediate and advanced are editorial difficulty labels.
说 (shuō) commonly describes saying or speaking. 讲 (jiǎng) can describe speaking a language, telling a story or explaining a topic. Both 说中文 and 讲中文 occur.
请说慢一点。
Qǐng shuō màn yì diǎn.
Please speak a little more slowly.
她给孩子讲故事。
Tā gěi háizi jiǎng gùshi.
She tells stories to the children.
Collocations matter: 说明 and 讲解 are separate words, and their parts cannot always be swapped.
Try it
What is 讲故事?
- Tell a story
- Buy a book
- Learn to swim
Answer and explanation
Tell a story. 讲 pairs naturally with 故事 to mean tell stories.