sagen
to say
To express something orally or in writing; to pronounce words.
EXAMPLE
Er hat gesagt, dass er um 17 Uhr kommt.
He said that he is coming at 5 p.m.
sagen
to say
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Meanings
sagen
to tell
To give an opinion, advice, or an instruction.
EXAMPLE
Sag mir bitte, was du darüber denkst.
Please tell me what you think about it.
sagen
to say / indicate
To mean, indicate, or serve as a sign of something.
EXAMPLE
Ein Lächeln sagt mehr als tausend Worte.
A smile says more than a thousand words.
das Sagen haben
to be in charge
To have the authority or decision-making power.
EXAMPLE
In dieser Abteilung hat Frau Meier das Sagen.
In this department, Ms. Meier is in charge.
sagen wir mal
let's say
Used to make a suggestion, estimate, or assumption.
EXAMPLE
Treffen wir uns später, sagen wir mal um acht Uhr?
Shall we meet later, let's say at eight o'clock?
sich nichts sagen lassen
to ignore advice
To be stubborn and not accept advice or instructions from others.
EXAMPLE
Er ist sehr eigensinnig und lässt sich von niemandem etwas sagen.
He is very stubborn and doesn't let anyone tell him anything.
Usage tips
Dative and accusative
'Sagen' (to say/tell) is very often used with a person in the dative (to whom you say something) and a thing in the accusative (what you say). The structure is: subject + sagen + dative object + accusative object.
EXAMPLE
Kannst du mir bitte die Uhrzeit sagen?
Can you please tell me the time?
Sentence structure with subordinate clauses
'Sagen' (to say) often introduces subordinate clauses, usually with the conjunction 'dass' (that). In such sentences, the conjugated verb comes at the end of the subordinate clause.
EXAMPLE
Meine Mutter hat gesagt, dass ich mein Zimmer aufräumen soll.
My mother said that I should tidy up my room.
Impersonal subjects
In the meaning of 'anzeigen' (to indicate) or 'bedeuten' (to mean), a thing or a sign can also be the subject of 'sagen' (to say). It describes what information something communicates.
EXAMPLE
Was sagt die Statistik über die Arbeitslosigkeit?
What does the statistic say about unemployment?
Fixed expression
The idiom 'das Sagen haben' (to be in charge / to have the say) is a fixed unit and means 'die Kontrolle oder Autorität haben' (to have control or authority). The noun 'Sagen' is capitalized here.
EXAMPLE
Zuhause hat meine Mutter das Sagen.
At home, my mother is in charge.
Colloquial insertion
The expression 'sagen wir mal' (let's say) is a typical insertion in spoken language. You use it to make a suggestion or give an estimate.
EXAMPLE
Das Projekt dauert noch, sagen wir mal, zwei Wochen.
The project will take another, let's say, two weeks.
Reflexive expression
The expression 'sich (Dativ) nichts sagen lassen' (to not let anyone tell one anything / to ignore advice) describes a stubborn person. Note that the reflexive pronoun is in the dative here because the person would be the recipient of the advice.
EXAMPLE
Mein kleiner Bruder ist in der Pubertät und lässt sich nichts mehr sagen.
My little brother is going through puberty and doesn't listen to anyone anymore.
Compare with
sagen vs heißen
to be called / to mean
Man sagt and es heißt can both introduce an unconfirmed report. With sagen, man functions as a general human speaker in the sentence. Es heißt, by contrast, is a fixed impersonal form in which no speaker is named.
sagen
Man sagt, dass das alte Kino bald wieder öffnet.
People say that the old cinema will reopen soon.
heißen
Es heißt, dass das alte Kino bald wieder öffnet.
It is said that the old cinema will reopen soon.
In real life
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