What is the difference between say and tell?

Say introduces the words or the content and does not need a person object: She said the ferry was late. Tell needs the listener first: She told us the ferry was late. If you want the listener after say, add to: She said to us that the ferry was late. She said us and she told that are the two errors this pair produces.

Which reporting verbs take an -ing form?

Suggest, recommend, admit, deny, and report are the core set: She suggested waiting, and he denied touching the fuse. Most of these also take a that-clause (She suggested that we wait) and they do not take a to-infinitive. If you are unsure, check the -ing column rather than whether the verb 'feels' like speech.

Which reporting verbs take a to-infinitive?

Promise, refuse, offer, agree, threaten, and claim, when the same person will do the action: They refused to open the kiln. She promised to call. With a different person as the doer, use a verb that takes object plus to-infinitive: ask, tell, advise, warn, remind, invite, persuade. She asked us to wait.

How do you report a suggestion or a warning?

For a suggestion, use suggested plus -ing or suggested that: She suggested waiting, or she suggested that we wait. For a warning, use warn plus object plus that, or warn plus object plus to-infinitive: She warned us that the kiln was still hot, and she warned us not to touch it. Do not borrow the pattern of a different verb.

Do reporting verbs always change the tense of the original words?

Not as a property of the verb itself. Backshift is triggered by a past reporting verb in a report of speech, and it is covered on the reported-speech page. The patterns on this page (that, -ing, to-infinitive, object) stay the same whether you backshift or not. She promises to call and she promised to call use the same complement; only the reporting tense changes.

English grammar · Intermediate

Reporting Verbs: Say, Tell, Ask, and the Patterns After Them

Written by Eleanor Whitfield, Lead English Curriculum Editor · Reviewed September 2026

Reporting verbs are the verbs you use to pass on someone else's words or thoughts: say, tell, ask, and a long list that includes suggest, admit, promise, refuse, warn, advise, deny, offer, and remind. Each one brings a pattern with it: verb + that, verb + -ing, verb + to-infinitive, or verb + object + one of those. Choosing the verb is only half the work; matching the pattern is the other half.

She suggested waiting, then promised to call, and warned us that the kiln was still hot.

suggest plus -ing, promise plus to-infinitive, warn plus object plus that

What it is

Say, tell, and ask are the reporting verbs you meet first, and they already disagree about objects: you say something, you tell someone something, you ask someone a question. A wider set lets you report the speech act more precisely: suggest, admit, promise, refuse, warn, advise, deny, offer, claim, insist, remind, invite. Each verb licenses a small number of complements, and the common errors are all pattern errors: suggest to wait, tell that, refuse waiting. This page is about those patterns, not about tense backshift.

"Let's wait," she said. She suggested waiting. "I'll call," she said. She promised to call. (Same reports, different verbs, different structures after them.)

How to spot it

Look for a verb of speaking or thinking followed by that, an -ing form, a to-infinitive, or an object plus one of those. If the sentence feels wrong, check the pattern chart before you change the tense. Suggest wants -ing or that, not a to-infinitive. Tell wants an object. Refuse wants a to-infinitive.

He said the ferry was late. (say plus that-clause, object not required)
He told us the ferry was late. (tell plus object plus that-clause)
She suggested waiting until dusk. (suggest plus -ing)
They refused to open the kiln. (refuse plus to-infinitive)

That can be left out after say, tell, admit, and promise: She promised she would call. It is less often dropped after warn, insist, and explain.

Reporting Verbs Quick Reference

Reporting verbs and the patterns they take

Pattern	Verbs	Example
verb + that-clause	say, admit, claim, explain, insist, promise, suggest, warn	She admitted that the glaze was too thick.
verb + object + that-clause	tell, warn, remind, advise, inform, persuade	She warned us that the kiln was still hot.
verb + -ing	suggest, admit, deny, recommend, report	He denied touching the fuse.
verb + to-infinitive	promise, refuse, offer, agree, threaten, claim	They refused to open the kiln.
verb + object + to-infinitive	ask, tell, advise, warn, remind, invite, persuade	She asked us to wait.
verb + object (no that)	tell, ask, inform	He told the truth. She asked a question.

Common Reporting Verbs Examples in English

Grouped by the pattern the verb requires, which is the decision that comes before any tense change:

Say, Tell, and Ask

She said the quay was empty.: say plus clause, no person object
She told us the quay was empty.: tell plus person plus clause
He asked whether the ferry had docked.: ask plus whether for a yes/no report
He asked the harbourmaster to wait.: ask plus object plus to-infinitive

Say does not take a person object without to: she said to us is possible, she said us is not. Tell needs the person: she told us, not she told that.

Verb + -ing

She suggested waiting until dusk.: suggest plus -ing, no to
He admitted spilling the glaze.: admit plus -ing
They denied touching the fuse.: deny plus -ing
The guide recommended taking the early ferry.: recommend plus -ing

Suggest, recommend, admit, and deny also take a that-clause: She suggested that we wait. They do not take a to-infinitive: suggest to wait is the classic error.

Verb + to-infinitive

She promised to call after the shift.: promise plus to-infinitive
They refused to open the kiln.: refuse plus to-infinitive
He offered to carry the crate.: offer plus to-infinitive
The yard threatened to close at dusk.: threaten plus to-infinitive

Promise and claim also take that: She promised that she would call. Refuse, offer, and threaten do not take -ing: refuse waiting is wrong.

Verb + Object + Complement

She warned us that the kiln was still hot.: warn plus object plus that
She warned us not to touch it.: warn plus object plus to-infinitive
He reminded me to pack the fuse.: remind plus object plus to-infinitive
They invited her to tour the workshop.: invite plus object plus to-infinitive

Advise, persuade, tell, and ask follow the same object-plus-to-infinitive pattern. The object is the person who receives the advice, warning, or invitation.

How Reporting Verbs Work

Four pattern rules that keep say, tell, suggest, promise, refuse, and warn from colliding.

Say Has No Person Object, Tell Must Have One

Say introduces the content: She said the ferry was late. She said that the ferry was late. If you name the listener, it takes to: She said to us that the ferry was late. Tell does the reverse: the listener is required, then the content: She told us the ferry was late. She told us that the ferry was late. Tell without a person (She told that the ferry was late) is the error. Tell the truth and tell a story are fixed exceptions where the object is the content, not a person.

She said the kiln was hot. She told us the kiln was hot.

say plus content, tell plus listener plus content

Tell someone. Say something.

Suggest, Admit, Deny Take -ing or That

After suggest, recommend, admit, and deny you can use an -ing form (She suggested waiting) or a that-clause (She suggested that we wait). A to-infinitive is not in the set: suggest to wait, admit to wait, deny to touch are all wrong. Admit to is a different pattern with a noun or -ing (admit to the mistake, admit to spilling it), and the to is a preposition, not the infinitive marker.

He admitted spilling the glaze. He admitted that he had spilled it.

admit plus -ing, or admit plus that

Suggest waiting, not suggest to wait.

Promise, Refuse, Offer Take a to-infinitive

Promise, refuse, offer, agree, and threaten are followed by a to-infinitive when the same person will do the action: She promised to call. They refused to open the kiln. He offered to carry the crate. Promise also takes that when you report a full clause: She promised that she would call. Refuse and offer do not take -ing. If a different person is to do the action, you usually switch verb: She asked us to wait, not she promised us to wait in careful English.

They refused to open the kiln.

refuse plus to-infinitive, same subject

Refuse to, not refuse -ing.

Warn, Advise, Remind Need a Person Object

These verbs name the listener first, then the content. The content can be a that-clause (She warned us that the kiln was still hot) or a to-infinitive, often negative (She warned us not to touch it; He reminded me to pack the fuse). Dropping the object (She warned that the kiln was hot) is possible with warn in some styles, but advise and remind almost always keep it. Ask for a reported question takes if, whether, or a wh-word: He asked whether the ferry had docked.

She advised us to wait. She advised us that we should wait.

advise plus object plus to-infinitive or that

Warn someone, then that or to.

Common Mistakes with Reporting Verbs

Incorrect: She told that the ferry was late.

Correct: She told us that the ferry was late.

Tell needs a person object before the that-clause. If you do not want to name the listener, switch to say: She said that the ferry was late.

Incorrect: He suggested to wait until dusk.

Correct: He suggested waiting until dusk.

Suggest takes an -ing form or a that-clause, not a to-infinitive. Suggest to wait is one of the most common reporting-verb errors.

Incorrect: They refused opening the kiln.

Correct: They refused to open the kiln.

Refuse takes a to-infinitive, not an -ing form. The same to-infinitive pattern holds for offer, agree, promise, and threaten.

Incorrect: She said us the kiln was still hot.

Correct: She told us the kiln was still hot. / She said to us that the kiln was still hot.

Say cannot take a person object directly. Use tell plus the person, or say to plus the person. The content then follows as a clause.

Quick Check: Reporting Verbs

Complete each report with the pattern the verb requires.

1. She told ___ the quay was empty. (the listeners)

Answer: us / them / the group

tell plus person plus clause

2. He suggested ___ until dusk. (wait)

Answer: waiting (or that we wait)

suggest plus -ing or that, not to wait

3. They refused ___ the kiln. (open)

Answer: to open

refuse plus to-infinitive

4. She warned ___ that the kiln was still hot. (the listeners)

Answer: us / them

warn plus object plus that

5. He asked ___ the ferry had docked. (yes/no content)

Answer: whether / if

ask plus whether or if

6. She promised ___ after the shift. (call)

Answer: to call

promise plus to-infinitive

Reporting Verbs FAQs

What is the difference between say and tell?: Say introduces the words or the content and does not need a person object: She said the ferry was late. Tell needs the listener first: She told us the ferry was late. If you want the listener after say, add to: She said to us that the ferry was late. She said us and she told that are the two errors this pair produces.
Which reporting verbs take an -ing form?: Suggest, recommend, admit, deny, and report are the core set: She suggested waiting, and he denied touching the fuse. Most of these also take a that-clause (She suggested that we wait) and they do not take a to-infinitive. If you are unsure, check the -ing column rather than whether the verb 'feels' like speech.
Which reporting verbs take a to-infinitive?: Promise, refuse, offer, agree, threaten, and claim, when the same person will do the action: They refused to open the kiln. She promised to call. With a different person as the doer, use a verb that takes object plus to-infinitive: ask, tell, advise, warn, remind, invite, persuade. She asked us to wait.
How do you report a suggestion or a warning?: For a suggestion, use suggested plus -ing or suggested that: She suggested waiting, or she suggested that we wait. For a warning, use warn plus object plus that, or warn plus object plus to-infinitive: She warned us that the kiln was still hot, and she warned us not to touch it. Do not borrow the pattern of a different verb.
Do reporting verbs always change the tense of the original words?: Not as a property of the verb itself. Backshift is triggered by a past reporting verb in a report of speech, and it is covered on the reported-speech page. The patterns on this page (that, -ing, to-infinitive, object) stay the same whether you backshift or not. She promises to call and she promised to call use the same complement; only the reporting tense changes.