say

say
say
1. In ordinary use say occurs as a noun only in the expression have a say (or variants of it such as have a bigger say).
2. The use of say as an imperative in uses such as

• Let's meet soon —say next Friday is an established idiom.

3. The participial phrase having said that has acquired a grammatically free status similar to phrases introduced by considering, seeing, etc. (see participles 4). The participle does not always agree with the (typically following) subject of the sentence, as it does in the first example but not in the second:

• Having said that, I must say her depiction of what happened made me view Polanski with much more ‘critical’ eyes —D. Poland, AmE 2003

• There are times when the film…goes for the teen market with a lot of bad language and some silly, toilet humour. But having said that there are some clever in-jokes and many funny cameos —film review website, BrE 2004 [OEC].

This grammatically loose structure is generally acceptable (especially in spoken English), but should be avoided in more formal or serious writing.

Modern English usage. 2014.

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  • Say — Say, v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Said} (s[e^]d), contracted from sayed; p. pr. & vb. n. {Saying}.] [OE. seggen, seyen, siggen, sayen, sayn, AS. secgan; akin to OS. seggian, D. zeggen, LG. seggen, OHG. sag[=e]n, G. sagen, Icel. segja, Sw. s[ a]ga, Dan.… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Say — bezeichnet folgende Orte: ein Departement in Niger, siehe Say (Departement) eine Stadt in Niger, siehe Say (Niger) Say ist der Familienname folgender Personen: Fazil Say (* 1970), türkischer Pianist und Komponist Jean Baptiste Say (1767–1832),… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

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  • Say — Say, n. [OE. saie, F. saie, fr. L. saga, equiv. to sagum, sagus, a coarse woolen mantle; cf. Gr. sa gos. See {Sagum}.] 1. A kind of silk or satin. [Obs.] [1913 Webster] Thou say, thou serge, nay, thou buckram lord! Shak. [1913 Webster] 2. A… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

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  • Say — Say, v. t. To try; to assay. [Obs.] B. Jonson. [1913 Webster] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Say — Say, v. i. To speak; to express an opinion; to make answer; to reply. [1913 Webster] You have said; but whether wisely or no, let the forest judge. Shak. [1913 Webster] To this argument we shall soon have said; for what concerns it us to hear a… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Say "Si Si" — is a popular song.The music was written by Ernesto Lecuona, the original Spanish lyrics by Francia Luban (its original title is Para Vigo Me Voy), with English lyrics written by Al Stillman. The song was published in 1935. The song appeaed in… …   Wikipedia

  • Say Hi — Infobox musical artist Name = Say Hi Img capt = Say Hi performing at the Crocodile in Seattle Background = group or band Origin = Seattle, Washington Years active = 2002–present Genre = Indie Synth pop lo fi rock Label = Euphobia Records Current… …   Wikipedia

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