Sige, fortælle or tale

English say, tell and speak/talk match three Danish verbs.

• sige (present siger): the exact words someone says, such as ja, nej, tak, undskyld, godmorgen: Hun siger undskyld. (She says sorry.)
• fortælle (present fortæller): tell something with content, such as a story, a joke or news: Han fortæller en historie. (He tells a story.)
• tale (present taler): speak a language, or talk med someone: Vi taler dansk. (We speak Danish.) Jeg taler med min chef. (I'm talking to my boss.)

Remember: you siger words, you fortæller stories and news, and you taler a language or taler med a person. In everyday speech snakke (chat) is often used instead of tale med.