DictionaryAI

saying

SAY-ing/ˈseɪ.ɪŋ/

Noun pluralsayings

3 meanings of saying

Practice

  1. 1
    statingverb
    Present participle of say.

    He was saying goodbye to the guests when the phone rang.

    Saying nothing at all, she gathered her coat and walked out.

    Note

    One spelling does two grammatical jobs here. With a form of be it builds the progressive (was saying goodbye). Without one it heads a participle or gerund clause (Saying nothing, she left). The noun for a proverb or maxim also comes from say plus -ing. To tell the verb from that noun, check what surrounds it: the verb can take an object, while the noun takes a determiner and a plural, sayings.

  2. 2
    proverbnouncountable
    A short, well-known expression that states a general truth or offers a piece of advice.

    The saying "look before you leap" warns against acting too quickly.

    Every culture has its own sayings about luck, money, and fortune.

    UsageOften in set frames: as the saying goes, there's an old saying, a Chinese saying.

    Similarproverb, adage, maxim, aphorism, expression

    Note

    James C. H. Shen offers "a Chinese saying" about smiling in 1983, and in the game Mass Effect an alien warrior begins "My people have a saying." Saying is the most everyday word beside proverb and maxim.

  3. 3
    nounobsolete
    Something that is spoken; an utterance or spoken remark.
    And I'll be sworn you would believe my saying, Howe'er you lean to th' nayward.
    c. 1610, William Shakespeare, “The Winters Tale”
    Note

    Shakespeare's The Winter's Tale shows the old breadth: "you would believe my saying" means simply "believe what I say," with no proverb in sight. Modern readers easily mistake it for the proverb meaning, which is the use that survives. Today the broad sense reads as old-fashioned. Outside deliberate imitation of older English, "what I said" or "my word" does the job.

    Checked 5 Nov 2026 · 2 facts

    • The Winter's Tale is a play by William Shakespeare. folger.edu
    • The quotation occurs in The Winter's Tale, spoken by Hermione in Act 2, scene 1; 'my saying' refers to her statement, rather than a proverb. folger.edu

saying is a form of say

say, verb: To express something in words, in speech or writing, such as a fact, an opinion, or an answer. Full entry

Forms
saysays he/she/itsaying -ing formsaid past tense, past participle
Spelling
say → saying: add -ing

Use it in a sentence

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Origin

Formed from the verb "say" combined with the suffix "-ing".

Checked 5 Nov 2026 · 1 fact