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# saying

«saying» in Mova's school dictionary: **a short, well-known phrase that gives advice or states…** — its meaning for a pupil, its sense in the lessons and examples, with 5 sentences of Mova's corpora that use it.

### part of speech

noun (a saying, sayings); verb form (-ing of say: say, says, said, saying)

### meaning for a pupil

1) A saying is a short, well-known phrase that gives advice or states something many people believe to be true, such as «Practice makes perfect». [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/saying/#m1)

2) Saying is the -ing form of say: speaking words. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/saying/#m2)

### sense in the lessons

Literacy: proverbs and sayings, what they mean and when to use them (e.g. «Don't count your chickens before they hatch»). Everyday speech: «as the saying goes», «that goes without saying» (it is obvious). Verb use: «What are you saying?». Phrases: as the saying goes, an old saying, it goes without saying, I'm just saying.

### examples

- «Look before you leap» is an old saying. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/saying/#x1)
- As the saying goes, practice makes perfect. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/saying/#x2)
- What is she saying? [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/saying/#x3)
- It goes without saying that you should wear a helmet. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/saying/#x4)
- Grandma has a saying for everything. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/saying/#x5)
- He left without saying goodbye. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/saying/#x6)
- Do you know the saying «Many hands make light work»? [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/saying/#x7)

### note

Countable as a noun: a saying, sayings. A saying is like a proverb; the meaning is not always literal («It's raining cats and dogs» is an idiom, not about animals). The verb past is «said», not «sayed».

### In the corpora

- [A text saying a parcel is held and asking for a small payment is a common scam to steal bank details.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/adult-life/9-when-money-is-tight/18/)
- [Moving means packing everything, doing paperwork and saying goodbye all at once, so it is very stressful.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/adult-life/10-moving-house-and-renting-a-home/17/)
- [Coming home with flowers the day after a row is making up, a way of saying sorry and wanting to be friends again.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/adult-life/14-grown-ups-who-argue-and-make-up/9/)
- [Saying "I was wrong" is a strength, not a weakness.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/adult-life/36-big-feelings-in-big-people/19/)
- [«I'm not saying anything, but…» is still saying something; it hints at a story without any facts.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/adult-life/41-our-street-who-parked-where-and-who-won-what/19/)

### Trees and pragmatics

[Every meaning and example of «saying» parsed by Mova](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/saying/), each sentence with its dependency tree and frames.