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What's the difference between 'as I was saying' and 'as I said'?
Hi everyone,
When watching some English programs, I've always heard native speakers saying something like, 'As i was saying' or ' As i said...', but I'm not sure when I should use them in a correct context...
Can you please tell me if there're any different uses between the two expressions?
Jul 6, 2018 2:28 PM
Answers · 4
2
I agree as "I was saying..." is for when you are interrupted while in the middle of speaking and are trying to continue from where you left off.
Jill : I think its supposed to rain and..
--A loud train passes by and Jill waits. --
Jill: As I was saying, its supposed to rain, so lets wait and go to the park tomorrow instead.
"As I said" is used for quoting yourself. It's used to refer to something said earlier in the conversation.
Jill: Its supposed to rain today, and as I said, the park is really no fun when its raining.
Sometimes people will say, "...like (I/he/Joe) said,..." to quote themselves and others. Its more casual, though.
July 6, 2018
2
Hi Fan,
It depends on the context. However, "As I was saying" can be used if you were interrupted ("As I was saying/trying to say before John butted in..."), whereas "As I said" means you're going to repeat something that you mentioned earlier ("As I said, it's very difficult to find a good job at the moment").
In some contexts, though, they can mean the same thing ("As I was saying/As I said, you can't just walk into his office.").
Hope this helps!
July 6, 2018
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Fan
Language Skills
Chinese (Mandarin), English, Japanese, Spanish
Learning Language
English, Japanese, Spanish
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