lui a dit

told him/her

→ lui

phrase Very common #2,037

told him/her Used with a preceding subject in the passé composé. “Lui” can mean either “to him” or “to her,” depending on context.

FR: Son frère lui a dit de rentrer avant la nuit.

EN: Her brother told her to come home before dark.

Tom s'attendait à ce que Marie croie tout ce qu'il lui a dit.

Tom expected Marie to believe everything he had told her.

Il lui a dit de faire ce qu'il veut.

He told him to do whatever he wants.

Tom lui a dit.

Tom told him.

Elle lui a dit des choses terribles.

She said terrible things to him.

Tom n'avait d'autre choix que de faire ce que le patron lui a dit de faire.

Tom had no choice but to do what the boss told him to do.

Le Maître le lui a dit.

The Master told him so.

— Épouses et Concubines (1991)

Marie lui a dit de ne pas lui faire perdre son temps.

Mary told him not to waste her time.

Et les choses se passent comme le roi le lui a dit.

And things are happening just as the king told him.

— Le Patient anglais (1996)

Strauss lui a dit que vous et Ruth Tolman aviez une liaison depuis des années.

Strauss told him that you and Ruth Tolman had been having an affair for years.

— Oppenheimer (2023)

Le docteur lui a dit de diminuer la boisson.

The doctor told him to cut down on the drink.

C'est ce qu'on lui a dit.

That's what he was told.

Le père d'Alicia le lui a dit.

Alicia's father told her.

— Parle avec elle (2002)

Elle l'a cru lorsqu'il lui a dit qu'il l'aimait.

She believed him when he told her he loved her.

Son docteur lui a dit de ne pas boire d'alcool.

Her doctor told her not to drink alcohol.

Qui le lui a dit ?

Who told him?

Qui lui a dit ça ?

Who told him that?

Sans le faire exprès, il lui a dit exactement ce qu'elle voulait savoir.

Without meaning to, he told her exactly what she wanted to know.

Elle lui a dit de cesser.

She told him to stop.

Ziri lui a dit.

Ziri told him.

Elle lui a dit son âge.

She told him her age.

Qu'est-ce qu'il lui a dit ?

What did he say to her?

— Le Facteur (1994)

Mary lui a dit de ne pas perdre son temps.

Mary told him not to waste his time.

On lui a dit de m'accompagner.

He/She was told to accompany me.

Qu'est-ce que tu lui a dit ?

What did you tell him?

— Everything Everywhere All at Once (2022)

Personne ne lui a dit.

No one told him.

— Projet Dernière Chance (2026)

Qui lui a dit ?

Who told him?

Tom espère que Mary sait qu'elle doit faire tout ce que John lui a dit.

Tom hopes that Mary knows she has to do everything John told her.

T'inquiète, il lui a dit clairement.

Don't worry, he made it clear to him/her.

— Victoria (2015)

Elle a fait ce qu'on lui a dit.

She did what she was told.

Elle lui a dit une bonne fois pour toute qu'elle n'irait pas au cinéma avec lui.

She told him once and for all that she wasn’t going to the movies with him.