rien dire

say nothing

→ rien

phrase Very common #1,676

say nothing Usually used with ne in standard French: ne rien dire. In casual speech, ne is often omitted. With vouloir, it can also mean “not want to say anything.”

FR: Il est resté silencieux sans rien dire.

EN: He stayed silent without saying anything.

Tu ne dois rien dire !

You mustn't say anything!

— La vie est belle (1997)

Tu veux rien dire.

You don't want to say anything.

— Marche à l'ombre (1984)

Je ne voulais rien dire à personne.

I didn't want to tell anyone anything.

Si tu veux rien dire parce que tu lui as promis, OK, dis rien.

If you don't want to say anything because you promised him, OK, say nothing.

— Faute d'amour (2017)

Donc tu vas rien dire du tout.

So you're not going to say anything at all.

— Demain tout commence (2016)

Je n'ai pu rien dire.

I couldn't say anything.

— PIKU (2015)

Nous ne pouvons rien dire.

We cannot say anything.

— Oppenheimer (2023)

Tu ne veux rien dire ?

You don't want to say anything?

— Our Times (2015)

Vous n'allez rien dire ?

You're not going to say anything?

— The Strangers (2016)

Porté disparu, ça ne veut encore rien dire.

Being reported missing doesn't mean anything yet.

— Quand passent les cigognes (1957)

Alors tu ne devrais rien dire du tout.

Then you shouldn't say anything at all.

— Agora (2009)

Tu ne vas rien dire ?

You're not going to say anything?

Vous ne pouvez rien dire.

You can't say anything.

— Harry Potter et la Chambre des secrets (2002)

Du moins pour le moment, je ne vais rien dire.

At least for the moment, I’m not going to say anything.

Si on est ensemble, personne pourra plus rien dire.

If we're together, no one will be able to say anything anymore.

— Girlhood (2014)

En face de son père, il ne peut rien dire.

In front of his father, he can't say anything.

Mais avec Francesca, personne ne peut rien dire.

But with Francesca, no one can say anything.

— Tár (2022)

Tu ne peux rien dire.

You can't say anything.

Tu veux rien dire ?

Don't you want to say anything?

— Happy Together (1997)

Personne ne veut rien dire ?

Does nobody want to say anything?

— Our Times (2015)

Ça veut dire que tu ne peux rien dire.

That means you can't say anything.

— Le Tao de Steve (2000)

Toutefois, Mrs. Aouda ne laissait pas d'être inquiète, sans en rien dire.

However, Mrs. Aouda could not help feeling worried, though she said nothing about it.

J’ai trouvé préférable de n’en rien dire.

I thought it best to say nothing about it.

Tu ne peux rien dire jusqu'à ce que tu connaisses les circonstances.

You can't say anything until you know the circumstances.

Je ne voulais rien dire devant les enfants.

I didn’t want to say anything in front of the children.

Je veux rien dire, parce que c'est vraiment pas cher.

I don't want to say anything because it's really cheap.

— American Gangster (2007)

Tu ne pouvais rien dire de plus, ils sont jeunes et n'ont pas froid aux yeux.

You couldn’t have put it better—they’re young and fearless.

— Night Watch (2004)

Je ne devrais rien dire.

I shouldn't say anything.

— God of Cookery (1996)

Sauf que 'toi' ne veut plus rien dire.

Except that 'you' doesn't mean anything anymore.

Sauf que "toi" ne veut plus rien dire.

Except “you” doesn’t mean anything anymore.

— Fight Club (1999)

Mais ces larmes ne voulaient rien dire.

But those tears meant nothing.

— Le Sacrifice (1986)

Mais ça voudrait rien dire.

But that wouldn't mean anything.

— Good Luck, Have Fun, Don't Die (2026)

Eh bien, je ne voulais rien dire.

Well, I didn't mean anything by it.

— Independence Day (1996)

Ça ne veut plus rien dire.

It doesn’t mean anything anymore.

— La Vague (2008)

Vous n'allez rien dire.

You’re not going to say anything.

— The Big Sick (2017)

Tu préfères rien dire et rester enfermé ?

Would you rather say nothing and stay cooped up?

— Ouvre les yeux (1997)

Je pouvais rien dire au téléphone.

I couldn't say anything on the phone.

— Femmes au bord de la crise de nerfs (1988)