le decía a

was telling

→ le

phrase Rare #36,952

was telling The subject is determined by context; “le” means “to him,” “to her,” or “to you” formally, and “decía” is the imperfect form of decir, meaning “was saying” or “used to say.”

SP: Le decía a mi hermano que llegaría tarde.

EN: I was telling my brother that I would be late.

Le decía a una mujer que la quería.

He was telling a woman that he loved her.

— Mujeres al borde de un ataque de nervios (1988)

Le decía a Dios que primero se llevó a mi padre y ahora a Nandini.

I was telling God that first he took my father and now Nandini.

— हम दिल दे चुके सनम (1999)

Ella le decía a él que se diera prisa o se lo tomara con calma.

She would tell him to hurry up or take it easy.

— El médico de Budapest (2020)

Le decía a tu padre dónde poner tu regalo.

I was telling your father where to put your gift.

Le decía a Tom que estaba ocupado.

I told Tom I was busy.

Tom no le decía a María cuántos años tenía.

Tom wouldn't tell María how old he was.