dire

"To say" or "to tell." Note the irregular vous form in the present — vous dites, not the expected vous disez — which is one of the few genuinely irregular present-tense conjugations outside être/avoir/aller/faire.

• Qu'est-ce que tu dis ? — What are you saying?
• Elle m'a dit la vérité. — She told me the truth.
• Comment dit-on "apple" en français ? — How do you say "apple" in French?

Confusing dire (to say/tell, reporting speech) with parler (to speak/talk, the general activity) — "tell me" is dis-moi, not *parle-moi* (which would mean "talk to me," a different request).

Often confused with parler.

• expression "Dis-moi qui tu hantes, je te dirai qui tu es" — "Tell me who you keep company with, and I'll tell you who you are" — a French proverb documented since at least 1645.
• song "Dis, quand reviendras-tu ?" — Barbara's 1964 song, one of her most famous, later covered by more than a dozen artists including Gérard Depardieu and Patrick Bruel.