usage

sir,
i want to know what is the basic difference between when one says "i called him" and "i called on him".

my another query is what is the usage og the words "says" & "speaks" .basically i want to know when to use "says" and when to "speaks". he says, or he speaks.



regards

rishikesh

I called him - usually audibly, either via telephone or just via voice

"I called him on my new cell phone" "I called him over to help us with the project"

I called on him - 2 different meanings

1. to visit (usually in person). "While in town, i called on my old friend Alex' (this usage is sort of quaint and is not used a lot)

2. to depend/rely on: "I called on Jack to help me finish the project" "To finish the project, we had to call on Jack's skills"

this isn't the full/proper explanation, so if someone wants to expand on it, feel free ;)