tell
verb (used with object)
to give an account or narrative of; narrate; relate (a story, tale, etc.).
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tell
1 American
[tel]
/ tɛl /
verb (used with object)
-
tells,
present (3rd person singular)
-
told,
past participle, past
-
telling
present participle
-
to give an account or narrative of; narrate; relate (a story, tale, etc.).
to tell the story of Lincoln's childhood.
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to make known by speech or writing (a fact, news, information, etc.); communicate.
- Synonyms:
- impart
-
to announce or proclaim.
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to utter (the truth, a lie, etc.).
- Synonyms:
- speak
-
to express in words (thoughts, feelings, etc.).
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to reveal or divulge (something secret or private).
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to say plainly or positively.
I cannot tell just what was done.
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to discern or recognize (a distant person or thing) so as to be able to identify or describe.
Can you tell who that is over there?
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to distinguish; discriminate; ascertain.
You could hardly tell the difference between them.
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to inform (a person) of something.
He told me his name.
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to assure emphatically.
I won't, I tell you!
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to bid, order, or command.
Tell him to stop.
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to mention one after another, as in enumerating; count or set one by one or in exact amount.
to tell the cattle in a herd;
All told there were 17 if we are correct.
verb (used without object)
-
tells,
present (3rd person singular)
-
told,
past participle, past
-
telling
present participle
-
to give an account or report.
Tell me about your trip.
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to give evidence or be an indication.
The ruined temples told of an ancient culture, long since passed from existence.
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to disclose something secret or private; inform; tattle.
She knows who did it, but she won't tell.
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to say positively; determine; predict.
Who can tell?
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to have force or effect; operate effectively.
a contest in which every stroke tells.
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to produce a marked or severe effect.
The strain was telling on his health.
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British Dialect. to talk or chat.
verb phrase
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tell on to tattle on (someone).
-
tell off
-
to separate from the whole and assign to a particular duty.
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Informal. to rebuke severely; scold.
It was about time that someone told him off.
-
idioms
tell
2
American
[tel]
/ tɛl /
noun
Tell
3
American
[tel]
/ tɛl /
noun
tell
1
British
/ tɛl /
verb
-
(when tr, may take a clause as object) to let know or notify
he told me that he would go
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(tr) to order or instruct (someone to do something)
I told her to send the letter airmail
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to give an account or narration (of something)
she told me her troubles
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(tr) to communicate by words; utter
to tell the truth
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(tr) to make known; disclose
to tell fortunes
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to serve as an indication
her blush told of her embarrassment
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(tr; used with can, etc; may take a clause as object) to comprehend, discover, or discern
I can tell what is wrong
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(tr; used with can, etc) to distinguish or discriminate
he couldn't tell chalk from cheese
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(intr) to have or produce an impact, effect, or strain
every step told on his bruised feet
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informal to reveal secrets or gossip (about)
don't tell!
she told on him
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(tr) to assure
I tell you, I've had enough!
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(tr) to count (votes)
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dialect (intr) to talk or chatter
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informal to tell the truth no matter how unpleasant it is
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to read the time from a clock
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slang I know that very well
Tell
2
British
/ tɛl /
noun
tell
3
British
/ tɛl /
noun
tell
More Idioms
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
tellsimple
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tellssimple
-
have toldperfect
-
has toldperfect
-
am tellingprogressive
-
are tellingprogressive
-
is tellingprogressive
-
have been tellingperfect progressive
-
has been tellingperfect progressive
Past
-
toldsimple
-
had toldperfect
-
was tellingprogressive
-
were tellingprogressive
-
had been tellingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of tell1
First recorded before 900; Middle English tellen, tel(le) “to speak, talk, say, mention,” Old English tellan “to tell, relate, count”; cognate with Dutch tellen “to reckon, count,” Old Norse telja “to count, number, say,” Old High German zellēn, German zählen “to count, number”; akin to tale
Origin of tell2
First recorded in 1860–65; from Arabic tall “hillock”
Explanation
To tell is to describe or announce something, either by speaking or writing. If you're going to be late to a movie, you should tell your friends so they can save you a seat. You might tell someone to be quiet in the library, or tell a bedtime story to your siblings. You can also tell your friend a secret or tell her secret to someone else. Informally, to tell on someone is to inform an authority about something that person did that she wasn't supposed to do. And there's also a way to use tell to mean "determine with certainty," like when you can tell it's going to rain because the sky is so dark.
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
As usual with this guy, we got a lot less than he promised, though he continues to tell us how “big and beautiful” the pool is — or rather was, until “vandals” destroyed it.
From Salon ● Aug. 7, 2026
And if my brother dies, do I tell someone that years ago I signed something naming me as executor?
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 7, 2026
“We don’t need hundreds of pages of regulations to tell Head Start what to do. That approach doesn’t really work,” Barnett said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 6, 2026
"I hope people will honestly engage in my work and recognise the deep heart and sensitivity that I bring to it as I tell a very personal story," she said.
From BBC ● Aug. 6, 2026
“You don’t have to show it to me, but can you tell me a little more about what you’re composing?”
From "Split the Sky" by Marie Arnold
Tell me a little bit more about it.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 6, 2026
In one sense, he was selling himself short: “Revolver” featured three Harrison compositions, a glut of new material that included “Taxman,” “Love You To” and “I Want to Tell You.”
From Salon ● Aug. 5, 2026
Tell us about your pet peeves or why you find them beneficial at [email protected].
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 1, 2026
"My Dad calls all the time and asks 'my son, are you good? Tell me that you are good.'"
From BBC ● Jul. 28, 2026
Tell me something to turn myself into, bet I can do it!”
From "The Manifestor Prophecy" by Angie Thomas
"With climate change, we're sitting on a ticking time bomb," the 32-year-old founder of Bee Safe Mosquito Control tells AFP.
From Barron's ● Aug. 7, 2026
Obvious AI tells throughout this track make clear that Boy George hasn’t just gotten lazy, he’s also lost the quality of discernment.
From Salon ● Aug. 6, 2026
If you’re in that group, congratulations: You’ve won a comparison that tells you almost nothing about whether you can retire.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 6, 2026
Bookings are up for both Walt Disney World and Disney cruises, Chief Executive Josh D’Amaro tells analysts on a call.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 6, 2026
He remains cheerful and tells Dr. Harlow that he "does not care to see his friends, as he shall be at work in a few days."
From "Phineas Gage" by John Fleischman
Within 40 minutes of the collision, Umar Ben Yusaf drove back to the area and told a police community support officer that the person responsible was with him.
From BBC ● Aug. 7, 2026
Foithong Choenyim, a volunteer first responder who said his daughter was a seventh-grader at Debsirin Nonthaburi School, told local media that he rushed to the school to help the injured.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 7, 2026
I had recently told Mona, my older sister, about the caffeine liaison, and I instantly had regretted it as I glanced at her text.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 7, 2026
He told me, get three things done each day, and the rest is noise.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 7, 2026
I have told her a million times that she can call me Lala, but she never does.
From "Split the Sky" by Marie Arnold
Bernie Moreno, albeit belatedly, reacted to Miller’s behavior by defending his daughter, telling reporters he sent her, his granddaughter and his wife to a “secure place” out of state for their own safety.
From Salon ● Aug. 7, 2026
The Met closed the case and Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley apologised for the investigation, telling LBC on Thursday that the complaint should have been "screened out earlier on as not requiring investigation".
From BBC ● Aug. 7, 2026
So when you’re telling me you don’t know any details about the second season of “Pluribus,” are you misleading me?
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 6, 2026
The pop star and “Wicked” actor added context during a concert on Monday, telling attendees that she had settled on this course of action “a long time ago” while in “a thoughtful and empowered place.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 6, 2026
Then all at once he was telling me about his wife and children in Bremen, about their garden, their dogs, their summer hiking vacations.
From "The Hiding Place" by Corrie ten Boom
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
