tale

[ teyl ]

/ teɪl /

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See synonyms for: tale / tales on Thesaurus.com

Definition of tale

noun

a narrative that relates the details of some real or imaginary event, incident, or case; story: a tale about Lincoln's dog.

a literary composition having the form of such a narrative.

a falsehood; lie.

a rumor or piece of gossip, often malicious or untrue.

the full number or amount.

Archaic. enumeration; count.

Obsolete. talk; discourse.

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Origin of tale

before 900; Middle English; Old English talu series, list, narrative, story; cognate with Dutch taal speech, language, German Zahl number, Old Norse tala number, speech. See tell¹

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH tale

tail, tale

Words nearby tale

Talcahuano, talcose, talcosis, talcum, talcum powder, tale, Taleb, talebearer, talent, talented, talent scout

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022

How to use tale in a sentence

If tales are true, he’s one of the biggest bullies Washington has ever seen.
Why Larry Summers Still Triggers Washington. (It Isn’t His Economics.)|Philip Elliott|February 8, 2021|Time
OZY and History’s newest podcast, The Food That Built America, tells the tale.
The Brave New World of Advertising|Daniel Malloy|February 7, 2021|Ozy
Through interviews with both of them and members of their families, Glaser is able to meticulously re-create their tale.
For a mother forced to give up her child, decades of grief, shame and secrets|Ellen McCarthy|February 5, 2021|Washington Post
The tragedy, of course, is that Spears still can’t tell that tale herself.
Britney Spears and the trauma of being young, female and famous in the ’90s|Ashley Fetters|February 5, 2021|Washington Post

In this 2018 book, Miller lets Circe take center stage, imagining what filled all the space between her appearances in ancient tales.
Everything Our Editors Loved in January|The Editors|February 4, 2021|Outside Online
As an example of good science-and-society policymaking, the history of fluoride may be more of a cautionary tale.
Anti-Fluoriders Are The OG Anti-Vaxxers|Michael Schulson|July 27, 2016|DAILY BEAST
Not that the demonstration had anything to do with this couple, whom Sarah seems to see as a fairy tale come to life.
Synagogue Slay: When Cops Have to Kill|Michael Daly|December 10, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Were the fairy-tale true it really would shame the affluent west.
The Dark Side of Cuba’s Ebola Economy|James Bloodworth|December 9, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Whilst Whitacre never defined himself as an “ally,” this remains a cautionary tale of what not to do.
Tech’s Male ‘Feminists’ Aren’t Helping|Cate Huston, Karen Catlin|December 8, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Urban America is often portrayed as a tale of two kinds of places, those that “have it” and those who do not.
The Rustbelt Roars Back From the Dead|Joel Kotkin, Richey Piiparinen|December 7, 2014|DAILY BEAST
But he was ignorant of that part of the horrid tale; and the Duke, in a milder voice, bade him rise.
The Pastor's Fire-side Vol. 3 of 4|Jane Porter
Never had Punch secured the telling of that tale with so little opposition.
Kipling Stories and Poems Every Child Should Know, Book II|Rudyard Kipling
The tailor of the fairy tale with his "seven at a blow" is not in it with the gunnery Lieutenant of a battleship.
Gallipoli Diary, Volume I|Ian Hamilton
Until very recently little has been known of the strange land in which the subject of this tale lives.
Our Little Korean Cousin|H. Lee M. Pike
That was how I learnt the strangest tale that ever a man was told, and knew the miracle to which I owed my life.
Uncanny Tales|Various

British Dictionary definitions for tale

tale

/ (teɪl) /

noun

a report, narrative, or story

one of a group of short stories connected by an overall narrative framework

a malicious or meddlesome rumour or piece of gossipto bear tales against someone
(in combination)talebearer; taleteller

a fictitious or false statement

tell tales

to tell fanciful lies
to report malicious stories, trivial complaints, etc, esp to someone in authority

tell a tale to reveal something important

tell its own tale to be self-evident

archaic

a number; amount
computation or enumeration

an obsolete word for talk

Word Origin for tale

Old English talu list; related to Old Frisian tele talk, Old Saxon, Old Norse tala talk, number, Old High German zala number

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Idioms and Phrases with tale

tale

see old wives' tale; tall tale; tell tales; thereby hangs a tale.

tale

Definition of tale

Origin of tale

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH tale

Words nearby tale

Words related to tale

How to use tale in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for tale

Word Origin for tale

Other Idioms and Phrases with tale