- plural of tale.
tales
Americannoun
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(used with a plural verb) persons chosen to serve on the jury when the original panel is insufficiently large: originally selected from among those present in court.
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(used with a singular verb) the order or writ summoning such jurors.
noun
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(functioning as plural) a group of persons summoned from among those present in court or from bystanders to fill vacancies on a jury panel
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(functioning as singular) the writ summoning such jurors
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of tales
1300–50; Middle English < Medieval Latin tālēs ( dē circumstantibus ) such (of the bystanders)
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.
Yet amid the “tell-all” tales, there is also more than a little soul-searching.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 13, 2026
As with his mother, who wrote tall tales during his Northern Irish youth, Cohn resorted to literary imagination and exaggeration to bring the story to life.
From Salon ● Oct. 8, 2026
They were all trailblazers and trendsetters, their tales relayed through continental dispatches and espresso-fuelled Saturday morning showreels.
From BBC ● Oct. 1, 2026
In honor of Slate’s 30th anniversary, Luke waded into the comments section and discovered tales of love, loss, and a vanishing form of online community.
From Slate ● Sep. 23, 2026
At that age, fairy tales were dark, simple things, their hidden metaphors worn down so that they fit comfortably in a child’s grasping hands.
From "The City Beautiful" by Aden Polydoros
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
