tally

[ tal-ee ]

/ ˈtæl i /

noun, plural tal·lies.

an account or reckoning; a record of debit and credit, of the score of a game, or the like.

Also called tally stick . a stick of wood with notches cut to indicate the amount of a debt or payment, often split lengthwise across the notches, the debtor retaining one piece and the creditor the other.

anything on which a score or account is kept.

a notch or mark made on or in a tally.

a number or group of items recorded.

a mark made to register a certain number of items, as four consecutive vertical lines with a diagonal line through them to indicate a group of five.

a number of objects serving as a unit of computation.

a ticket, label, or mark used as a means of identification, classification, etc.

anything corresponding to another thing as a counterpart or duplicate.

verb (used with object), tal·lied, tal·ly·ing.

to mark or enter on a tally; register; record.

to count or reckon up.

to furnish with a tally or identifying label.

to cause to correspond or agree.

verb (used without object), tal·lied, tal·ly·ing.

to correspond, as one part of a tally with the other; accord or agree: Does his story tally with hers?

to score a point or make a goal, as in a game.

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Origin of tally

1275–1325; (noun) Middle English taly<Medieval Latin talia, variant of Latin tālea rod, cutting, literally, heel-piece, derivative of tālus heel; (v.) late Middle English talyen, derivative of the noun

SYNONYMS FOR tally

1 inventory, count, enumeration.

10 enroll, list.

11 enumerate, calculate.

SEE SYNONYMS FOR tally ON THESAURUS.COM

OTHER WORDS FROM tally

tal·li·er, nounre·tal·ly, noun, plural re·tal·lies, verb, re·tal·lied, re·tal·ly·ing.un·tal·lied, adjective

Words nearby tally

tall poppy, tall poppy syndrome, tall ship, tall tale, Tallulah, tally, tally clerk, tallyho, tallyman, Tallys, tally sheet

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

Example sentences from the Web for tally

It’s a sickeningly high number, but it’s also the first time the tally has dropped below 1 million since March.
S&P 500 hits a new record, erasing last of pandemic losses|Verne Kopytoff|August 18, 2020|Fortune
Alexander Lukashenko, the 26-year-and-counting president of Belarus, won his country’s recent elections with a final tally of 80 percent of the vote.
Misery in Minsk|Eugene Robinson|August 18, 2020|Ozy
Lyon is reasonably well organized in defense, but it is outperforming its expected goals against tally so far, suggesting that something’s got to give eventually.
After Manchester City’s Big Loss, Who’s The Favorite To Win The Champions League?|Terrence Doyle|August 18, 2020|FiveThirtyEight
While there’s no official tally, it’s reasonable to say that millions of algorithmically proctored tests are happening every month around the world.
Software that monitors students during tests perpetuates inequality and violates their privacy|Amy Nordrum|August 7, 2020|MIT Technology Review

Scores joined him, and the tally of militants in Kashmir doubled from 150 to 300.
Is Kashmir’s Militancy Dead?|Charu Kasturi|August 6, 2020|Ozy
They examined every “poll list, tally sheet, certificate of result, and, where necessary, each ballot.”
Honoring The Late John Doar, A Nearly Forgotten Hero Of The Civil Rights Era|Gary May|November 15, 2014|DAILY BEAST
We keep a tally of school shootings at The Daily Beast, too, using a slightly different methodology.
This Gun Nut Says Most School Shootings Aren’t Real|Brandy Zadrozny|June 12, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The following day, another school shooting at Arapahoe High School added to our tally.
This Gun Nut Says Most School Shootings Aren’t Real|Brandy Zadrozny|June 12, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Tally one for the superstition list… no more laundry at night.
Dodging Rockets in Afghanistan as the Taliban’s Fighting Season Begins|Nick Willard|May 14, 2014|DAILY BEAST
When the smoke cleared, a most precious 43-8 tally remained intact.
The Impossible Super Bowl Score: First 43-8 Football Game in a Century|Evin Demirel|February 3, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The chirograph was the precursor of the modern indenture, the commonest form of English deeds, though no longer a tally.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 8, Slice 5|Various
Study became impossible, and he lost his appetite for what food there was left; but the tally on the stick was kept.
Last of the Great Scouts|Helen Cody Wetmore
The common practice of bakers and milkmen was to keep a tally on the door-post with chalk.
London|Walter Besant
Now examine this pantograph, taken at eight months, and also marked A. Does it tally with the other two?
The Tragedy of Pudd'nhead Wilson|Mark Twain (Samuel Clemens)
Again the inning closed without a tally, and Robinson came in for her last turn at bat.
On Your Mark!|Ralph Henry Barbour

British Dictionary definitions for tally

tally

/ (ˈtælɪ) /

verb -lies, -lying or -lied

(intr) to correspond one with the otherthe two stories don't tally

(tr) to supply with an identifying tag

(intr) to keep score

(tr) obsolete to record or mark

noun plural -lies

any record of debit, credit, the score in a game, etc

a ticket, label, or mark, used as a means of identification, classification, etc

a counterpart or duplicate of something, such as the counterfoil of a cheque

a stick used (esp formerly) as a record of the amount of a debt according to the notches cut in it

a notch or mark cut in or made on such a stick

a mark or number of marks used to represent a certain number in counting

Australian and NZ the total number of sheep shorn by one shearer in a specified period of time

Derived forms of tally

tallier, noun

Word Origin for tally

C15: from Medieval Latin tālea, from Latin: a stick; related to Latin tālus heel

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

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WORD OF THE DAY

tally

noun, plural tal·lies.

verb (used with object), tal·lied, tal·ly·ing.

verb (used without object), tal·lied, tal·ly·ing.

QUIZZES

WHO SAID IT: A QUIZ ON PRESIDENTIAL WIT AND WISDOM

Origin of tally

SYNONYMS FOR tally

OTHER WORDS FROM tally

Words nearby tally

Example sentences from the Web for tally

British Dictionary definitions for tally

verb -lies, -lying or -lied

noun plural -lies

Derived forms of tally

Word Origin for tally

MEANINGS

WORD GAMES

LEARN

WRITING

WORD OF THE DAY

tally

noun, plural tal·lies.

verb (used with object), tal·lied, tal·ly·ing.

verb (used without object), tal·lied, tal·ly·ing.

QUIZZES

WHO SAID IT: A QUIZ ON PRESIDENTIAL WIT AND WISDOM

Origin of tally

SYNONYMS FOR tally

OTHER WORDS FROM tally

Words nearby tally

Words related to tally

Example sentences from the Web for tally

British Dictionary definitions for tally

verb -lies, -lying or -lied

noun plural -lies

Derived forms of tally

Word Origin for tally