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• teller
  teller

  noun

  a person or thing that tells, relates, or communicates; narrator.
• Teller
  Teller

  noun

  Edward, 1908–2003, U.S. physicist, born in Hungary.

teller

¹ American  

[tel-er] / ˈtɛl ər /

noun

1. a person or thing that tells, relates, or communicates; narrator.

   Grandpa was a great teller of tall, tall tales.

2. a person employed in a bank to receive or pay out money over the counter.

3. a person who tells, counts, or enumerates, as one appointed to count votes in a legislative body.

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Teller ² American  

[tel-er] / ˈtɛl ər /

noun

1. Edward, 1908–2003, U.S. physicist, born in Hungary.

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teller ¹ British  

/ ˈtɛlə /

noun

1. another name for cashier 1

2. a person appointed to count votes in a legislative body, assembly, etc

3. a person who tells; narrator

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Teller ² British  

/ ˈtɛlə /

noun

1. Edward. 1908–2003, US nuclear physicist, born in Hungary: a major contributor to the development of the hydrogen bomb (1952)

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Other Word Forms

• tellership
  noun
• underteller
  noun

Etymology

Origin of teller

Middle English word dating back to 1300–50; see origin at tell ¹, -er ¹

Explanation

A teller is either someone who tells some sort of story or a person who works in a bank. A bank clerk who loves to talk about her adventures? She's both kinds of teller. You might be a teller of tales, known for spinning stories, or a teller of lies, famous for your fibs. If you're a teller at a bank, you cash customers' checks and make their deposits. There aren't as many bank tellers as there once were, since this job is increasingly done by ATMs, or automatic teller machines. Teller comes from an obscure sense of the verb tell, "count."

Example Sentences

Oscar nominee Colman Domingo plays the singer's father Joe Jackson in the film, which also stars Nia Long as mother Katherine Jackson, and Top Gun: Maverick star Miles Teller as entertainment lawyer John Branca.

From BBC • Apr. 21, 2026

Whether “The Abandons” was intended as a prequel to “Sons of Anarchy” seems to be unclear, though Teller is a name associated with both shows.

From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 4, 2025

Teller handled it all well; he’s good with accents and earned strong laughs, especially playing two characters at the same time in the “Property Brothers” sketch and as Cuomo in the cold open.

From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 2, 2025

Mr Teller, who found it with his colleague Graeme Lyons, called it "one of those unforgettable discoveries".

From BBC • Oct. 30, 2025

“It was obvious,” Teller said later, “that Oppenheimer did not want to support further weapons work in any way.”

From "Bomb" by Steve Sheinkin

Related Words

• cashier