thereby hangs a tale

Idioms  

1. That detail or incident reminds one of another story, as in So he went without supper, but thereby hangs a tale. This expression, embodying the pun on tail and tale, was used by Shakespeare in at least four of his plays and presumably was well known before that. [1500s]

---

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

thereby hangs a tale

No, they did not, and thereby hangs a tale.

From Scientific American ● Nov. 12, 2019

On the other hand, there are also the mysterious revolutions of luck, the wheel of chance – and thereby hangs a tale.

From The Guardian ● Aug. 13, 2017

Ah yes," he beams, "and thereby hangs a tale.

From The Guardian ● Jun. 15, 2013

And then, from hour to hour, we rot and rot; And thereby hangs a tale.

From Time Magazine Archive

Some have not been heard of lately—we fancy them imprisoned in some sweaters' dens—but thereby hangs a tale, whereof more hereafter.

From Alton Locke, Tailor and Poet An Autobiography by Thomas Hughes