tell
Other forms: told; tells
To tell is to describe or announce something, either by speaking or writing. If you're going to be late to a movie, you should tell your friends so they can save you a seat.
You might tell someone to be quiet in the library, or tell a bedtime story to your siblings. You can also tell your friend a secret or tell her secret to someone else. Informally, to tell on someone is to inform an authority about something that person did that she wasn't supposed to do. And there's also a way to use tell to mean "determine with certainty," like when you can tell it's going to rain because the sky is so dark.
Definitions of tell
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narrate or give a detailed account of“The father told a story to his child”
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relate
give an account of
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crack
tell spontaneously
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yarn
tell or spin a yarn
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rhapsodise, rhapsodize
recite a rhapsody
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type of:
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inform
impart knowledge of some fact, state or affairs, or event to
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express in words“tell me what is bothering you”
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say
state as one's opinion or judgement; declare
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lay out, present, represent
bring forward and present to the mind
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misstate
state something incorrectly
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answer, reply, respond
react verbally
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introduce, precede, preface, premise
furnish with a preface or introduction
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announce, declare
announce publicly or officially
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articulate, enunciate, vocalise, vocalize
express or state clearly
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get out
express with difficulty
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declare
state emphatically and authoritatively
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declare
make a declaration (of dutiable goods) to a customs official
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mention, note, observe, remark
make mention of
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add, append, supply
state or say further
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explain
define
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give
convey or reveal information
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sum, sum up, summarise, summarize
be a summary of
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plead
enter a plea, as in courts of law
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profess
confess one's faith in, or allegiance to
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argue, reason
present reasons and arguments
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argue, indicate
give evidence of
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call back
return or repeat a telephone call
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counter
speak in response
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field
answer adequately or successfully
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sass
answer back in an impudent or insolent manner
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come back, rejoin, repay, retort, return, riposte
answer back
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condemn
declare or judge unfit for use or habitation
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promulgate
put a law into effect by formal declaration
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bless, consecrate, hallow, sanctify
render holy by means of religious rites
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account, answer for
furnish a justifying analysis or explanation
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advise, propose, suggest
make a proposal, declare a plan for something
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assure, promise
make a promise or commitment
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promise
promise to undertake or give
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take the Fifth, take the Fifth Amendment
refuse to testify by invoking the Fifth Amendment, which states that nobody may be forced to testify as a witness against himself or herself
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preamble
make a preliminary introduction, usually to a formal document
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prologise, prologize, prologuize
write or speak a prologue
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condemn, doom, sentence
pronounce a sentence on (somebody) in a court of law
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spin
twist and turn so as to give an intended interpretation
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exclaim, proclaim, promulgate
state or announce
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profess
state freely
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affirm, assert, aver, avow, swan, swear, verify
declare or affirm solemnly and formally as true
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depone, depose, swear
make a deposition; declare under oath
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attest, bear witness, take the stand, testify
give testimony in a court of law
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quote
name the price of
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insert, slip in, sneak in, stick in
insert casually
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toss in
add casually to a conversation
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decree
issue a decree
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animadvert, opine, sound off, speak out, speak up
express one's opinion openly and without fear or hesitation
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bridle
respond to the reins, as of horses
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comment, notice, point out, remark
make or write a comment on
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count out
declare the loser
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cast
deposit
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type of:
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express, give tongue to, utter, verbalise, verbalize
articulate; either verbally or with a cry, shout, or noise
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say
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let something be known
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digress, divagate, stray, wander
lose clarity or turn aside especially from the main subject of attention or course of argument in writing, thinking, or speaking
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bespeak, betoken, indicate, point, signal
be a signal for or a symptom of
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break, bring out, disclose, discover, divulge, expose, give away, let on, let out, reveal, unwrap
make known to the public information that was previously known only to a few people or that was meant to be kept a secret
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spill, talk
reveal information
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air, bare, publicise, publicize
make public
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ingeminate, iterate, reiterate, repeat, restate, retell
to say, state, or perform again
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propagandise, propagandize
subject to propaganda
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announce, annunciate, foretell, harbinger, herald
foreshadow or presage
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give, impart, leave, pass on
transmit (knowledge or skills)
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blackwash
bring (information) out of concealment
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augur, auspicate, betoken, bode, forecast, foreshadow, foretell, omen, portend, predict, prefigure, presage, prognosticate
indicate by signs
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mark
designate as if by a mark
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convey
make known; pass on, of information
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muckrake
explore and expose misconduct and scandals concerning public figures
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blow
cause to be revealed and jeopardized
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out
reveal (something) about somebody's identity or lifestyle
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come out, come out of the closet, out
to state openly and publicly one's homosexuality
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spring
produce or disclose suddenly or unexpectedly
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betray, bewray
reveal unintentionally
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confide
reveal in private; tell confidentially
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leak
tell anonymously
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babble, babble out, blab, blab out, let the cat out of the bag, peach, sing, spill the beans, talk, tattle
divulge confidential information or secrets
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hype
publicize in an exaggerated and often misleading manner
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bulletin
make public by bulletin
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perseverate
psychology: repeat a response after the cessation of the original stimulus
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ditto
repeat an action or statement
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dwell, harp
come back to
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interpret, render, translate
restate (words) from one language into another language
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paraphrase, rephrase, reword
express the same message in different words
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bring out, issue, publish, put out, release
prepare and issue for public distribution or sale
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broadcast, circularise, circularize, circulate, diffuse, disperse, disseminate, distribute, pass around, propagate, spread
cause to become widely known
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air, beam, broadcast, send, transmit
broadcast over the airwaves, as in radio or television
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resume, sum up, summarise, summarize
give a summary (of)
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cite, quote
repeat a passage from
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reveal
disclose directly or through prophets
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type of:
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inform
impart knowledge of some fact, state or affairs, or event to
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inform positively and with certainty and confidence
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give instructions to or direct somebody to do something with authority“The mother told the child to get dressed”
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direct
command with authority
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instruct
give instructions or directions for some task
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command, require
make someone do something
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call, send for
order, request, or command to come
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warn
ask to go away
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charge
instruct or command with authority
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charge
instruct (a jury) about the law, its application, and the weighing of evidence
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burden, charge, saddle
impose a task upon, assign a responsibility to
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requisition
make a formal request for official services
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cite, summon, summons
call in an official matter, such as to attend court
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beep
call, summon, or alert with a beeper
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call back, recall
summon to return
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call in
summon to a particular activity or employment
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lift
call to stop the hunt or to retire, as of hunting dogs
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muster
call to duty, military service, jury duty, etc.
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disallow, forbid, interdict, nix, prohibit, proscribe, veto
command against
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hail
call for
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summon
ask to come
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stet
printing: direct that a matter marked for omission or correction is to be retained (used in the imperative)
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call up, mobilise, mobilize, rally
call to arms; of military personnel
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type of:
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request
ask (a person) to do something
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give evidence
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discern or comprehend
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mark as different
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synonyms:
differentiate, distinguish, secern, secernate, separate, severalise, severalize, tell apart
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know
be able to distinguish, recognize as being different
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discern, discriminate, know apart
recognize or perceive the difference
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label
distinguish (an element or atom) by using a radioactive isotope or an isotope of unusual mass for tracing through chemical reactions
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label
distinguish (as a compound or molecule) by introducing a labeled atom
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sex
tell the sex (of young chickens)
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individualise, individualize
make or mark or treat as individual
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contrast
put in opposition to show or emphasize differences
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severalise, severalize
distinguish or separate
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contradistinguish
distinguish by contrasting qualities
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decouple, dissociate
regard as unconnected
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demarcate
separate clearly, as if by boundaries
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discriminate, separate, single out
treat differently on the basis of sex or race
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stratify
divide society into social classes or castes
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insulate, isolate
place or set apart
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subtilize
mark fine distinctions and subtleties, as among words
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hive off
remove from a group and make separate
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segregate
separate by race or religion; practice a policy of racial segregation
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redline
discriminate in selling or renting housing in certain areas of a neighborhood
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disadvantage, disfavor, disfavour
put at a disadvantage; hinder, harm
Pronunciation
US
/tɛl/
UK
/tɛl/
DISCLAIMER: These example sentences appear in various news sources and books to reflect the usage of the word ‘tell'.
Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Vocabulary.com or its editors.
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