Etymology : Middle English, from Old English tellan; akin to Old High German zellen to count, tell, Old English talu tale
Pronunciation : tel
Function : verb
Date : before 12th century
1. family name; William Tell, hero and patriot of Swiss folklore during the early 14th century famous for his skill as an archer; (in Poker game) noticeable change in the conduct of a player that gives clues to said player's hand. relate; know; discover, discern; command. tell\tell\, n. that which is told; tale; account. [r.] i am at the end of my tell.tell \tell\, n. [ar.] a hill or mound. m. thomson.tell \tell\, v. i.
2. to give an account; to make report. that i may publish with the voice of thankgiving, and tell of all thy wondrous works. xxvi.
3. 2. to take effect; to produce a marked effect; as, every shot tells; every expression tells.
4. To mention one by one, or piece by piece; to recount; to enumerate; to reckon; to number; to count; as, to tell money.
5. To utter or recite in detail; to give an account of; to narrate.
6. To make known; to publish; to disclose; to divulge.
7. To give instruction to; to make report to; to acquaint; to teach; to inform.
8. To order; to request; to command.
9. To discern so as to report; to ascertain by observing; to find out; to discover; as, I can not tell where one color ends and the other begins.
10. To make account of; to regard; to reckon; to value; to estimate.
11. To give an account; to make report.
12. To take effect; to produce a marked effect; as, every shot tells; every expression tells.
13. That which is told; tale; account.
14. A hill or mound. a Swiss patriot who lived in the early 14th century and who was renowned for his skill as an archer; according to legend an Austrian governor compelled him to shoot an apple from his son's head with his crossbow discern or comprehend; "He could tell that she was unhappy" let something be known; "Tell them that you will be late" narrate or give a detailed account of; "Tell what happened"; "The father told a story to his child" give evidence; "he was telling on all his former colleague".
15. 1. If you tell someone something, you give them information. In the evening I returned to tell Phyllis our relationship was over I called Andie to tell her how spectacular the stuff looked Claire had made me promise to tell her the truth I only told the truth to the press when the single was released as it seemed the perfect time to do it Tell us about your moment on the summit Her voice breaking with emotion, she told him: `It doesn't seem fair'.
16. If you tell something such as a joke, a story, or your personal experiences, you communicate it to other people using speech. His friends say he was always quick to tell a joke He told his story to The Sunday Times and produced photographs Will you tell me a story?.
17. If you tell someone to do something, you order or advise them to do it. A passer-by told the driver to move his car so that it was not causing an obstruction.
18. If you tell yourself something, you put it into words in your own mind because you need to encourage or persuade yourself about something. `Come on', she told herself I told myself I would be satisfied with whatever I could get.
19. If you can tell what is happening or what is true, you are able to judge correctly what is happening or what is true. It was already impossible to tell where the bullet had entered You can tell he's joking.
20. If you can tell one thing from another, you are able to recognize the difference between it and other similar things. I can't really tell the difference between their policies and ours How do you tell one from another? I had to look twice to tell which was Martinez; they all looked alike.
21. If you tell, you reveal or give away a secret. Many of the children know who they are but are not telling.
22. If facts or events tell you something, they reveal certain information to you through ways other than speech. The facts tell us that this is not true I don't think the unemployment rate ever tells us much about the future The evidence of our eyes tells us a different story While most of us feel fairly complacent about the nutrients we're getting from our diets, the facts tell a very different story.
23. If an unpleasant or tiring experience begins to tell, it begins to have a serious effect. The pressure began to tell as rain closed in after 20 laps see also:
telling, kiss and tell.
24. vagueness You use as far as I can tell or so far as I could tell to indicate that what you are saying is based on the information you have, but that there may be things you do not know. As far as I can tell, Jason is basically a nice guy.
25. emphasis You can say `I tell you', `I can tell you', or `I can't tell you' to add emphasis to what you are saying. I tell you this, I will not rest until that day has come This little letter gave us a few chuckles, I can tell you.
26. If you say `You never can tell', you mean that the future is always uncertain and it is never possible to know exactly what will happen. You never can tell what life is going to bring you.
27. If someone disagrees with you or refuses to do what you suggest and you are eventually proved to be right, you can say `I told you so'. Her parents did not approve of her decision and, if she failed, her mother would say, `I told you so.'.
28. You use I'll tell you what or I tell you what to introduce a suggestion or a new topic of conversation. I tell you what, I'll bring the water in a separate glass.
29. to tell the time: see:
time time will tell: see time. A mound, especially in the Middle East, made up of the remains of a succession of previous settlements. Tell Mardikh Tell Asmar Amarna Tell el Tell William.