let me tell you
64
4.4
- idiom
- Informal
:
déjame decirte
- So let me tell you what happens next.
- let me tell you a story
- Well, let me tell you
- says, 'let me tell you'
But Eve said, Lord, let me tell you about that serpent.
- But Eve said, Lord, let me tell you about that serpent.
- Let's cut down cleaning and let me tell you, I am exhausted.
- And then let me tell you, it's just magic.
- Carville is saying, let me tell you why black people like Trump.
- And let me tell you, you couldn't answer.
- This hair, let me tell you, I am in love.
- All right, boy, let me tell you how to handle this.
- This generation looks no different, but let me tell you, looks can be deceiving.
- So with that all being said, let me tell you why I'm so passionate this morning.
- Try and lose publicly and let me tell you, there's nothing worse.
Examples
-
First, let me tell you how much I enjoy using your software.
Blog text (32) -
Please, let me tell you this.
-
And then let me tell you, it's just magic.
-
But first, let me tell you about Better Help.
-
OK, so now let me tell you a little bit about me.
-
And let me tell you something, kid.
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Well, Debbie, first let me tell you that I like the way you think.
Blog text (13) -
Climate change? Let me tell you something about scientific consensus: it's the same thing as peer pressure.
Blog text (10) -
This generation looks no different, but let me tell you, looks can be deceiving.
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So, let me tell you a story about my childhood adventures.
Synonyms
797
7.5
To say something new or surprising to get someone's attention
227
4.5
Say you are being honest before you speak
17
5.6
You say it to show you are honest, even if it sounds awkward
16
3.4
You use it when telling someone something they may not know, often politely or to show they were wrong
How Emphatic
- Informal
1
8.8
- Informal
64
4.4
- Informal
3
8.2
- Literature
7
5.5
- Informal
448
1.5
Surface Forms
Morphology
The phrase is compositionally built from 'let' (allow) + 'me' + 'tell' (recount) + 'you', so its literal force — 'allow me to tell you [something]' — directly signals introducing or emphasizing a statement. Although it functions as a pragmatic/discourse marker in spoken English, the meaning is predictable from the constituents and from common imperative/request patterns, so a B1 learner who knows the words will generally understand it.
Etymology
Let me tell you comes from a simple scene where someone asks let me, meaning 'allow me', and then leans in to tell you a story. That's why today people use it to grab attention or to start an important or surprising point.