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Glite Dictionary
to tell a tale

to tell a tale

3 3.5
Say a story about something that happened or show signs of it
  • idiom
  • /tɛl ə teɪl/
translation icon : contar una historia
  • It was a festive atmosphere until the innkeeper told me that I, too, was to tell a tale for my supper and a room.

It's a truism that clothes tell a tale about the wearer.

Examples

  • You jes' wait 'til you hears him tell a tale 'bout Brer Rabbit.

    Song of the South (1946)

  • The old man on Atavak used to tell a tale of the dangers of travelling far, of hunting alone on the ice.

    Nomads (1986)

  • We stay here, among the trees, and someone is telling a tale.

    Fiction book (2000)

  • After a moment, he spoke as if he were telling a tale.

    Fiction book (1990)

  • We really wanted to tell a tale of friendship rather than a murder story.

    Fiction book (1994)

  • Dozens of small children gathered around a seated man or woman, whose mouth was open as he or she sang or told a tale.

    Fiction book (1993)

  • It's a truism that clothes tell a tale about the wearer.

    Harvard University

  • He tells a tale of an early friendship with Handy that turned sour after his friend became a judge in 1984.

    Academic text (1993)

  • The old man on Atavak often tells a tale of the dangers of traveling far and hunting alone on the ice.

  • Larry King: Our next guest tells a tale of tragedy and triumph that captivates the audience.

Synonyms

to tell
vsto tell a tale
∞ 1.0

Talk about events or stories

is the broader act of giving an account or sometimes revealing evidence
to tell a story
vsto tell a tale
84 1.1

To describe things that happened, real or made up, to other people

can also mean that something shows evidence of what happened
to recount
vsto tell a tale
83 4.1

To tell someone about something you experienced in detail

is more general, not limited to personal or detailed reports
to tell stories
vsto tell a tale
73 1.4

Talk about events, real or imagined, to other people

is about a single narrative or about evidence rather than repeated sharing
to narrate
vsto tell a tale
59 4.0

To tell a story, usually by speaking or writing

is similar but also includes the idea of revealing evidence of events
to spin a yarn
vsto tell a tale
  • Informal
1 6.8

To tell a long made-up or exaggerated story

is used for straightforward accounts or for revealing evidence rather than entertainment
to spin a story
vsto tell a tale
1 4.8

Make up and tell a tale, often to entertain or avoid trouble

refers to honest accounts or to something showing real evidence instead
to yarn
vsto tell a tale
  • Informal
1 6.7

To tell a long story that is probably not true

is the neutral factual account or can mean something that shows evidence

Antonyms

to suppress
176 4.8

To stop public protest by force or by people in power

How Revealing

to expose
342 4.1
to reveal
84 7.4
to tell a tale
3 3.5
to suggest
∞ 2.1
to indicate
834 2.7

Surface Forms

tell a tale infinitive
telling a tale present participle
tells a tale third person singular
told a tale past
told a tale past participle

Morphology

tell + a + tale

The meaning 'to narrate a story' is directly and transparently derived from combining 'tell' (to recount) with 'tale' (a story); the determiner 'a' is semantically neutral. This compositional pattern is cross-linguistically common and follows basic verb + noun object grammar, so a B1 learner who knows the constituents will readily infer the meaning.

Etymology

The phrase tell a tale comes from the simple picture of someone speaking to tell a tale, which is a word for 'story'. By the same image, people also say worn hands or old walls 'tell a tale' when they show what happened before, so the phrase can also mean 'to show what happened'.