Synonyms for tell
Synonyms by meaning
Verb
1. Say — social senses of communicating To narrate, to recount
say, re-count, narrate, inform, explain, make known, reveal, relate, speak, re-cite, divulge, tattle, talk, apprise, describe, show, mention, impart, confess, state, communicate, betray
2. Distinguish
distinguish, discover, discern, ascertain, break, differentiate, discriminate, separate, secernate rare, severalize rare, secern formal rare
3. Count — mental senses related to determining, reckoning, or perceiving To determine the number, amount, or value of…
Definitions
- v. 1
Mental senses related to determining, reckoning, or perceiving To determine the number, amount, or value of [something].
All told, there were over a dozen. Can you tell time on a clock? He had untold wealth.
- v. 2
Social senses of communicating To narrate, to recount.
I want to tell a story; I want to tell you a story.
- v. 3
Mental senses related to determining, reckoning, or perceiving To notice, discern. (Roughly, "can tell" means "know" but with a sense of direct perception.)
I can tell that you're thrilled.
- v. 4
Mental senses related to determining, reckoning, or perceiving To notice, discern. (Roughly, "can tell" means "know" but with a sense of direct perception.) To pick up on a difference. (See tell apart for more.)
An expert can tell an original from a forgery.
Related words
- Word family
- teller telling tell-truth telly
- Phrases
- tell on tell apart tell off tell tales tell against tell all do tell tell fortunes
- Other spellings
- tel
Forms
- Past participle
- teld
e.g. teld → sayed, re-counted, narrated, informed…
Choose the right word
Affirm, state, and tell have not the controversial sense of assert, but are simply declarative.
J. C. Fernald, English Synonyms and Antonyms (1914)
Example sentences
- say When can one say that a person has alcohol issues?
- inform Please inform me what options are available to me.
- narrate Who is going to narrate a tale this evening?
- discover How foolish I was not to discover that simple lie!
- distinguish We cannot distinguish her from her younger sister.
By length
- 3 letters
- say1
- 4 letters
- show1, talk1
- 5 letters
- state1, order2, break1, speak1, count1, rumor2
- 6 letters
- number2, reveal2, inform2, relate2, advise2, assure2, reckon2, betray2, rumour2, impart2, squeal1, tattle2, enjoin2, secern
- 7 letters
- explain2, mention2, confess2, discern2, divulge2, narrate2, apprise2
- 8 letters
- evidence3, separate3, describe2, discover3, disclose2, instruct2
- 9 letters
- ascertain3, enumerate4, secernate
- 10 letters
- severalize
- 11 letters
- communicate4, acknowledge3, distinguish3
- 12 letters
- discriminate4
- 13 letters
- differentiate5
The small number after each word is its number of syllables (order2 = 2 syllables).
In other languages
- Français
- conter
- Italiano
- raccontare
- Deutsch
- erzählen
- Català
- contar