[tel] 
,verb, told, tell⋅ing.| 1. | to give an account or narrative of; narrate; relate (a story, tale, etc.): to tell the story of Lincoln's childhood. |
| 2. | to make known by speech or writing (a fact, news, information, etc.); communicate. |
| 3. | to announce or proclaim. |
| 4. | to utter (the truth, a lie, etc.). |
| 5. | to express in words (thoughts, feelings, etc.). |
| 6. | to reveal or divulge (something secret or private). |
| 7. | to say plainly or positively: I cannot tell just what was done. |
| 8. | to discern or recognize (a distant person or thing) so as to be able to identify or describe: Can you tell who that is over there? |
| 9. | to distinguish; discriminate; ascertain: You could hardly tell the difference between them. |
| 10. | to inform (a person) of something: He told me his name. |
| 11. | to assure emphatically: I won't, I tell you! |
| 12. | to bid, order, or command: Tell him to stop. |
| 13. | to mention one after another, as in enumerating; count or set one by one or in exact amount: to tell the cattle in a herd; All told there were 17 if we are correct. |
| 14. | to give an account or report: Tell me about your trip. |
| 15. | to give evidence or be an indication: The ruined temples told of an ancient culture, long since passed from existence. |
| 16. | to disclose something secret or private; inform; tattle: She knows who did it, but she won't tell. |
| 17. | to say positively; determine; predict: Who can tell? |
| 18. | to have force or effect; operate effectively: a contest in which every stroke tells. |
| 19. | to produce a marked or severe effect: The strain was telling on his health. |
| 20. | British Dialect. to talk or chat. |
| 21. | tell off,
|
| 22. | tell on, to tattle on (someone). |
| 23. | tell it like it is, Informal. to tell the complete, unadulterated truth; be forthright: He may be crude but he tells it like it is. |
tell on
Tattle on, inform on, as in Marjorie said she'd tell on him if he pulled her hair again. This seemingly modern term appeared in a 1539 translation of the Bible (I Samuel 27:11): "David saved neither man nor woman ... for fear (said he) lest they should tell on us."