1
as in describes
to give an oral or written account of in some detail
they told the story of how they had met
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
2
as in says
to express (a thought or emotion) in words
just tell us what is in your heart
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in counts
to find the sum of (a collection of things) by noting each one as it is being added
who can tell the number of grains of sand in the world?
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4
as in informs
to give information to
tell me, when did you begin playing the violin?
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5
as in instructs
to issue orders to (someone) by right of authority
told us to sit still and wait
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6
as in reveals
to make known (as information previously kept secret)
I won't tell your secret to anyone
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of tells
Rose tells Shaw that her community is concerned about sacred remains being disturbed.
—
Louis Peitzman, Vulture, 10 Nov. 2025
In this intimate portrait of life during the exhilarating early days of the women’s liberation movement in Scandinavia in the 1970s, Pernille Ipsen tells the stories of the seven women who raised her, who were all part of the women’s movement in Denmark.
—Literary Hub, 10 Nov. 2025
The percentage tells the public how much of the fire perimeter is believed to not go beyond the control lines.
—Ca Wildfire Bot, Sacbee.com, 9 Nov. 2025
Snow — who plays Nile's wife, Nina — tells PEOPLE that she was thrilled to work with actors of such caliber whom she's long admired.
—Erin Clack, PEOPLE, 9 Nov. 2025
This link was completely unintentional, Trachtenberg tells Entertainment Weekly.
—Lauren Huff, Entertainment Weekly, 8 Nov. 2025
That film tells the true story of an Istituto Luce cameraman who filmed Mussolini and fascist propaganda, and, eventually, the head of communist Albania.
—Will Tizard, Variety, 2 Nov. 2025
Eilert is soon drunk and distraught over seemingly losing his manuscript, and Hedda tells her ex-lover to kill himself.
—Patrick Ryan, USA Today, 31 Oct. 2025
Father Mother Sister Brother tells the story of estranged siblings who reunite after years apart and are forced to confront unresolved tensions and reevaluate their strained relationships with their emotionally distant parents.
—Zac Ntim, Deadline, 31 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for tells
Verb
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Lopez describes her daughter as an energetic, talkative child who speaks both English and Spanish.—
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Among the more moving cases that Blair describes are those of people who in life were vulnerable and powerless but in death were considered formidable threats.—
Verb
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Windham says details of the building were drawn from inspiration by architect Eero Saarinen, who designed the Global Tech Center in Warren, Michigan.—
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Hill says Mikko, who is nonverbal, also uses an AAC device, which helps people who have speech or language problems to communicate.—
Verb
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Without explicit training, civil servants risk assuming that a system that writes like an expert also counts like one.—
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Kaling was styled by Erin Walsh, who also counts Selena Gomez and Anne Hathaway as clients.—
Verb
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The contract also reportedly contains a term stating that the school doesn’t have to enter him into the NCAA transfer portal; ordinarily, a school is obligated under NCAA rules to enter an athlete’s name once the athlete informs the school of their intent to transfer.—
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At the heart of this book is unfathomable sorrow that shapes the trajectory of all of her relationships and informs her actions and inactions.—
Verb
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If a page instructs you to run code to fix a problem, close it immediately.—
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The order instructs Education Secretary Linda McMahon, former head of the Small Business Administration and co-founder of the World Wrestling Entertainment, to shrink the $100 billion department, which cannot be dissolved without Congressional approval.—
Verb
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When a Black teenager is executed by police on Juneteenth and no evidence remains to contest the official account, CYCLE reveals the widening rift between what the system claims and what a mother’s relentless pursuit of truth exposes.—
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From trad wives to spin classes to caregiving, Smithuijsen reveals how late stage capitalism strips women of agency and traps them in endless cycles of empty consumption and thankless labor.—
Verb
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Frisbee recounts feeling bathed in warm light and then having had a vision of himself leading thousands of hippies into the Pacific Ocean to be baptized.—
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Gibson recounts the trajectory of Palmares as just one part of a much longer history of people seeking freedom and sanctuary in the midst of colonial societies.—
Verb
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Lopez describes her daughter as an energetic, talkative child who speaks both English and Spanish.—
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The small number speaks to the frustration of many over insurance claims, the impact of developers, environmental concerns and the general high cost of rebuilding.—
Cite this Entry
“Tells.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/tells. Accessed 13 Jan. 2026.
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