tell

noun

A reflexive, often habitual behavior, especially one occurring in a context that often features attempts at deception by persons under psychological stress (such as a poker game or police interrogation), that reveals information that the person exhibiting the behavior is attempting to withhold.

noun

That which is told; a tale or account.

noun

A private message to an individual in a chat room; a whisper.

verb

(archaic outside of idioms) To count, reckon, or enumerate.

"All told, there were over a dozen.  Can you tell time on a clock?  He had untold wealth."

verb

To narrate.

"I want to tell a story;  I want to tell you a story."

verb

To convey by speech; to say.

"Finally, someone told him the truth.  He seems to like to tell lies."

verb

To instruct or inform.

"Please tell me how to do it."

verb

To order; to direct, to say to someone.

"Tell him to go away."

verb

To discern, notice, identify or distinguish.

"Can you tell whether those flowers are real or silk, from this distance?  No, there's no way to tell."

verb

To reveal.

"Time will tell what became of him."

verb

To be revealed.

verb

To have an effect, especially a noticeable one; to be apparent, to be demonstrated.

"Sir Gerald was moving slower; his wounds were beginning to tell."

verb

To use (beads or similar objects) as an aid to prayer.

verb

To inform someone in authority about a wrongdoing.

"I saw you steal those sweets! I'm going to tell!"

verb

(authorship) To reveal information in prose through outright expository statement -- contrasted with show

"Maria rewrote the section of her novel that talked about Meg and Sage's friendship to have less telling and more showing."