tale

noun

1
a
: a usually imaginative narrative of an event : story
b
: an intentionally untrue report : falsehood
always preferred the tale to the truthSir Winston Churchill
2
a
: a series of events or facts told or presented : account
b(1)
: a report of a private or confidential matter
dead men tell no tales
(2)
: a libelous report or piece of gossip
3
a
b
: total
4
obsolete : discourse, talk

Examples of tale in a Sentence

The movie is a stirring tale of courage. We listened to his familiar tale of woe as he talked again about the failure of his marriage. He told us thrilling tales about his adventures as a pilot in the war. Are you telling tales again? Or is that the truth?
Recent Examples on the Web Cinema, an inexhaustible source of stories, dreams, moods, characters, costumes, sets, tales of exceptional existences or extraordinary normality. Pino Gagliardi, The Hollywood Reporter, 22 Sep. 2023 Ernst and Young’s recent survey of major CEOs revealed a telling tale: a mere half have ventured into AI adaptation. Zack Kass, Fortune, 22 Sep. 2023 The tragic tale is both lyrically and sonically captivating, rooted in bluesy rock and ballads — and sounds from a different era entirely, proving that Sanchez too could be poised to stand the test of time. Lyndsey Havens, Billboard, 21 Sep. 2023 Yet the way that Bernal plays this initial transformation turns this story into something besides a triumph-of-the-underdog tale. David Fear, Rolling Stone, 21 Sep. 2023 Launched on June 10, 2023, the app has geolocation tools that allow cyclists to pinpoint trail information while sparking tales of the forest into life along the way. Cnt Editors, Condé Nast Traveler, 21 Sep. 2023 Beyond just Huawei's tale of revival, there's a larger narrative unfolding. Kurt Knutsson, Fox News, 21 Sep. 2023 The true-crime tale of a genius art thief who kept all the spoils for himself. The California Independent Booksellers Alliance, Los Angeles Times, 20 Sep. 2023 After the General Motors plant shuttered, the village, then known as North Tarrytown, made headlines for changing its name to Sleepy Hollow, honoring the hamlet featured in onetime-resident Washington Irving’s supernatural tale. Grace Ashford, New York Times, 19 Sep. 2023 See More

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'tale.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, from Old English talu; akin to Old Norse tala talk

First Known Use

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 4

Time Traveler
The first known use of tale was before the 12th century

Dictionary Entries Near tale

Cite this Entry

“Tale.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/tale. Accessed 29 Sep. 2023.

Kids Definition

tale

noun
1
: something told
a tale of woe
2
: a story about an imaginary event
a fairy tale
3
: a false story : lie
4
: a piece of harmful gossip
spread tales about us

More from Merriam-Webster on tale

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