tally

1 of 2

noun

tal·​ly ˈta-lē How to pronounce tally (audio)
plural tallies
1
a
: a recorded reckoning or account (as of items or charges)
keep a daily tally of accidents
b
: a score or point made (as in a game)
2
: a device (such as a notched rod or mechanical counter) for visibly recording or accounting especially business transactions
3
a
: a part that corresponds to an opposite or companion member : complement
b
: a state of correspondence or agreement

tally

2 of 2

verb

tallied; tallying

transitive verb

1
a
: to record on or as if on a tally : tabulate
b
: to list or check off (something, such as a cargo) by items
c
: to register (a score) in a contest
2
: to make a count of : reckon
3
: to cause to correspond

intransitive verb

1
a
: to make a tally by or as if by tabulating
b
: to register a point in a contest : score
2

Examples of tally in a Sentence

Noun What is the final tally? Her second goal turned out to be the game-winning tally. Verb He tallied his expenses every day. The numbers on the old list and the new list don't tally.
Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
The International Labor Organization said the tally for 2021, the most recent year covered in the painstaking international study, marked an increase of 37%, or $64 billion, compared with its last estimate published a decade ago. Jamey Keaten, Quartz, 19 Mar. 2024 The tally, virtually unimaginable in any democratic nation, suggests that the Kremlin is now less focused on manufacturing a veneer of electoral legitimacy and more on creating a cult of personality around Putin as Russia’s undisputed national patriarch and leader for life. Catherine Belton, Washington Post, 18 Mar. 2024 Their calls come as 81 anti-DEI bills that target programs at colleges have been introduced in 28 states and in Congress since the start of 2023, according to a tally by the Chronicle of Higher Education. Nicquel Terry Ellis, CNN, 11 Mar. 2024 With ballot tallies from Tuesday’s primary still being counted, the Democratic incumbent has 51 percent of the vote and seems destined to face police Officer Larry Turner, a political independent who appeals to Republicans, in November. Michael Smolens, San Diego Union-Tribune, 8 Mar. 2024 In fiscal year 2023, Customs and Border Protection processed 2.4 million migrants at the southern border, the highest tally recorded by the agency. Camilo Montoya-Galvez, CBS News, 8 Mar. 2024 This means that the only practical way to get numbers is the volunteers’ flight-by-flight paper tally. Mckenzie Funk, ProPublica, 8 Mar. 2024 These early tallies are not yet official results, and were limited to vote-by-mail ballots and voters who cast their ballots in-person prior to Election Day. Katie Lauer, The Mercury News, 5 Mar. 2024 The Legendary and Warner Bros. sci-fi epic opened last weekend to a stellar $82.5 million domestically and finished Thursday with a North American tally of more than $110 million and $200 million globally. Pamela McClintock, The Hollywood Reporter, 9 Mar. 2024
Verb
But as those votes and mail-in ballots were tallied, the race grew close — highlighting the clash in California over how to address homelessness, an issue that has plagued the state for years. Praveena Somasundaram, Washington Post, 21 Mar. 2024 The schools, in turn, need that number to make their own calculations about how much a student should expect to pay at that particular college or university, after tallying up tuition and any extra scholarships. Zach Montague, New York Times, 14 Mar. 2024 Views were tallied across Instagram, X/Twitter, TikTok and Facebook, with video on Instagram (23 million) and TikTok (61.3 million) bringing in the lion’s share of the traffic. Variety Staff, Variety, 13 Mar. 2024 Both drew a crowded field of contenders, and after the votes were tallied Tuesday night, one race is headed into a runoff, while the other is advancing straight to the November election after a single candidate got more than half the votes. Eleanor Dearman, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 6 Mar. 2024 Final election results may not be tallied for several days. Kate Talerico, The Mercury News, 6 Mar. 2024 For example, in California, mail-in ballots must be postmarked by March 5 and received by county election offices by March 12, meaning not all votes will be tallied on Tuesday, especially for races with close margins. Ximena Bustillo, NPR, 4 Mar. 2024 Currently, a measure that would allow the city to require voter identification in local elections is winning as votes in the recent primary election continue to be tallied. Heather McRea, Orange County Register, 8 Mar. 2024 The Longhorns were led by sophomore Stryker Reed, who tallied 27 points and made four 3-pointers. Charles Baggarly, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 7 Mar. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'tally.' 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

Noun

Middle English talye, from Anglo-French talie, taille, in part from tailler to cut, measure, count; in part from Medieval Latin tallia, alteration of Latin talea plant cutting, thin piece of wood

First Known Use

Noun

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Verb

15th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1a

Time Traveler
The first known use of tally was in the 15th century

Dictionary Entries Near tally

Cite this Entry

“Tally.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/tally. Accessed 28 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

tally

1 of 2 noun
tal·​ly ˈtal-ē How to pronounce tally (audio)
plural tallies
1
: a device for keeping a count
2
a
: a recorded account
b
: a total recorded
3
: a score or point made (as in a game)

tally

2 of 2 verb
tallied; tallying
1
: to keep a count of
2
: to make a tally : score
3

More from Merriam-Webster on tally

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!