tell of
phrasal verb
told of; telling of; tells of
formal + literary
1
: to be evidence of (something) : to indicate
Her smile told of her good news.
His rough hands tell of a hard life.
2
: to describe (something) : to make the details of (something) known
The article tells of her Arctic journey.
3
: to talk to (someone) about (something)
He told us of his plans to move to the city.
Examples of tell of in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Later in the day, Etoria and the others called home, and all said that they had not been told of such a visit.
—
Sarah Stillman, New Yorker, 24 Nov. 2025
The governor was at a United Nations climate summit in Brazil when he was told of the indictment against her.
—Barnini Chakraborty, The Washington Examiner, 22 Nov. 2025
Producer Irwin Winkler, who won a Best Picture Oscar for Rocky 10 years before Jordan was even born, told of how Coogler and Jordan came to him to make the spinoff of the Rocky franchise.
—Pete Hammond, Deadline, 21 Nov. 2025
Passengers told of an ordeal in which the boat had engine problems, sparking an argument between the captain and several passengers who pleaded with him to turn back to Mexico.
—Emma Bussey, FOXNews.com, 18 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for tell of
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Sarah Stillman, New Yorker, 24 Nov. 2025
The governor was at a United Nations climate summit in Brazil when he was told of the indictment against her.
—Barnini Chakraborty, The Washington Examiner, 22 Nov. 2025
Producer Irwin Winkler, who won a Best Picture Oscar for Rocky 10 years before Jordan was even born, told of how Coogler and Jordan came to him to make the spinoff of the Rocky franchise.
—Pete Hammond, Deadline, 21 Nov. 2025
Passengers told of an ordeal in which the boat had engine problems, sparking an argument between the captain and several passengers who pleaded with him to turn back to Mexico.
—Emma Bussey, FOXNews.com, 18 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for tell of
Cite this Entry
“Tell of.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/tell%20of. Accessed 1 Dec. 2025.
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