Synonyms of tale

tale

noun

ˈtāl 

1

as in story

a rumor or report of a personal or sensational nature

don't believe the tales you hear about our neighbor's kid

Synonyms & Similar Words

• story
• whisper
• canard
• fable
• gossip
• talk
• lie
• tattle
• libel
• slander
• defamation
• hearsay
• dirt
• dirty laundry
• scuttlebutt
• fairy tale
• talebearing
• fabrication
• fib
• prevarication
• dirty linen
• falsehood
• untruth
• mendacity
• falsity
• whopper

2

as in anecdote

a brief account of something interesting that happened especially to one personally

asked Dad to tell once again the tale of how, as a kid, he broke his arm jumping out of a tree

Synonyms & Similar Words

• story
• anecdote
• yarn
• incident
• occurrence
• episode
• event
• happening
• recitation
• recital

3

as in lie

a statement known by its maker to be untrue and made in order to deceive

told tall tales in an attempt to impress me with her supposedly upper-crust background

Synonyms & Similar Words

• story
• lie
• fable
• fairy tale
• fabrication
• mendacity
• untruth
• falsehood
• fib
• prevarication
• fiction
• whopper
• falsity
• ambiguity
• exaggeration
• distortion
• taradiddle
• myth
• defamation
• libel
• nonsense
• slander
• obliquity
• fraudulence
• deceit
• half-truth
• perjury
• pose
• equivocation
• bluff
• misrepresentation
• misconception
• duplicity
• canard
• fallacy
• misinformation
• misstatement
• falsification
• pretense
• humbug
• dishonesty
• jive
• deceitfulness
• misreport

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• truth
• fact
• honesty
• truism
• truthfulness
• veracity
• confirmation
• verification
• validation
• verity
• authentication
• substantiation

4

as in novella

a work with imaginary characters and events that is shorter and usually less complex than a novel

the oft-told tale of Sleeping Beauty

Synonyms & Similar Words

• story
• novella
• narrative
• yarn
• history
• fable
• short story
• joke
• myth
• anecdote
• novelette
• legend
• romance
• parable
• annals
• record
• chronicle
• report
• fairy tale
• folktale
• exemplum
• bedtime story
• account

5

as in count

a total number obtained or recorded by noting each thing as it was being added

when the tale of the dead from the disaster is announced, the city will be in shock

Synonyms & Similar Words

• count
• tally
• score
• census
• amount
• whole
• total
• recount
• sum
• gross

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of tale

Plus, there’s my theme park origin story that’s too long a tale and could be an Orlando Fringe show. — Dewayne Bevil, The Orlando Sentinel, 24 Sep. 2026

Two mysterious drifters never speak; their inner monologues carry us across absurdist one-liners, weird tales, and stream-of-consciousness musings. — Christian Zilko, IndieWire, 23 Sep. 2026

Real-life Texas is in the middle of a highly contentious senate race; TV Texas is a world with no Greg Abbott, nor a president who’s already a cautionary tale in what happens when pop culture and politics collide. — Alison Herman, Variety, 23 Sep. 2026

Marked by a surprisingly tall neon tower, the theatre hosts a 45-minute ghost tour that dives into local lore and spooky tales of yesteryear. — Nicholas Derenzo, Travel + Leisure, 23 Sep. 2026

Phrases Containing tale

• fairy tale
• old wives' tale