1
as in influences
to act upon (a person or a person's feelings) so as to cause a response
the pressure of final exams is beginning to tell on the students in the dorm
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in talks
to give information (as to the authorities) about another's improper or unlawful activities
detectives convinced the perpetrators in custody to tell on their associates
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for tells (on)
Verb
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Adding more of this hormone influences the markings on their babies’ backs—either bars or stripes—which provide different forms of camouflage in different environments.—
Jackie Flynn Mogensen,
Scientific American,
10 May 2026 -
The look, including logos, packaging and anything else a customer sees before experiencing the product, influences the customer’s decision.—
Shep Hyken,
Forbes.com,
10 May 2026
Verb
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Klaus talks to his sister in California on an elegant brass and Bakelite 1940s telephone (the props are divine throughout), complete with operator interruptions.—
Leslie Felperin,
HollywoodReporter,
14 May 2026
-
Our correspondent talks to him.—
Greg Dixon,
NPR,
14 May 2026
Verb
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Hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome affects the kidneys and causes a wide range of symptoms, including blurred vision, low blood pressure, acute shock, internal bleeding and kidney failure.—
Mary Whitfill Roeloffs,
Forbes.com,
10 May 2026
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The question of how Venus’s atmosphere affects probes isn’t just about the past—the list of artifacts may be growing soon because more probes are set to land on Venus.—
Emma Gometz,
Scientific American,
10 May 2026
Verb
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From bougainvillea pink to garden greens, see how nature informs designer Peter Dunham's fearless use of color and pattern.—
Eleni N. Gage,
Better Homes & Gardens,
13 May 2026
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Inside, the metal drive-mode knob is treated to a red anodized finish, which also informs the color of the contrast stitching, seatbelts, headrest embroidery, and piping.—
Bradley Iger,
Robb Report,
8 May 2026
Verb
-
Some of the route running impresses me.—
Barry Jackson,
Miami Herald,
7 May 2026
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Also Astellas is reentering the clinic with a next-generation gene therapy for XLMTM and Intellia’s CRISPR therapy for hereditary angioedema impresses.—
Meghana Keshavan,
STAT,
27 Apr. 2026
Verb
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And in the case of another government shutdown that impacts SNAP, markets may still provide some level of assistance to alleviate the gap.—
The Washington Post,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
13 May 2026
-
That number impacts Newtown Square, the Philadelphia region and southeastern Pennsylvania as a whole.—
Pat Gallen,
CBS News,
12 May 2026
Verb
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And then there’s the partnership with music mega-star Marc Anthony, which will encompass music, lifestyle programming and long-form content that touches on fashion, hospitality and all parts of the Spanish-language media ecosystem.—
Alex Weprin,
HollywoodReporter,
12 May 2026
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Returning to Craigh na Dun on her own, Claire touches the center stone and is transported to 1743, three years before the Jacobite defeat.—
Culture Critic,
Los Angeles Times,
12 May 2026
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Cite this Entry
“Tells (on).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/tells%20%28on%29. Accessed 15 May. 2026.
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