tells (on)

verb

present tense third-person singular of tell (on)
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

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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)
  1. influences
  2. talks
  3. affects
  4. informs
  5. impresses
  6. impacts
  7. touches
Verb
  • And that advisory panel, which influences state and insurance vaccine policies, is caught in a court battle.
    — Lauran Neergaard, Los Angeles Times, 2 Sep. 2026
  • Visual design influences the meaning of these interactions before every word has been fully processed.
    — Goran Paun, Forbes.com, 1 Sep. 2026
Definition of influences
Verb
  • For the final episode of our 2026 season, Mike talks with Adam Erlich Sachs (recipient of a 2026 Windham-Campbell Prize for Fiction) about the historical Kantian thicket of Heinrich von Kleist’s Michael Kohlhaas, translated by Michael Hoffman.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 9 Sep. 2026
  • Nolte’s expressive eyes and face do a lot of the work in each scene as Alice talks.
    — Carole Horst, Variety, 9 Sep. 2026
Definition of talks
Verb
  • PayPal has many middle-income customers and some lower-income customers, so a pullback in spending affects use of its payments platform.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 4 Sep. 2026
  • Trump’s new round of tariffs is another way to target Canadian wood, which this time affects different types of plywood.
    — Idaho Statesman, Idaho Statesman, 3 Sep. 2026
Definition of affects
Verb
  • The stranger informs her matter-of-factly that Alice’s leg will be amputated unless Anna opts into her payment-plan bargain.
    — David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 8 Sep. 2026
  • This significant achievement informs her choice to customize a piece that reflects her strength, creativity and tenacity.
    — Footwear News, Footwear News, 2 Sep. 2026
Definition of informs
Verb
  • View gallery - 15 images Dragon Tiny Homes regularly impresses us with its ultra-portable models.
    — New Atlas, New Atlas, 6 Sep. 2026
  • Alas, right at the film’s finish line, Swanberg backstabs his own commitment to honesty when one of Wendy’s pursuers impresses her with a magical ex machina.
    — Amy Nicholson, Los Angeles Times, 2 Sep. 2026
Definition of impresses
Verb
  • The Fed fund rate is an overnight rate that impacts shorter-term borrowing.
    — Faith Wakefield, USA Today, 3 Sep. 2026
  • Often, the biggest single thing that impacts advisor productivity is not market volatility, fee compression or client acquisition.
    — Jerry Jihao Bai, Forbes.com, 2 Sep. 2026
Definition of impacts
Verb
  • The Big Ten issued a statement two hours after the game, clarifying the process that was used and citing the rule that was enforced about when the clock stops if a player touches the ball out of bounds.
    — Michael Marot, Chicago Tribune, 7 Sep. 2026
  • Narwal Freo 20 Edge Narwal’s flagship Flow series extends the side of the mop cylinder that touches the ground, so more is in contact with the floor at once.
    — Andrew Gebhart, PC Magazine, 5 Sep. 2026
Definition of touches
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Browse Nearby Words

tells off
tells (on)
telltale
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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 12 Sep. 2026.

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