tale

noun

Synonyms of talenext
1
a
: a usually imaginative narrative of an event : story
b
: an intentionally untrue report : falsehood
… always preferred the tale to the truth …Sir Winston Churchill
2
a
: a series of events or facts told or presented : account
b(1)
: a report of a private or confidential matter
dead men tell no tales
(2)
: a libelous report or piece of gossip
3
a
b
: total
4
obsolete : discourse, talk

Examples of tale in a Sentence

The movie is a stirring tale of courage. We listened to his familiar tale of woe as he talked again about the failure of his marriage. He told us thrilling tales about his adventures as a pilot in the war. Are you telling tales again? Or is that the truth?
Recent Examples on the Web
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.
The stop-motion short tells the simplistic tale of a bear who comes under the care of a maternal (paternal? Joe Reid, Vulture, 10 Mar. 2026 The director, who wanted to tell an epic adventure where emotional courage was as powerful as magic, crafted this tale about identity, sisterhood and belonging, aimed at family audiences with strong crossover appeal for epic fantasy audiences, with strong female leads. Kevin Giraud, Variety, 10 Mar. 2026 What saves this show from becoming a straightforward morality tale is the fact that the respective decisions of Maggie, Eddie and Kenny (a young studio assistant played by Andrew Pappas) aren’t without nuance. Emily McClanathan, Chicago Tribune, 10 Mar. 2026 As a laundromat owner who needs to save the multiverse, Yeoh breaks out all her moves, of both the emotional and action-flick varieties, and soars to make this wild tale way more personal than apocalyptic. Brian Truitt, USA Today, 10 Mar. 2026 See All Example Sentences for tale

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, from Old English talu; akin to Old Norse tala talk

First Known Use

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 4

Time Traveler
The first known use of tale was before the 12th century

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Tale.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/tale. Accessed 14 Mar. 2026.

Kids Definition

tale

noun
1
: something told
a tale of woe
2
: a story about an imaginary event
a fairy tale
3
: a false story : lie
4
: a piece of harmful gossip
spread tales about us

More from Merriam-Webster on tale

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!

More from Merriam-Webster