tale

noun

1
a
: a usually imaginative narrative of an event : story
b
: an intentionally untrue report : falsehood
always preferred the tale to the truthSir 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 story splits its time between young Wash's misadventures and the older, adult Wash's tale of first love with a biracial woman, Tanna (Iola Evans), and a brush with danger in the form of bounty hunter, Willard (Billy Boyd). Maureen Lee Lenker, EW.com, 20 May 2025 While the sight of Lamia carrying around the proud cockerel has the makings of an image straight out of a children’s tale, nothing in the little girl’s life has storybook qualities. Tomris Laffly, Variety, 19 May 2025 It's been a tale of two companies with different policies, as Costco, which resisted public pressure to roll back its diversity plans, saw its 16th consecutive week of rising foot traffic that week. Nick Mordowanec, MSNBC Newsweek, 19 May 2025 Recommended Freedom Are Germany’s moves against far-right party a model, or cautionary tale? Eric Tucker, Christian Science Monitor, 18 May 2025 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 29 May. 2025.

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!