tell of
phrasal verb
told of; telling of; tells of
formal + literary
1
: to be evidence of (something) : to indicate
Her smile told of her good news.
His rough hands tell of a hard life.
2
: to describe (something) : to make the details of (something) known
The article tells of her Arctic journey.
3
: to talk to (someone) about (something)
He told us of his plans to move to the city.
Examples of tell of in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Bonta told of being 17 or 18 years old and heading to college, not expecting to be able to return to Portage for a successful career.
—
Doug Ross, Chicago Tribune, 20 Feb. 2025
Homer’s epic poem tells of Odysseus’ perilous 10-year journey home to Ithaca after the Trojan War.
—Hilary Lewis, The Hollywood Reporter, 17 Feb. 2025
The leadership of Oasis Community Worship Center were told of his arrest and subsequently fired him from his role as youth pastor, the church’s board of directors said in an online statement.
—Harriet Ramos, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 15 Feb. 2025
The documentary tells of the large and vibrant San Juan Hill community of Black, Caribbean and Puerto Rican residents.
—Jared McCallister, New York Daily News, 15 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for tell of
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.
Doug Ross, Chicago Tribune, 20 Feb. 2025
Homer’s epic poem tells of Odysseus’ perilous 10-year journey home to Ithaca after the Trojan War.
—Hilary Lewis, The Hollywood Reporter, 17 Feb. 2025
The leadership of Oasis Community Worship Center were told of his arrest and subsequently fired him from his role as youth pastor, the church’s board of directors said in an online statement.
—Harriet Ramos, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 15 Feb. 2025
The documentary tells of the large and vibrant San Juan Hill community of Black, Caribbean and Puerto Rican residents.
—Jared McCallister, New York Daily News, 15 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for tell of
Cite this Entry
“Tell of.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/tell%20of. Accessed 27 Feb. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share