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1. Disclosing unintentionally something concealed
   "a telling smile";
   - revealing, telltale
    
2. Powerfully persuasive
   "a telling presentation";
   - cogent, weighty
    
3. Producing a strong effect
   "a telling gesture";
   - impressive

1. An act of narration
   - relation, recounting
    
2. Informing by words
   - apprisal, notification
    
3. Disclosing information or giving evidence about another
   - tattle, singing [informal]

1. Express in words
   "tell me what is bothering you";
   - state, say
    
2. Let something be known
   "Tell them that you will be late"
    
3. Narrate or give a detailed account of
   "Tell what happened"; "The father told a story to his child";
   - narrate, recount, recite, retail[2]
    
4. Give instructions to or direct somebody to do something with authority
   "The mother told the child to get dressed";
   - order, enjoin, say
    
5. Discern or comprehend
   "He could tell that she was unhappy"
    
6. Inform positively and with certainty and confidence
   "I tell you that man is a crook!";
   - assure
    
7. Give evidence
   "he was telling on all his former colleague";
   - evidence
    
8. Mark as different
   "We tell apart several kinds of maple";
   - distinguish, separate, differentiate, secern [rare], secernate, severalize, severalise [Brit], tell apart

Derived forms: tellings

See also: distinguish, effective, effectual, efficacious, informative, informatory, persuasive, suasive [rare], tell off

Type of: affirm, assert, aver, avow, disclosure, express, finger [informal], give tongue to, guess, identify, infer, inform, informing, making known, narration, place, recital, request, revealing, revelation, swear, utter, verbalise [Brit], verbalize, verify, yarn

Encyclopedia: Telling, David