tell

1. (transitive, archaic outside of idioms) To count, reckon, or enumerate.Examples: "All told, there were over a dozen.  Can you tell time on a clock?  He had untold wealth."; "And in his lap a masse of coyne he told, And turned vpsidowne, to feede his eye A couetous desire with his huge threasury."; "Well fare the Arabians, who so richly pay The things they traffic for with wedge of gold, Whereof a man may easily in a day Tell that which may maintain him all his life."Synonyms: counttransitive

2. (transitive, ditransitive) To narrate, to recount.Examples: "I want to tell a story;  I want to tell you a story."; "“[…]Churchill, my dear fellow, we have such greedy sharks, and wolves in lamb's clothing. Oh, dear, there's so much to tell you, so many warnings to give you, but all that must be postponed for the moment.”"Synonyms: narrate, recount, relateditransitivetransitive

3. (transitive, ditransitive) To convey by speech; to say.Examples: "Finally, someone told him the truth.  He seems to like to tell lies."; "I told him about everything I could think of; and what I couldn't think of he did. He asked about six questions during my yarn, but every question had a point to it. At the end he bowed and thanked me once more. As a thanker he was main-truck high; I never see anybody so polite."; "Tell her you’re here."ditransitivetransitive

4. (transitive) To instruct or inform.Examples: "Please tell me how to do it."; "Why didst thou not tell me that she was thy wife?"; "But Miss Thorn relieved the situation by laughing aloud,[…]. We began to tell her about Mohair and the cotillon, and of our point of observation from the Florentine galleried porch, and she insisted she would join us there."Synonyms: advisetransitive

5. (transitive) To order; to direct, to say to someone.Examples: "Tell him to go away."; "She said she hoped she had not distressed him by the course she had felt obliged to take, and he told her not to be a fool."; "Stability was restored, but once the re-entry propulsion was activated, the crew was told to prepare to come home before the end of their only day in orbit."transitive

6. (transitive or intransitive) To discern, notice, identify or distinguish.Examples: "Can you tell whether those flowers are real or silk, from this distance?  No, there's no way to tell."; "I can tell you're upset."; "An expert can tell an original from a forgery."intransitivetransitive