tale

noun

ˈtāl 

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

: count, tally

b

: total

4

obsolete : discourse, talk

Synonyms of tale

• story
• whisper

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

At a time when many hotels follow the same few stylistic plays—neutral and mid-century, or perhaps OTT and designed for the internet—the Balmoral feels like a tale as old as time, set firmly in Scotland. — Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 6 Oct. 2026

The movie is a monkey’s paw-style tale of a down-on-his-luck young man, who uses a magical wish device to make his crush like him back. — Carlos De Loera, Los Angeles Times, 5 Oct. 2026

That tale of two vaccines has experts scratching their heads. — Amanda Erickson, STAT, 5 Oct. 2026

Watching left-wing media try to discredit Caitlin Clark and her dedicated fan base has been a tale as old as her rookie season. — Jon Root Outkick, FOXNews.com, 5 Oct. 2026

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

Phrases Containing tale

• fairy-tale
• old wives' tale
• spin a tale
• tale of woe
• tale-teller
• tall tale/story
• thereby hangs a tale

Rhymes for tale

• ail
• ale
• bail
• baile
• dail
• fail
• flail
• frail
• gael
• gail
• grail
• hail

Kids Definition

tale

noun

ˈtā(ə)l 

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