TELLS (ON) Synonyms: 86 Similar and Opposite Words

tells (on)

verb

present tense third-person singular of tell (on)

as in influences

to act upon (a person or a person's feelings) so as to cause a response the pressure of final exams is beginning to tell on the students in the dorm

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as in talks

to give information (as to the authorities) about another's improper or unlawful activities detectives convinced the perpetrators in custody to tell on their associates

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Recent Examples of Synonyms for tells (on)

Verb

But this year that panel, which influences state and insurance vaccine policies, is caught in a court battle and the CDC hasn't updated its flu advice.

— ABC News, ABC News, 2 Oct. 2026
Wen said the financial infrastructure supporting that business therefore influences its ability to scale.

— Arthur Zaczkiewicz, Footwear News, 2 Oct. 2026

Definition of influences

Verb

Jack Wolf Westwood Lincoln Riley talks a big game about excelling in the Big Ten, but in losing badly to Oregon and its backup quarterback, USC probably couldn’t win the Pac-12 this year.

— Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 3 Oct. 2026
An agent that confidently approves the wrong payment, escalates an unstable interaction or quietly talks a user into a bad decision belongs in a different category.

— Puneet Gaur, Forbes.com, 1 Oct. 2026

Definition of talks

Verb

Moreover, there’s no medical school module on how much any of these comorbidities affects the true cost of the hospitalization.

— Leah Pierson, STAT, 6 Oct. 2026
For example, a manufacturer may need to understand how a component change affects products, suppliers and production.

— Nada Usina, Forbes.com, 5 Oct. 2026

Definition of affects

Verb

That refusal to judge also informs Coon’s broader approach to acting.

— Katherine Brodsky, Variety, 7 Oct. 2026
Livia’s unease informs her skepticism of politics; in linking the two, Kingsolver conflates class and culture, using the former as an excuse for what really just seems to be Livia’s constitutional conservatism.

— Sam Worley, Vulture, 5 Oct. 2026

Definition of informs

Verb

If Smith impresses in training camp, his non-guaranteed deal could be converted to a standard contract.

— Barry Jackson, Miami Herald, 27 Sep. 2026
Microsoft Windows 11 Windows 11 impresses with broad hardware and software compatibility and superb gaming features, while recent updates address long-standing user frustrations.

— Michael Muchmore, PC Magazine, 21 Sep. 2026

Definition of impresses

Verb

These can profoundly affect our orbiting satellites and power grid, so understanding the sun’s magnetic activity actually very much impacts us here on Earth.

— Phil Plait, Scientific American, 9 Oct. 2026
This inequity not only impacts women psychologically, but physically.

— Georgia Casey, Allure, 9 Oct. 2026

Definition of impacts

Verb

Before the city or state adopts or regulates an AI tool that touches housing, jobs, benefits or immigration, the people affected should be asked first.

— Steven Choi, New York Daily News, 4 Oct. 2026
Using private dollars to remake Crandon touches on a number of sensitive political and financial topics for Miami-Dade.

— Douglas Hanks, Miami Herald, 2 Oct. 2026

Definition of touches

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.

Browse Nearby Words

tells off

tells (on)

telltale

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“Tells (on).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/tells%20%28on%29. Accessed 10 Oct. 2026.

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Synonyms of tells (on)

verb

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