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
Their sole plausible successor, J.J.’s son, John, died suddenly at age 53 in 1962, a year ahead of his senescent father, who was never told of his death.
—
Frank Rich, Vulture, 8 Apr. 2025
Most of the pages, written with brushes and ink and bound in hand-sewn books, tell of the Miwatari appearing with comforting regularity.
—Martin Fackler, New York Times, 28 Mar. 2025
Clary's family was told of his identification in February 2025, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation said.
—Kerry Breen, CBS News, 25 Mar. 2025
City firefighters, emergency medical technicians, and paramedics were told of the calendar’s comeback in an internal memo earlier this month.
—Thomas Tracy, New York Daily News, 23 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for tell of
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Frank Rich, Vulture, 8 Apr. 2025
Most of the pages, written with brushes and ink and bound in hand-sewn books, tell of the Miwatari appearing with comforting regularity.
—Martin Fackler, New York Times, 28 Mar. 2025
Clary's family was told of his identification in February 2025, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation said.
—Kerry Breen, CBS News, 25 Mar. 2025
City firefighters, emergency medical technicians, and paramedics were told of the calendar’s comeback in an internal memo earlier this month.
—Thomas Tracy, New York Daily News, 23 Mar. 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 21 Apr. 2025.
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