Tale word meaning and definition

[noun] a trivial lie; "he told a fib about eating his spinach"; "how can I stop my child from telling stories?"
[noun] a message that tells the particulars of an act or occurrence or course of events; "his narrative was interesting"; "his stories entertained the children"

\Tale\, n. See {Tael}.
\Tale\, n. [AS. talu number, speech, narrative; akin to D. taal speech, language, G. zahl number, OHG. zala, Icel. tal, tala, number, speech, Sw. tal, Dan. tal number, tale speech, Goth. talzjan to instruct. Cf. {Tell}, v. t., {Toll} a tax, also {Talk}, v. i.] 1. That which is told; an oral relation or recital; any rehearsal of what has occured; narrative; discourse; statement; history; story. ``The tale of Troy divine.'' --Milton. ``In such manner rime is Dante's tale.'' --Chaucer. We spend our years as a tale that is told. --Ps. xc. 9. 2. A number told or counted off; a reckoning by count; an enumeration; a count, in distinction from measure or weight; a number reckoned or stated. The ignorant, . . . who measure by tale, and not by weight. --Hooker. And every shepherd tells his tale, Under the hawthornn in the dale. --Milton. In packing, they keep a just tale of the number. --Carew. 3. (Law) A count or declaration. [Obs.] {To tell tale of}, to make account of. [Obs.] Therefore little tale hath he told Of any dream, so holy was his heart. --Chaucer. Syn: Anecdote; story; fable; incident; memoir; relation; account; legend; narrative.
\Tale\, v. i. To tell stories. [Obs.] --Chaucer. Gower.

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