tell tales
tell tales · tells tales · told tales · telling tales
To lie, to be making false claimsTo lie, to be making false claims.
Meaning
2 senses(idiomatic)To lie, to be making false claims.
Don't listen to him; he's telling tales.
(UK)To report someone for a wrongdoing.
Forms
tells tales, telling tales, told tales, told tales| Base form | tell tales · to tell tales |
|---|---|
| 3rd person singular | tells tales |
| Present participle | telling tales |
| Past simple | told tales |
| Past participle | told tales |
irregular · Lesson
Lessons for this word
3 lessons- A1Present simple — Because it is a verb
- A1Past simple, irregular verbs — Because of its past form
- A2Present perfect: introduction — Because of its past participle
See also
neighbours in the dictionaryDictionary text adapted from Wiktionary (Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0) and Open English WordNet / Princeton WordNet (CC BY 4.0, WordNet License); shared under CC BY-SA 4.0. Example sentences and recordings are credited where they appear.