as in to rail (at or against)
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Recent Examples of tell off
Season three will include toxic men (pretends to be shocked!), Marciano’s story being questioned (clutching my pearls!), and Taylor telling off her mom (wait, actually, yes, please).
—
Olivia Crandall, Vulture, 1 July 2025
Rivera’s sharp sense of style, hanging out and making plans, eating sticky rice and ketchup, telling off old boyfriends and listening to music.
—Caroline Kubzansky, Chicago Tribune, 25 June 2025
Moo's hilarious response to being told off is a textbook example of this temperament.
—Melissa Fleur Afshar, MSNBC Newsweek, 6 June 2025
One scene, shows another donkey picking up a small goat and running around with it in their mouth, before being told off.
—Yaakov Katz, Newsweek, 17 Jan. 2025
Stephen King made a surprise return to X on Feb. 20 to tell off President Trump and Elon Musk, the latter of which owns the social media platform.
—Zack Sharf, Variety, 21 Feb. 2025
Deliverance is a game about being told off for sleeping in other people's beds.
—David Faris, Newsweek, 3 Feb. 2025
The West Coast rapper took to TikTok to share a 50 Cent meme where the Queens rapper was confused about being told off by Floyd Mayweather.
—Demicia Inman, VIBE.com, 3 Sep. 2019
Two small feral-looking kids, ragged, both looked about seven years old, had been told off several times for knocking some of these flimsy chairs to one side as if to let the horse out.
—Ali Smith, Harper's Magazine, 2 Jan. 2025
Olivia Crandall, Vulture, 1 July 2025
Rivera’s sharp sense of style, hanging out and making plans, eating sticky rice and ketchup, telling off old boyfriends and listening to music.
—Caroline Kubzansky, Chicago Tribune, 25 June 2025
Moo's hilarious response to being told off is a textbook example of this temperament.
—Melissa Fleur Afshar, MSNBC Newsweek, 6 June 2025
One scene, shows another donkey picking up a small goat and running around with it in their mouth, before being told off.
—Yaakov Katz, Newsweek, 17 Jan. 2025
Stephen King made a surprise return to X on Feb. 20 to tell off President Trump and Elon Musk, the latter of which owns the social media platform.
—Zack Sharf, Variety, 21 Feb. 2025
Deliverance is a game about being told off for sleeping in other people's beds.
—David Faris, Newsweek, 3 Feb. 2025
The West Coast rapper took to TikTok to share a 50 Cent meme where the Queens rapper was confused about being told off by Floyd Mayweather.
—Demicia Inman, VIBE.com, 3 Sep. 2019
Two small feral-looking kids, ragged, both looked about seven years old, had been told off several times for knocking some of these flimsy chairs to one side as if to let the horse out.
—Ali Smith, Harper's Magazine, 2 Jan. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for tell off
Verb
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But the Idaho Department of Education, State Board of Education, and colleges and universities will have to identify spending cuts up to 6%.—
Ryan Suppe,
Idaho Statesman,
18 June 2025
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And in order to maintain a nutritious balance to each of these meals, consider adding cut up vegetables (like celery or carrots) or fruit (strawberries or blueberries are easy options) to the plate.—
Stephanie Ganz,
Parents,
15 July 2025
Verb
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Instances when the coach chewed out the quarterback for being late on a throw.—
Brad Biggs,
Chicago Tribune,
8 June 2025
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But to chew out his boss--Edwin Stanton, secretary of war--would be more than just getting close to the line of insubordination.—
arkansasonline.com,
arkansasonline.com,
12 Feb. 2025
Verb
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Dave and his friends spend their summer days hanging out at the limestone quarry, ragging on each other, cliff-jumping into the water, wondering what sort of lives await them.—
Michael Phillips,
Chicago Tribune,
19 June 2025
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For most of his first 10 songs, Costello’s singing was ragged and hoarse.—
George Varga,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
25 June 2025
Verb
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Maxis are an undeniable staple in every woman’s summer wardrobe, as they can be dressed up, dressed down, and are somehow able to look casual and elevated at the same time.—
Stephanie Osmanski,
Better Homes & Gardens,
16 July 2025
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Workwear styling aside, the pants can be easily dressed down with a T-shirt and sneakers for casual outings.—
Emily Weaver,
People.com,
10 July 2025
Verb
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The 22-year-old Shelton was utterly dominant in his first two matches of the tournament, punishing opponents with blistering serves and thunderous ground strokes.—
Jacob Steinberg,
Baltimore Sun,
26 July 2025
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The Boston Federal Reserve is already testing CBDC programs, and the examples of abuse are everywhere: China's social credit system, which punishes citizens for political dissent, and Canada freezing of truckers' bank accounts in 2022 for protesting vaccine mandates.—
Kevin Sabet,
MSNBC Newsweek,
26 July 2025
Verb
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Minutes later, Boone was spotted appearing to scold first-base coach Travis Chapman for Chisholm getting thrown out.—
Chris Kirschner,
New York Times,
2 Aug. 2025
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But instead of yelling or scolding, Hocker speaks to her daughter gently, and with compassion.—
Daniella Gray,
MSNBC Newsweek,
28 July 2025
Verb
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As the two continued to jaw at each other, Reese stepped in and pushed Jackson away from her teammate, resulting in the Sparks’ second-year player pushing back.—
Ryan Gaydos,
FOXNews.com,
25 June 2025
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Sakkari started jawing at Putintseva, and Putintseva responded with a curtsy.—
Ryan Gaydos,
FOXNews.com,
24 June 2025
Verb
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The type of boy to break up fights at school and lecture his fellow classmates, Steeno added.—
Jake Goodrick,
Sacbee.com,
9 July 2025
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The designer published his autobiography, continued to lecture about fashion.—
Laird Borrelli-Persson,
Vogue,
7 July 2025
Cite this Entry
“Tell off.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/tell%20off. Accessed 6 Aug. 2025.
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