tail and tale are homophones: they are pronounced identically and spelled differently, which is why they are so often swapped. tail means “the posterior part of the body of a vertebrate especially when elongated and extending beyond the trunk or main part of the body”. tale means “a message that tells the particulars of an act or occurrence or course of events; presented in writing or drama or cinema or as a radio or television program”.
/ˈteɪl/
1.n.the posterior part of the body of a vertebrate especially when elongated and extending beyond the trunk or main part of the body
2.n.the time of the last part of something
“the fag end of this crisis-ridden century”
3.n.any projection that resembles the tail of an animal
/ˈteɪl/
| tail | tale | |
|---|---|---|
| Pronunciation | /ˈteɪl/ | /ˈteɪl/ |
| Said | tayl | tayl |
| Syllables | 1 | 1 |
| Letters | 4 | 4 |
| Parts of speech | noun, verb | noun |
| Senses | 11 | 2 |
| How common | Common | Common |
| Synonyms | none recorded | narrative, narration, story |
Full entry for tail · Full entry for tale · More comparisons
1.n.a message that tells the particulars of an act or occurrence or course of events; presented in writing or drama or cinema or as a radio or television program
“his narrative was interesting”
2.n.a trivial lie
“he told a fib about eating his spinach”