What's the difference between
and
Enter two words to compare and contrast their definitions, origins, and synonyms to better understand how those words are related.

Tell vs Incur - What's the difference?

tell | incur |

As verbs the difference between tell and incur

is that tell is (lb) to count, reckon, or enumerate while incur is to bring upon oneself or expose oneself to, especially something inconvenient, harmful, or onerous; to become liable or subject to.

As a noun tell

is a reflexive, often habitual behavior, (especially) one occurring in a context that often features attempts at deception by persons under psychological stress (such as a poker game or police interrogation), that reveals information that the person exhibiting the behavior is attempting to withhold or tell can be (archaeology) a mound, originally in the middle east, over or consisting of the ruins of ancient settlements.

tell

English

Etymology 1

From (etyl) ((etyl) telja). More at tale.

Verb

  • (lb) To count, reckon, or enumerate.
  • :
  • *1590 , (Edmund Spenser), (The Faerie Queene) , II.vii:
  • *:And in his lap a masse of coyne he told , / And turned vpsidowne, to feede his eye / A couetous desire with his huge threasury.
  • *1875 , Hugh MacMillan, The Sunday Magazine :
  • *:Only He who made them can tell the number of the stars, and mark the place of each in the order of the one great dominant spiral.
  • (lb) To narrate.
  • :
  • *, chapter=7
    • , title= The Mirror and the Lamp , passage=“
  • (lb) To convey by speech; to say.
  • :
  • *, chapter=4
    • , title= Mr. Pratt's Patients , passage=I told him about everything I could think of; and what I couldn't think of he did. He asked about six questions during my yarn, but every question had a point to it. At the end he bowed and thanked me once more. As a thanker he was main-truck high; I never see anybody so polite.}}
  • (lb) To instruct or inform.
  • :
  • *Bible, (w) xii. 18
  • *:Why didst thou not tell me that she was thy wife?
  • *
    • , title=(The Celebrity), chapter=5 , passage=But Miss Thorn relieved the situation by laughing aloud,
  • (lb) To order; to direct, to say to someone.
  • :
  • *(Charles Dickens) (1812-1870)
  • *:He told her not to be frightened.
  • *'>citation
  • *:Stability was restored, but once the re-entry propulsion was activated, the crew was told to prepare to come home before the end of their only day in orbit.
  • (lb) To discern, notice, identify or distinguish.
  • :
  • *
  • *:Captain Edward Carlisle, soldier as he was, martinet as he was, felt a curious sensation of helplessness seize upon him as he met her steady gaze, her alluring smile; he could not tell what this prisoner might do.
  • (lb) To reveal.
  • :
  • (lb) To be revealed.
  • *1990 , (Stephen Coonts), Under Siege, 1991 (Pocket Books) edition, ISBN 0671742949, p.409:
  • *:Cherry looks old, Mergenthaler told himself. His age is telling . Querulous — that's the word. He's become a whining, querulous old man absorbed with trivialities.
  • (lb) To have an effect, especially a noticeable one; to be apparent, to be demonstrated.
  • :
  • *1859 (John Stuart Mill), (On Liberty)
  • *:Opinion ought [… to give] merited honour to every one, whatever opinion he may holdkeeping nothing back which tells', or can be supposed to ' tell , in their favour.
  • *{{quote-news, year=2011, date=September 18, author=Ben Dirs, work=BBC Sport
    • , title= Rugby World Cup 2011: England 41-10 Georgia , passage=But England's superior fitness told in the second half, with Delon Armitage, Manu Tuilagi and Chris Ashton (two) going over for tries to secure a bonus-point win.}}
    Synonyms
    * (enumerate) count * (narrate) narrate, recount, relate
    Antonyms
    * (to instruct or inform) ask
    Derived terms
    * all told * tell against * tell all * tell-all * tell off * tell on * tell-tale / telltale * tell tales * tell tales out of school * teller

    Noun

    (en noun)
  • A reflexive, often habitual behavior, (especially) one occurring in a context that often features attempts at deception by persons under psychological stress (such as a poker game or police interrogation), that reveals information that the person exhibiting the behavior is attempting to withhold.
  • That which is told; tale; account.
  • * Walpole
    • I am at the end of my tell .
  • (internet) A private message to an individual in a chat room; a whisper.
    • See also
    * dead giveaway

    Etymology 2

    From (etyl) .

    Noun

    (en noun)
  • (archaeology) A mound, originally in the Middle East, over or consisting of the ruins of ancient settlements.

    • Statistics

    * 200 English basic words English control verbs English irregular verbs English reporting verbs English verbs with two objects 1000 English basic words ---- ==Norwegian Bokmål==

    Verb

    (head)

    • incur

    English

    Alternative forms

    * encur

    Verb

    (incurr)
  • To bring upon oneself or expose oneself to, especially something inconvenient, harmful, or onerous; to become liable or subject to.
  • * 1891 , Henry Graham Dakyns (translator), The works of Xenophon , ",
    • [T]he master in his wrath may easily incur worse evil himself than he inflicts—[...]
  • * 1910 , ,
    • And here it is to be noted that hatred is incurred as well on account of good actions as of bad;
  • (chiefly, legal) To render somebody liable or subject to.
  • * 1861 , ,
    • The least neglect of duty will incur [...] the penalty of thirty-nine well laid on in the morning.
  • (obsolete) To enter or pass into.
  • (obsolete) To fall within a period or scope; to occur; to run into danger.
  • To render liable or subject to; to occasion.
  • * Chapman
    • Lest you incur me much more damage in my fame than you have done me pleasure in preserving my life.

    Synonyms

    * (To bring down or expose oneself to) encounter, contract * (render liable or subject to) occasion

    Anagrams

    *