tellable

American  

[tel-uh-buhl] / ˈtɛl ə bəl /

adjective

1. capable of being told. tell. told.

2. worthy of being told. tell. told.

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Other Word Forms

• tellableness noun
• untellable adjective

Etymology

Origin of tellable

First recorded in 1475–85; tell ¹ + -able

Example Sentences

Layouts of combs and brushes, curling irons, razors, dye containers, soaps, hair samples, jewelry, and such feel not repetitive but satisfyingly completist: familial reunions of associated objects, each secreting a tellable tale.

From The New Yorker • Jul. 15, 2019

“The ceremony may not be legally recognized back home, but it makes for a unique, tellable story that epitomizes an exotic locale.”

From New York Times • Apr. 2, 2019

She has witnessed or experienced a book’s worth of tellable tales, tall or otherwise.

From New York Times • Feb. 22, 2017

Not because it is in fact clearly identifiable as the beginning, but rather for aesthetic reasons—because it makes the beginning tellable.

From Salon • Feb. 23, 2014

Oh, Denny, Denny!" he cried, "this is a dedful place—there's a' ogre, a real tellable ogre in the house.

From The Adventures of Herr Baby by Crane, Walter