Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “tellee” come from?

tellee (English) comes from English tell, from Middle English tellen, from Old English tellan, from Proto-West Germanic talljan, from Proto-Germanic taljaną, from Proto-Germanic talą, from Proto-Indo-European dol-, from Proto-Indo-European del- — to aim, calculate, adjust, count; to reckon,...

tellee (English): One who is told something

Definitions

  1. One who is told something

Ancestry of “tellee”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishtellTo count, reckon, or enumerate; To narrate; To...
2Middle Englishtellento count; to tell
3Old Englishtellanto count, calculate; to tell, narrate, recount;...
4Proto-West Germanictalljanto count, to enumerate; to recount, to tell
5Proto-Germanictaljanąto enumerate, count; to account, recount, tell
6Proto-Germanictaląspeech; number
7Proto-Indo-Europeandol-reckoning, calculation, fraud; calculation, fraud
8Proto-Indo-Europeandel-to aim, calculate, adjust, count; to reckon,...
Every word from Proto-Indo-European del- →