Meaning of "tall tale" in the English dictionary

PRONUNCIATION OF TALL TALE

tall tale  [tɔːl teɪl]

GRAMMATICAL CATEGORY OF TALL TALE

Tall tale is a noun.

A noun is a type of word the meaning of which determines reality. Nouns provide the names for all things: people, objects, sensations, feelings, etc.

WHAT DOES TALL TALE MEAN IN ENGLISH?

Tall tale

A tall tale is a story with unbelievable elements, related as if it were true and factual. Some stories such as these are exaggerations of actual events, for example fish stories such as, "That fish was so big, why I tell ya', it nearly sank the boat when I pulled it in!" Other tall tales are completely fictional tales set in a familiar setting, such as the European countryside, the American frontier, the Canadian Northwest, or the beginning of the Industrial Revolution. Tall tales are often told in a way that makes the narrator seem to have been a part of the story. They are usually humorous or good-natured. The line between legends and tall tales is distinguished primarily by age; many legends exaggerate the exploits of their heroes, but in tall tales the exaggeration looms large, to the extent of becoming the whole of the story. Rabelais' giant, Pantagruel, sleeps after his encounter; curious onlookers surround the sea serpent he has vanquished. Woodcut by Gustave Doré...

TRANSLATION OF TALL TALE

Find out the translation of tall tale to 25 languages with our English multilingual translator.

The translations of tall tale from English to other languages presented in this section have been obtained through automatic statistical translation; where the essential translation unit is the word «tall tale» in English.

• Translator English - Chinese: 高大的故事
• Translator English - Spanish: cuento chino
• English: tall tale
• Translator English - Hindi: लंबी कहानी
• Translator English - Arabic: حكاية طويلة
• Translator English - Russian: небыль
• Translator English - Portuguese: conto de altura
• Translator English - Bengali: লম্বা কাহিনী
• Translator English - French: histoire à dormir debout
• Translator English - Malay: Kisah tinggi
• Translator English - German: Lügengeschichte
• Translator English - Japanese: 背の高い物語
• Translator English - Korean: 키 큰 이야기
• Translator English - Javanese: Dongeng dhuwur
• Translator English - Vietnamese: câu chuyện bịa
• Translator English - Tamil: உயரமான கதை
• Translator English - Marathi: उंच कथा
• Translator English - Turkish: uzun Hikaye
• Translator English - Italian: racconto alto
• Translator English - Polish: wysoki opowieść
• Translator English - Ukrainian: небилиця
• Translator English - Romanian: poveste înalt
• Translator English - Greek: ψηλά παραμύθι
• Translator English - Afrikaans: hoog verhaal
• Translator English - Swedish: skröna
• Translator English - Norwegian: høy tale

10 ENGLISH BOOKS RELATING TO «TALL TALE»

Discover the use of tall tale in the following bibliographical selection. Books relating to tall tale and brief extracts from same to provide context of its use in English literature.

Elf: A Short Story of a Tall Tale

This is the story of Buddy Hobbs, an elf who feels a little out of place at the North Pole.

Buddy Hobbs, David Berenbaum, Aristides Ruiz, 2003

Tall Tale America: A Legendary History of Our Humorous Heroes

A big country begets big heroes and these stories about super-Americans are as humorous as they are incredible A classic of humor and folklore, Tall Tale America is a vernacular history of America which has as its chief figures not ...

Walter Blair, 1987

Dona Flor: A Tall Tale About a Giant Woman With a Great Big ...

Dona Flor, a giant lady with a big heart, sets off to protect her neighbors from what they think is a dangerous animal, but soon discovers the tiny secret behind the huge noise.

Pat Mora, 2010

Larger than life: the American tall-tale postcard, 1905-1915

Offers a brief history of the "exaggerated" picture postcard, and how it captured many facets of life in turn-of-the-century small-town America

Cynthia Elyce Rubin, Morgan Williams, 1990

The Tall Tale of Paul Bunyan

Re-tells the adventures of Paul Bunyan and his blue ox Babe in graphic novel format.

‎2010

Kumak's Fish: A Tall Tale from the Far North

On a beautiful Arctic morning when Kumak and his family go ice fishing, Kumak hooks what seems like an enormous fish, and the entire village gets involved.

Michael Bania, 2004

John Henry: An American Tall Tale

Perform this American tall tale about how John Henry beat a steam drill.

Carol Pugliano-Martin, 2006

Starbucked: A Double Tall Tale of Caffeine, Commerce, and ...

STARBUCKED will be the first book to explore the incredible rise of the Starbucks Corporation and the caffeine-crazy culture that fueled its success.

Taylor Clark, 2007

Johnny Appleseed: An American Tall Tale

Perform this American tall tale about Johnny Appleseed.

Gregory Brown, 2006

Only Nine Chairs: A Tall Tale for Passover

This whimsical, rhyming story presents a new solution to an old problem—the overcrowded seder. This is a fixed-format ebook, which preserves the design and layout of the original print book.

Deborah Uchill Miller, 2014

10 NEWS ITEMS WHICH INCLUDE THE TERM «TALL TALE»

Find out what the national and international press are talking about and how the term tall tale is used in the context of the following news items.

Tall Tale: Surprising 2nd for Tale of Verve in Preakness

Hall of Fame trainer D. Wayne Lukas smiles after Mr. Z drew post position No. 3 for the 140th Preakness Stakes at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, ... «Boston Herald, May 15»

Eyewitness Tiffany's Tall Tale of Police Brutality Broadcast by Fox …

Eyewitness Tiffany's Tall Tale of Police Brutality Broadcast by Fox News. By Jeannie DeAngelis. Nineteenth century Danish existentialist philosopher Søren ... «American Thinker, May 15»

MotherFumbler: Try your tall tale, but I'm going with honesty

There are many tall tales told on the battlefield of parenting. Some are just for fun, some are tied to pagan rituals and — let's face it — some are simply for ... «CBC.ca, May 15»

Skeptics wonder if lost sailor is spinning tall tale, Washington Post …

But a Washington Post story on Sunday (April 5) pointed out that Jordan's story has its critics, who wonder if he's spinning a tall tale. "It's rare that a man is lost at ... «NOLA.com, Apr 15»

A Tall Tale? Record-Setting Luxury Hotel Is Proposed for Tiny Swiss …

It would be as tall as the Empire State Building. (Morphosis Architects). This may sound like an April Fool's joke, and if it comes down to a vote, it may end up as ... «Yahoo Travel, Apr 15»

Scotty's Castle built on foundation of tall tales

Questions about who owned the house existed for a long time because of tall tales told by Walter Scott, a colorful character better known as Death Valley Scotty. «Las Vegas Review-Journal, Mar 15»

O'Reilly's trouble deepens: A Kennedy tall tale that could unravel …

O'Reilly's trouble deepens: A Kennedy tall tale that could unravel Fox News' ... O'Reilly doesn't dig into that story, but he tells a dramatic tale of his search for the ... «Salon, Mar 15»

Carl Hiaasen: Brian Williams pays price for tall tales

Everyone has told tall tales. The problem is that Williams told this one to millions of people more than once, and in the same staid tone with which he delivered ... «MiamiHerald.com, Feb 15»

Another Tall Tale From Brian Williams? Seal Team Six Claim Disputed

New details are emerging about about what appears to be another tall tale of wartime heroics from recently suspended NBC News anchor Brian Williams. «Breitbart News, Feb 15»

Another tall tale? Brian Williams' alleged encounter with Christmas …

Long before Brian Williams was caught lying about his chopper coming under fire in Iraq, he claimed he'd stared down the barrel of a bandit's gun as a teenager ... «Page Six, Feb 15»