# Tel vs tells

> English confusable word pair

## The two words

### Tel
*name · frequency rank #8,363*
A nickname for the given name Terry.

### tells
*verb · IPA /tɛlz/ · frequency rank #1,740*
third-person singular simple present indicative of tell

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/vs/tel-vs-tells