tal

Etymology

Inherited from Old Spanish tal (“such”), from Latin tālis. Compare French tel, Galician tal, Portuguese tal, and Spanish tal.

Adjective

tal (Hebrew spelling טאל)^[1]

1. such (a)
   • 1982, Enrique Saporta y Beja, En torno de la torre blanca‎, Editions Vidas Largas, page 325:

     A tal punto ke dizia : "En Espanya no ay ke yo i la kanalya ke semos frankofilos".

     To such a point that it was said: 'In Spain there is nobody but me and the scoundrel [to] whom we are Francophiles.'

Adverb

tal (Hebrew spelling טאל)^[1]

1. such (the likes of which)
   • 2017 June 12, Amor Ayala, Los sefardíes de Bulgaria‎, De Gruyter, →ISBN, page 417:

     En esta gezera se firmava kada miembro en entrando komo tal en la ḥevra.

     In this decree each member was being signed by entering as such in society.

References

Etymology

From Arabic طَالَ (ṭāla).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈtaːl/

Verb

tal (imperfect jtul, past participle mitul, verbal noun tul)

1. to become long, to become prolonged, to last

   Synonym: dam

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /tāl/

Noun

tal

1. sun

References

• Blench, Robert; Bulkaam, Michael (2021) An Introduction to Mantsi, a South Bauchi language of Central Nigeria. University of Cambridge.

Pronunciation

• Rhymes: -al

Adjective

tal

1. sour

Etymology 1

Etymology 2

Etymology

From Old Norse tal.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [tʰɐ̞ːl], [tʰɐ̞ːɽ]

Noun

tal n (definite singular talet, indefinite plural tal, definite plural tala)

1. number, numeral

See also

• tall (Bokmål)

References

• “tal” in The Nynorsk Dictionary.

Etymology

From Proto-West Germanic *tālu, from Proto-Germanic *tēlō (“deception, deceit, persecution”), from Proto-Indo-European *del- (“to take aim, calculate, damage, count”). Cognate with Latin dolus (“deception, strategem, trap”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /tɑːl/

Noun

tāl f

1. evil-speaking, calumny, disparagement, slander
2. (religious) blasphemy
3. reproach
4. scorn, derision, mocking

Alternative forms

• tall

Etymology

Inherited from Latin tālis. Cognate with Old French tel and Old Spanish tal.

Adjective

tal (indefinite)

1. such (kind of)

   Synonym: atal

   • 13th-14th centuries, Denis of Portugal (lyrics and music), “Un tal ome sei eu, ai ben-talhada”‎:

     Um tal home sei que preto sente / de si morte certamente

     I know one such man who feels unwell, [and he is] certainly dying.

References

• Ernesto Xosé González Seoane, María Álvarez de la Granja, Ana Isabel Boullón Agrelo (2006–2022) “tal”, in Dicionario de Dicionarios do galego medieval (in Galician), Santiago de Compostela: Instituto da Lingua Galega

Etymology

From Proto-Germanic *dalą, whence also Old English dæl, Old Norse dalr.

Noun

tal n or m

1. valley

Etymology

From Proto-Germanic *talą (“number, speech”). Cognate with Old English tæl, Old Saxon gital.

Pronunciation

• (12th century Icelandic) IPA^(key): /ˈtɑl/

Noun

tal n (genitive tals, plural tǫl)

1. a talk, parley, conversation
   • Ólafs saga Helga 87, in 1830, Þ. Guðmundsson, C. C. Rafn, Þ. Helgason, Fornmanna sögur, Volume IV. Copenhagen, page 196:

     […] kom hún enn til konúngs, ok sátu þau jarl öll samt á tali, […]

     […] but she came to the king, and yet sat all the jarls in talks, […]

2. speech, language
   • Stjórn 61, in 1862, C. R. Unger, Stjórn: gammelnorsk Bibelhistorie: fra Verdens Skabelse til det babyloniske Fangenskab. Christiania, page 204:

     Sneri hann þa nafni Josephs ok kalladi hann heimsins hialpara upp aa Egiptalandz tal ok tungu.

     He turned then, speaking Joseph's name and calling him home for help in speech and tongue of Egyptian lands.

3. a tale, number, enumeration
   • Barlaams Saga 137, in 1851, R. Keyser, C. R. Unger, Barlaams ok Josaphats saga. Christiania, page 133:

     Hon er oc i tale með oðrum himintunglum, […]

     She is in that number with other heavenly bodies, […]

4. (especially in compounds) a tale, list, series
   • Gulaþings-lög 301, in 1846, E. Hertzberg, Norges gamle love indtil 1387, Volume I. Christiania, page 99:

     […] þa ſkolo fara a þing oc bioða ſic i tal með oðrom monnom.

     […] then shall go to the Thing and enter the lists with other men.

Further reading

• Richard Cleasby, Guðbrandur Vigfússon (1874) “tal”, in An Icelandic-English Dictionary, 1st edition, Oxford: Oxford Clarendon Press, page 624
• Zoëga, Geir T. (1910) “tal”, in A Concise Dictionary of Old Icelandic, Oxford: Clarendon Press, page 432; also available at the [https://archive.org/stream/concisedictionar001857

1. page/432 Internet Archive]

Etymology

Inherited from Latin tālis. Cognate with Old French tel and Old Galician-Portuguese tal.

Adjective

tal (indefinite)

1. same

   Synonym: atal

2. such (this kind of)

   Synonym: atal

   • c. 1250, Alfonso X, Lapidario, f. 24v:

     Et los filoſofos precian la mucho por que ella a tal uertud que aquel que la trae conſigo aguzal mucho el entendimiento ⁊ el engenno, aſſi que ninguna coſa noles grieue de entender nin de aprender.

     And philosophers prize it greatly because it has such vertue that, of he who has it with him, it sharpens their understanding and ingenuity, so that nothing is difficult for them to either understand or learn.

Adverb

tal

1. (just) like; (exactly) like
   • c. 1200, Almeric, Fazienda de Ultramar, f. 50r. a.:

     Señor dios de iſrꝉ no a tal / dios en los cielos cuemo tu nĩ de yuſo en la tierra […]

     Lord, God of Israel, there is no god like you in either the heavens or on earth […]

2. such (the likes of which)
   • c. 1200, Almerich, Fazienda de Ultramar, f. 14v:

     I ẏo fare cras plouer pedriſco mui grãt. e nõ fue tal en egipto. des q̃ fue poblada troa agora. e tu aplega todo lo tuẏo q̃ es en el cãpo. ⁊ los q̃ nõ ſe acogierẽ alas caſas morrã del pedriſco.

     “[…] And tomorrow I shall make it rain a great hailstorm such that Egypt has never seen since it was settled until now. And you, bring inside all that you have in the field. And those who do not take shelter in their homes will die from the hail.”

Pronoun

tal (indefinite)

1. same (aforesaid thing)
   • c. 1250, Alfonso X, Lapidario, f. 56r.:

     Et fallan la ſiempre en forma de redoma ⁊ parece dentro en ella figura de ſanguſuela. ⁊ ſi la quebrantan en cada pedaço fallá otro tal.

     And they always find it shaped like a vase, and inside it seems to have what looks like a leech, and if they break it, in each piece they find the same.

References

• Ralph Steele Boggs et al. (1946) “tal”, in Tentative Dictionary of Medieval Spanish, volume II, Chapel Hill, page 486

Etymology

Compare Classical Nahuatl tlālli (“land”)

Pronunciation

• (standard) IPA^(key): /ˈtaːl/
• (Izalco) IPA^(key): /ˈtal/
• (Jicalapa) IPA^(key): /ˈtaɬʲ/

Noun

tāl (plural tālmet or tajtāl)

1. land, ground

   Tiktukat ne shupanmil keman ne tal waktuk

   For the rainy season, we plant the corn when the ground has dried up

2. earth, dirt, soil

   Tikwiwitat iwan tal pal tiktukat ka senkak

   We uproot it keeping some soil (on the roots) to plant it somewhere else

3. terrain, field, region, country

   Ashan ne Nawat semaya munutza tik ini tal

   Now Nawat (Pipil) is only spoken in this country

Etymology

Compare Classical Nahuatl tlālli (“land”).

Noun

tal

1. land

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈtal/

• Audio:

  (file)

• Rhymes: -al
• Syllabification: tal

Noun

tal m inan

1. thallium (chemical element, Tl, atomic number 81)

Further reading

• tal in Polish dictionaries at PWN

Etymology

From Old Galician-Portuguese tal, from Latin tālis, from Proto-Indo-European *tód (“demonstrative pronoun”). Displaced collateral form atal.

Pronunciation

• Homophone: tau (Brazil)
• Rhymes: (Portugal) -al, (Brazil) -aw
• Hyphenation: tal

Determiner

tal m or f (plural tais)

1. such

Noun

tal m or f by sense (plural tais)

1. one

   Percebi que ele era o tal. ― I realised he was the one.

Etymology

Borrowed from French thalle.

Noun

tal n (plural taluri)

1. thallus

Etymology

Inherited from Old Spanish tal (“such”), from Latin tālis. Compare French tel, Galician tal, Ladino tal, and Portuguese tal.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈtal/ [ˈt̪al]
• Rhymes: -al
• Syllabification: tal

Adjective

tal m or f (masculine and feminine plural tales)

1. such

   Synonym: (obsolete) atal

   No hay tal cosa como los monstruos.

   There's no such thing as monsters.

Pronoun

tal m or f (masculine and feminine plural tales)

1. such

   Es la jefa, y es importante que la trates como tal.

   She's the boss, and it's important that you treat her as such.

Further reading

• “tal”, in Diccionario de la lengua española [Dictionary of the Spanish Language] (in Spanish), online version 23.8, Royal Spanish Academy [Spanish: Real Academia Española], 2024 December 10
• “tal” in Diccionario panhispánico de dudas, segunda edición, Real Academia Española, 2023. →ISBN

Etymology

From Old Swedish tal, from Old Norse tal, from Proto-Germanic *talą.

Pronunciation

• Audio:

  (file)

Noun

tal n

1. (mathematics) number

   Hyponyms: naturligt tal, heltal, rationellt tal, reellt tal, komplext tal, hyperkomplext tal, superreellt tal, bråktal, blandat tal, kardinaltal, defekt tal, perfekt tal, primtal, sammansatt tal, vänskapliga tal, ymnigt tal, algebraiskt tal, transcendent tal

   reellt tal

   real number

2. (school) An exercise involving calculations given to the pupil, especially at lower levels.

   Hur många tal fick ni i matteläxa idag?

   How many math exercises did you have as homework today?

3. speech; the ability to use vocalizations to communicate
4. speech; a long oral message given publicly
5. (as a suffix) around (for round numbers)

   ett 30-tal demonstranter

   around 30 protesters

6. (as a suffix, in the definite "talet") the specified decade, century, or (rarely) millennium

   åttiotalet / 80-talet

   the eighties

   nollnolltalet / 00-talet

   the 00s

   1890-talet

   the 1890s

   det sena 60-talet

   the late sixties

   artonhunradratalet / 1800-talet

   the nineteenth century

References

• tal in Svensk ordbok (SO)
• tal in Svenska Akademiens ordlista (SAOL)
• tal in Svenska Akademiens ordbok (SAOB)

Anagrams

• lat, lat.

Noun

tal

1. willow

Pronunciation

• (Zinacantán) IPA^(key): /tʰäl/

Verb

tal

1. (intransitive) to come

   ¿Bu likemot tal?

   Where do you come from?

   (literally, “Where have you come?”)

References

• Laughlin, Robert M. (1975) The Great Tzotzil Dictionary of San Lorenzo Zinacantán. Washington: Smithsonian Institution Press.
• Laughlin, Robert M. [et al.] (1988) The Great Tzotzil Dictionary of Santo Domingo Zinacantán, vol. I. Washington: Smithsonian Institution Press.

Etymology 1

Early modern borrowing of English tall

Etymology 2

Proto-Celtic *talos, from Proto-Indo-European *telh₂- (“ground, bottom”). Compare Irish talamh, Latin tellūs, Sanskrit तल (tala).

Etymology 3

Mutation

Etymology

Probably ultimately related to taal (“language”), which see. Cognate with Dutch tal, English tale, German Zahl.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /tɔl/

Noun

tal n (plural tallen)

1. number, amount

   Synonym: oantal

2. (grammar) grammatical number

Verb

tal (intransitive)

1. Obsolete spelling of taal.