live to tell the tale
To survive some difficulty, illness, etc.
Meaning adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
“The storm was scary, but we lived to tell the tale.”
“After the long hike through the desert without enough water, we were exhausted but lived to tell the tale.”
“Though the company faced a near-total collapse during the financial crisis, the management team navigated the turmoil and lived to tell the tale.”
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a little bird told me
I received the information from a source which I am not prepared to disclose.
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all told
With everything included, counted, or summed; in total.
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cautionary tale
A story, originally told in folklore, to warn its audience of a certain danger.
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die the way one lived
To die because of or after doing something characteristic of oneself, especially something that one enjoyed doing.
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don't tell me
Used to introduce a guess at a fact or situation, as if forestalling the other speaker's utterance.
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I can tell you
Emphasises the truth of a statement.
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I tell a lie
I am mistaken; I thought that what I said (or wrote) was true, but I have just realised that it is not.
- 08
I tell you
Synonym of I can tell you.
Last updated August 10, 2026