tell off

present singular third person tells off · participle present telling off · participle past told off · past told off

1. transitivegovernmentTo number off (a group of soldiers); to divide up (soldiers) in this way.First known use 18th c.

   To equalize a battalion is to tell off a certain number of companies, usually eight, in such a manner that the several component parts shall consist of the same number of men.

   1885, Edward Farrow, A Dictionary of Military Terms

2. transitiveTo assign (someone) to a particular task, duty etc.; to depute, to allocate.First known use 18th c.

   The provisions were packed over night and sent down by boat, in charge of the steward of the Gtdnare or some person specially told off for the purpose.

   1887, Harriet W. Daly, Digging, Squatting, and Pioneering Life in the Northern Territory of South Australia, page 63

   1 more example

   When they were quite ready, the now triumphant Toad led his companions to the paddock and set them to capture the old grey horse, who, without having been consulted, and to his own extreme annoyance, had been told off by Toad for the dustiest job in this dusty expedition. He frankly preferred the paddock, and took a deal of catching.

   1908, Kenneth Grahame, The Wind in the Willows, London: Methuen, page 17

3. transitiveTo count off (numbers, members of a sequence etc.); to enumerate.First known use 18th c.

   The Recruit looked thoughtful and told off the days on his fingers.

   1903, Field and Stream, page 755

   Synonyms: enumerate

4. transitiveTo rebuke, to reprimand, or to admonish, often in a harsh, angry, direct way.First known use 19th c.

   Joel's boss told him off for being late again.

   Synonyms: give somebody a piece of one's mind