teller

tell·er
T1E1L1L1E1R1
UK/ˈtɛlə/US/ˈtɛləɹ/

noun

A person who tells stories.

Meanings

teller1

nounteller (plural tellers)

plural tellers

  1. A person who tells stories.
  2. USbankingA bank clerk who receives and pays out money.

    Sukumar was thirty years old, four years into his bank job, where he’d moved up to the role of teller, turning up to work on time every day, counting the money, making the deposits, entering in the ledger, filing the reports.

    2025, Santanu Bhattacharya, Deviants, Fig Tree, page 93

    Synonyms: cashier

  3. broadlyA cashier at any place of business.

    The main street was shuttered; the only sign of life she detected was behind the window of the petrol station, where the teller was counting the day's cash balance into the till.

    2023, Eleanor Catton, Birnam Wood, page 60
    2 more examples

    In the case discussed above, for example, the employee who stole money did so by waiting until another teller was on break, then logging on to that teller's register, ringing a “no sale,” and taking the cash.

    2007, Joseph T. Wells, Corporate Fraud Handbook: Prevention and Detection, page 107

    The young femail teller fingered the prices into the cash register at great speed with great dexterity while simultaneously holding a conversation with the teller in the next lane.

    2013, Alastair Henry, Awakening in the Northwest Territories
  4. A person who counts the votes in an election.

Teller2

proper noun
  1. A tiny city in Nome Census Area, Alaska, United States, named after Henry M. Teller.

Synonyms & antonyms

nounA bank clerk who receives and pays out money.

Similar

nounSynonym of automated teller machine.

More synonyms by meaning

nounan official appointed to count the votes (especially in legislative assembly)

Similar
vote counter

nounan employee of a bank who receives and pays out money

Similar
cashierbank clerk
Broader

nounsomeone who tells a story

Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.

Origin

  1. Middle Englishtellere“one who counts or enumerates; one who recounts or relates; teller”
  2. Englishteller

From Middle English tellere (“one who counts or enumerates; one who recounts or relates; teller”), equivalent to tell (verb) + -er.

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Bulgarian разказвач, касиер
  • разказвач (razkazvač)person who tells stories
  • касиер (kasier)bank clerk who receives and pays out money
  • преброител (prebroitel)person who counts the votes in an election
Chinese Mandarin 出納員 /出纳员
  • 出納員 /出纳员 (chūnàyuán)bank clerk who receives and pays out money
Czech vypravěč
  • vypravěčperson who tells stories
Danish fortæller, kasserer
  • fortællerperson who tells stories
  • kassererbank clerk who receives and pays out money
  • bankkassererbank clerk who receives and pays out money
  • stemmetællerperson who counts the votes in an election
  • valgtilforordnetperson who counts the votes in an election
Dutch bankbediende
  • bankbediendebank clerk who receives and pays out money
Esperanto rakontisto, bankkasisto
  • rakontistoperson who tells stories
  • bankkasistobank clerk who receives and pays out money
  • balotnombristoperson who counts the votes in an election
Finnish tarinankertoja, pankkivirkailija
  • tarinankertojaperson who tells stories
  • pankkivirkailijabank clerk who receives and pays out money
  • ääntenlaskijaperson who counts the votes in an election
French diseur, diseuse
  • diseurperson who tells stories
  • diseuseperson who tells stories
  • conteurperson who tells stories
  • conteuseperson who tells stories
  • raconteurperson who tells stories
  • raconteuseperson who tells stories
  • caissierbank clerk who receives and pays out money
  • caissièrebank clerk who receives and pays out money
German Erzähler, Erzählerin
  • Erzählerperson who tells stories
  • Erzählerinperson who tells stories
  • Bankangestellterbank clerk who receives and pays out money
  • Bankangestelltebank clerk who receives and pays out money
  • Wahlhelferperson who counts the votes in an election
  • Wahlhelferinperson who counts the votes in an election
Greek ταμίας, ψηφολέκτης
  • ταμίας (tamías)bank clerk who receives and pays out money
  • ψηφολέκτης (psifoléktis)person who counts the votes in an election
  • ψηφολέκτρια (psifoléktria)person who counts the votes in an election
Indonesian pengisah, teller
  • pengisahperson who tells stories
  • tellerbank clerk who receives and pays out money
Irish airgeadóir (bainc)
  • airgeadóir (bainc)bank clerk who receives and pays out money
Italian cassiere
  • cassierebank clerk who receives and pays out money
Japanese 出納係
  • 出納係 (suitōkakari)bank clerk who receives and pays out money
Korean 출납계
  • 출납계 (chullapgye)bank clerk who receives and pays out money
Latin diribitor
  • diribitorperson who counts the votes in an election
Malay juruwang, pengira undi
  • juruwangbank clerk who receives and pays out money
  • pengira undiperson who counts the votes in an election
Māori kaitatau moni
  • kaitatau monibank clerk who receives and pays out money
Norwegian forteller
  • fortellerperson who tells stories
Polish opowiadacz, opowiadaczka
  • opowiadaczperson who tells stories
  • opowiadaczkaperson who tells stories
  • kasjerbank clerk who receives and pays out money
  • kasjerkabank clerk who receives and pays out money
Portuguese contador de histórias/estórias, narrador
  • contador de histórias/estóriasperson who tells stories
  • narradorperson who tells stories
  • caixabank clerk who receives and pays out money
  • escrutinadorperson who counts the votes in an election
Romanian povestitor, povestitoare
  • povestitorperson who tells stories
  • povestitoareperson who tells stories
  • naratorperson who tells stories
  • naratoareperson who tells stories
  • casierbank clerk who receives and pays out money
  • scrutinătorperson who counts the votes in an election
Russian расска́зчик, расска́зчица
  • расска́зчик (rasskázčik)person who tells stories
  • расска́зчица (rasskázčica)person who tells stories
  • касси́р (kassír)bank clerk who receives and pays out money
  • касси́рша (kassírša)bank clerk who receives and pays out money
  • счётчик (sčótčik)person who counts the votes in an election
  • счётчица (sčótčica)person who counts the votes in an election
Spanish cajero, cajera
  • cajerobank clerk who receives and pays out money
  • cajerabank clerk who receives and pays out money
Turkish anlatıcı, anlatan
  • anlatıcıperson who tells stories
  • anlatanperson who tells stories
  • veznedarbank clerk who receives and pays out money
  • kasiyerbank clerk who receives and pays out money
  • oy sayıcıperson who counts the votes in an election
Ukrainian каси́р
  • каси́р (kasýr)bank clerk who receives and pays out money
Welsh cyfrifwr
  • cyfrifwrperson who counts the votes in an election

Rhymes & wordplay

Rhymes with teller

All rhymes →

Anagrams

Cite this entry
APA

teller. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/teller

MLA

“teller.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/teller. Accessed November 2, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “teller,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/teller.

Source: teller on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.