To say to another. Also a small sign that gives something away — the same word for speaking and for being read.
Old English tellan (to count, to reckon, to relate), from Proto-Germanic *taljan; the same old word served counting and narrating, and a small sign that gives something away is still a kind of telling without speech.
Saying to another, or a small sign that gives something away. The same word serves speaking outright and being read without meaning to be.