tally

18 synonyms and 1 antonym for tally, grouped by meaning and by how common each one is.

Verb — To count or add up a total.

Synonyms

Everyday swaps

Common words most readers know — safe in any writing.

total score match agree check number add fit count run counting

Less common

Still standard English, but they carry more weight.

reckon correspond

Rare, literary or technical

Precise, but they will stand out — check the sense before using one.

gibe jibe reckoning numeration enumeration

Synonyms by Meaning

1. verb

To count or add up a total.

“The clerk tallied the votes late into the night.”

reckon total score gibe jibe match agree check number correspond add fit

2. verb

To match or agree with something else.

“Her story didn't tally with what the witnesses said.”

Opposites

disagree

3. noun

A running count or total.

“He kept a tally of every book he read that year.”

count reckoning numeration run counting enumeration

How to use tally

The word patterns that sound natural to a native speaker.

keep a tally tally up final tally

Etymology

A shortened form of "tallyho," though the counting sense comes from an older tradition of recording numbers with notches on a stick.

Full origin of tally →

Frequently asked questions

What does “tally” mean?

The word “tally” means to count or add up a total. In plain terms, to keep count of something, or a running total of that count.

How do you pronounce “tally”?

“Tally” is pronounced TA-lee (/ˈtæli/ in IPA).

How do you use “tally” in a sentence?

Here is “tally” used in a sentence: “Let's tally up how much we spent this month.”

What is another word for “tally”?

Words with a similar meaning to “tally” include number.

What part of speech is “tally”?

Depending on how it is used, “tally” can be a verb and a noun.

Is “tally” a common word?

“Tally” is an uncommon word in modern English.

How many meanings does “tally” have?

“Tally” has 3 distinct senses listed in this dictionary. The most common is: to count or add up a total.

What is the difference between tally and count?

Tally as a verb often implies keeping or updating a running total over time, such as tallying votes as they come in, while count can describe a single act of determining a quantity at any point. As a noun, a tally specifically refers to the running total itself, whereas a count is more general.

What does it mean when two things tally?

When two things tally, it means they match or agree with each other, such as when the receipts tally with the bank statement. This sense of tally is used to describe consistency between records, accounts, or figures.

Where does the phrase 'tally up' come from?

To tally up simply means to add together a set of figures to reach a total, and the phrase is common in everyday contexts like tallying up scores, votes, or expenses. It reflects the noun sense of tally as a running count or total.

People also searched

number run check total match add agree fit count score counting disagree

Nearby words

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