Phrase · B2 · Informal · common in conversation
tell someone off
Speak angrily or sternly to someone because they have done something wrong.
izgrditi nekoga; očitati nekome bukvicu; prekoriti nekoga
Memory scene
The mistake switches a warning light on; an authority figure points at it and delivers a short, sharp correction.
How it sounds
tel sum-wun OFF
Stress off; tell is irregular: tell–told–told.
Build the sentence
tell + person + off + for + noun or -ing
Use it
My coach told me off for arriving without the safety equipment.
For introduces the behavior that caused the angry correction.
If the interns keep sharing passwords, someone needs to tell them off.
A pronoun must appear between tell and off.
Watch out
Tell off is separable, and the person always comes between the verb and particle: tell her off, not tell off her. In US English, tell someone off can also suggest confronting them forcefully, sometimes beyond a simple correction.
Nearby language
The closest single verb; it is direct but may sound slightly old-fashioned in some adult contexts.
Much harsher and often prolonged or humiliating rather than a short correction.
Formal and official, usually delivered by someone with recognized authority.
Make it yours
Trener se naljutio jer ste ponovo došli bez obavezne zaštitne opreme.