transitive verb
1. : to number and set apart ; especially : to detail for special duty : count off : assign
told off a detail and put them to opening a trench — J.F.Dobie
men were told off for household duties — American Guide Series: Michigan
trains told off for the use of British soldiers — Robert Keable
told off to make a speech — A.P.Herbert
2. : to reprove severely : denounce , reprimand , scold
when she increases her nagging, I lose patience and tell her off quite brutally — Rex Ingamells
his growing disgust boils over, he tells off the boss — Hobe Morrison
in a mood to be told off, and they embraced most warmly the writers who scolded hardest — J.H.Jackson