tell on

phrasal verb

told on; telling on; tells on
1
informal : to tell someone in authority about the bad behavior or actions of (someone else)
Please don't tell on me.
2
: to have a noticeable effect on (someone or something)
The stress began to tell on her face/health.

Examples of tell on in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web Her videos have become the latest long-form story told on social media that has resonated with people online. Daysia Tolentino, NBC News, 22 Feb. 2024 Unless the director steps up like this May 14, 2021 King and Malcolm X’s stories are told on parallel tracks. Greg Braxton, Los Angeles Times, 22 Feb. 2024 And, standing behind the red-and-white front desk, Iran Chima at first told the small woman the exact same thing she had been told on the phone. Ariane Lange, Sacramento Bee, 2 Feb. 2024 Vinny gets called out for being a big baby and running to tell on Angelina for gossiping about Pauly D. He and Angelina become mortal enemies. Miami Staff, Miami Herald, 30 Jan. 2024 Time will tell on both counts in a season that includes a whopping 10 new offensive coordinators among the 14 SEC teams. John Zenor, Dallas News, 30 Aug. 2023 The employee said they were told on a group meeting that the layoffs were not related to performance, but a broader company reorganization. Byjessica Mathews, Fortune, 9 Nov. 2023 He was taken aback when told on the stand that he was repeatedly cited as an outside expert in former Trump Organization controller Jeffrey McConney's valuation spreadsheets. Michael R. Sisakand Jennifer Peltz The Associated Press, Arkansas Online, 18 Oct. 2023 Some said they were given no prior information on how much they would be paid hourly, although others said they were told on their first day that they would be paid $19 an hour. Suhauna Hussain, Los Angeles Times, 23 Oct. 2023

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'tell on.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Dictionary Entries Near tell on

Cite this Entry

“Tell on.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/tell%20on. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

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