talebearer

noun

ˈtāl-ˌber-ər How to pronounce talebearer (audio)
Definition of talebearernext
1
as in gossiper
a person who habitually reveals personal or sensational facts about others statehouse talebearers had long spread stories about the governor's extramarital affairs

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance
2
as in informant
a person who provides information about another's wrongdoing the teacher told him not to be such a talebearer, as she was quite capable of detecting student misbehavior on her own

Synonyms & Similar Words

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for talebearer
  1. gossiper
  2. informant
  3. gossip
  4. informer
  5. canary
Noun
  • Celebrity gossiper Rob Shuter reported that the two recently let go of a number of their staff.
    — Lizzie Lanuza, StyleCaster, 3 Sep. 2025
  • Her staff figured out how to get rid of the gossiper.
    — Ronda Racha Penrice, HollywoodReporter, 10 Aug. 2025
Definition of gossiper
Noun
  • Dupree said Davis was signed up as a confidential informant in March 2009.
    — Richard Winton, Los Angeles Times, 21 Aug. 2026
  • To pursue Combs’ alleged involvement, Davis was brought in as a confidential informant and flown to New York to meet a man who was supposed to deliver the payment.
    — Kevin Dolak, HollywoodReporter, 21 Aug. 2026
Definition of informant
Noun
  • Perhaps an excited friend lets on about a surprise party, or a co-worker dishes up some unseemly office gossip.
    — Tom Nichols, The Atlantic, 20 Aug. 2026
  • Dale Dickey, who plays the town gossip, was a no-brainer addition.
    — Matt Minton, Variety, 19 Aug. 2026
Definition of gossip
Noun
  • One of State Security’s main goals, as well as a central source of its strength, is turning civilians into informers.
    — Abraham Jiménez Enoa, The Dial, 19 May 2026
  • And so every regime invests in having student informers.
    — Anne Applebaum, The Atlantic, 23 Jan. 2026
Definition of informer
Noun
  • Interspersed throughout the myriad activations of Monterey Car Week is the most important facet for the collector community, and that’s the array of auctions that serve as either an optimistic barometer reading or an ailing canary in the coal mine.
    — Viju Mathew, Robb Report, 19 Aug. 2026
  • Kevin Tubbs grew up in a comfortable suburb outside Omaha, Nebraska, in a canary-yellow ranch house filled with dogs.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 10 July 2026
Definition of canary
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Browse Nearby Words

tale
talebearer
talebearers
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Talebearer.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/talebearer. Accessed 27 Aug. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of southpaw

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?

Commonly Misspelled Words
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

Ye Olde Nincompoop: Old-Fashioned Words for 'Stupid'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

Even More Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

The Words of the Week - Aug. 28

Why do we say 'break a leg'?
See More

Popular

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

Ye Olde Nincompoop: Old-Fashioned Words for 'Stupid'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
alt-684346df967d5
Add A Letter Quiz Pick the letter that goes in the same spot in fou...
See All