inform on/against

idiom

: to give information about the secret or criminal activity of (someone) to the police
Despite pressure from the police he refused to inform on the other conspirators.

Examples of inform on/against in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web Since the early days of the protests, security forces have positioned themselves inside hospitals to identify and arrest protesters, and have pressured medical personnel to inform on them. Babak Dehghanpisheh, Washington Post, 26 Oct. 2022 Household evictions have become a common punishment if a family member runs away from mandatory military service or if a family refuses to inform on relatives who had done so. Stefanie Le, Washington Post, 25 Jan. 2023 North Korea has resorted to urging its people to inform on others who watch K-dramas, according to documents smuggled out by Daily NK. New York Times, 10 June 2021 Among the many Soviet-era relics housed in the museum are wiretap recordings, propaganda asking citizens to inform on each other, and testimonies from dozens of former Stasi agents who were forced to spy for the institution. Laura Parker, Forbes, 18 May 2022 The bigger twist isn’t Barry’s offer to take Fuches’s place and cooperate with the FBI, agreeing to inform on people he’s worked with in exchange for witness protection. Lili Loofbourow, Washington Post, 1 May 2023 At the University of Georgia, a graduate student became the prey of an intelligence officer in China who pressured him over the phone to become a spy and inform on fellow dissidents in America. Haruka Sakaguchi, ProPublica, 30 Nov. 2021 Security services also recruited two other people to inform on Mr. Regeni, Italian officials say: his housemate, a lawyer called Mohammed el-Sayed; and a Egyptian friend of Mr. Regeni’s at Cambridge University. Margherita Stancati, WSJ, 14 Dec. 2020 In an effort to inform on better pandemic preparedness, Fauci and two colleagues – Drs. Miriam Fauzia, USA TODAY, 13 Nov. 2020 See More

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

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Cite this Entry

“Inform on/against.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/inform%20on%2Fagainst. Accessed 29 Sep. 2023.

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