tell on

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

Bob McKinley’s bio is still on Weatherford College’s website, even though he was told on Tuesday that he was being fired as the women’s basketball coach, ending a career at a school that started in 1977. —Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 7 Mar. 2026

The thief is not caught, and the story is told on a porch stoop to another woman. —Miami Herald Archives, Miami Herald, 27 Feb. 2026

Or a tell on the defensive risk of the Herro-Powell pairing? —Ira Winderman, Sun Sentinel, 25 Feb. 2026

Anyone who decries the death of media literacy over a glitter wedding dress on X is telling on themselves. —Madeline Hirsch, InStyle, 17 Feb. 2026

Rhymes for tell on

• anton
• argon
• axon
• baronne
• baryon
• baton
• boron
• buisson
• bygone
• capon
• cardon
• chiffon