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

Movies bring audiences across the country the unique magic of sitting with their neighbors to see extraordinary stories told on the big screen at their local cinema. — Paul Gunsky, IndieWire, 25 Sep. 2026

Though the Astros were using a sophisticated system that included trash cans, the Cubs studied widely accessible video to find an existing tell on Kelly and relay that in real time. — Patrick Mooney, New York Times, 26 Aug. 2026

The stage adaptation followed two decades after Beresford first tried to get the story told on screen. — Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 25 Aug. 2026

But the numbers in that study are the profession telling on itself. — Gregg Mojica, Forbes.com, 17 Aug. 2026

Rhymes for tell on

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