rat (on)

1
as in to split (on)
to give information (as to the authorities) about another's improper or unlawful activities how much—or how little—did the fuzz have to pay you to rat on us?

Synonyms & Similar Words

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2
as in to desert
to leave (a cause or party) often in order to take up another many party operatives ratted on the senator's candidacy once her poll numbers started to slip

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for rat (on)
Verb
  • In Boyle Heights, L.A. Mayor Karen Bass visited Mariachi Plaza earlier this week and found the area shockingly deserted.
    Salvador Hernandez, Los Angeles Times, 19 June 2025
  • The company’s hits hugely outweigh its misses—and there seems no reason to assume the combination of engineering expertise and sheer persistence that has made James Dyson a billionaire is about to desert the brand any time soon.
    Simon Lucas, Wired News, 13 June 2025
Verb
  • Here to talk more about this is Tax Notes investigations editor Lauren Loricchio.
    Tax Notes Staff, Forbes.com, 1 July 2025
  • Through it all, Thune kept talking to Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, a moderate Mainer who blanched at the bill’s Medicaid cuts.
    Burgess Everett, semafor.com, 1 July 2025
Verb
  • New York Senator Julia Salazar, who was among the electeds observing hearings Thursday called for New Yorkers to reject what is happening inside lower Manhattan immigration courts.
    Emma Seiwell, New York Daily News, 5 July 2025
  • Last summer, West Ham had a verbal offer of £15m rejected by Al Ittihad for midfielder N’Golo Kante, then 33.
    Mark Carey, New York Times, 4 July 2025
Verb
  • Some of his friends are aware, and Mayer spoke with F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali to inform him of the campaign only the day prior, out of courtesy.
    Madeline Coleman, New York Times, 5 July 2025
  • The camp previously sent an email to families informing them of the situation, which was later shared by KEYE.
    David Chiu, People.com, 4 July 2025
Verb
  • Never desert a blaze: Avoid abandoning any fire without supervision.
    CA Weather Bot, Sacbee.com, 1 July 2025
  • Retired repos add risk: When maintainers abandon a namespace, attackers can adopt it and push trojan updates.
    Syed Ahmed, Forbes.com, 1 July 2025
Verb
  • According to media reports last week, the Defense Department’s rationale for cutting off this data has to do with cybersecurity concerns stemming from the way the data is transmitted between agencies.
    Andrew Freedman, CNN Money, 30 June 2025
  • In 2010, China cut off rare earth exports to Japan during a maritime dispute, a clear warning shot the U.S. observed but brushed off.
    Dewardric L. McNeal, CNBC, 29 June 2025
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.

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Cite this Entry

“Rat (on).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/rat%20%28on%29. Accessed 13 Jul. 2025.

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