What does "tattle" mean?
A tattletale.
Tattle
/ˈtæt(ə)l/ noun, verb
noun, verb ·Common ·High school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: A tattletale.
- Grammar: tattle is listed as noun, verb.
- Nearest alternatives: accusation, babble, babble, babble out.
- Useful contrasts: conceal, concealment, confidant.
- Usage evidence: Eve swore Minnie to secrecy in hopes that she wouldn't tattle about what they'd done.
How to use "tattle"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "tattle" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "tattle" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "tattle" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "tattle" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "tattle" is acting as noun, verb in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "accusation" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
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Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "tattle", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 A tattletale. countable
"We agree on almost nothing, everything is a battle / Every secret from him is kept, his rep is being a tattle"
- 2 disclosing information or giving evidence about another wordnet
- 3 Often said of children: a piece of incriminating information or an account of wrongdoing that is said about another person. Canada, US, countable, derogatory
"Have a special small bucket called the tattle bucket. Make name cards for each child. […] When children have a tattle, instead of disrupting the class, they get their name card and put it in the tattle bucket. Look in the bucket at varying times during the day. If you see a name card, go to the child and say, "I see you have your name card in the tattle bucket. What would you like to tell me?" Many times, children will have forgotten all about the tattle."
- 4 Idle talk; gossip; (countable) an instance of such talk or gossip. uncountable
"Prattles and Tattles, / O'er Bottles, / Shall ſtill cheriſh my Fancy, / Better, and ſweeter, / And greater, / Than dull Tea with Nancy."
Verb
- 1 To chatter; to gossip. intransitive
"He were an excellent man that were made iuſt in the mid-way between him and Benedick, the one is too like an image and ſaies nothing, and the other too like my ladies eldeſt ſonne, euermore tatling."
- 2 divulge confidential information or secrets wordnet
- 3 Often said of children: to report incriminating information about another person, or a person's wrongdoing in an annoying fashion, usually to a person in a position of authority over the accused person; to tell on somebody. Canada, US, derogatory, intransitive
"There are some children who just like to talk about others. They are not reporting. They are tattling, telling one negative after another. Their goal is to get others in trouble. […] Children sometimes do not mean to tattle about someone else. They do it because they are having a problem with another child and just don't know any other way to handle the problem."
- 4 speak (about unimportant matters) rapidly and incessantly wordnet
- 5 To speak like a baby or young child; to babble, to prattle; to speak haltingly; to stutter. intransitive, obsolete
"But who can give to his leasing a conclusion, and pronounce it without tatelying, like as it were written tofore him, and that he can so blind the people that his leasing shall better be believed than the truth: that is the man."
Synonyms
All synonymsAntonyms
Example
"Eve swore Minnie to secrecy in hopes that she wouldn't tattle about what they'd done."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "tattle"?
Common synonyms include: accusation, babble, babble, babble out, back-fence gossip, be indiscreet.
How do you use "tattle" in a sentence?
Eve swore Minnie to secrecy in hopes that she wouldn't tattle about what they'd done.
How do you pronounce "tattle"?
Pronounced /ˈtæt(ə)l/.
Etymology
From Middle Dutch tatelen, tateren (“to babble, chatter”) (modern Dutch tatelen, tateren (“to talk, chatter”)), originally imitative. The word is cognate with Saterland Frisian tätelje (“to talk nonsense, babble”), Middle Low German tāteren, tadderen (“to babble, chatter”) (whence modern German Low German tatern (“to chatter”)), Low German tateln, täteln (“to cackle, gabble”). Compare also Middle English dadel, dadull (“tattling, gossip”), and its alteration twaddle.