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Synonyms

talebearer

American  
[teyl-bair-er] / ˈteɪlˌbɛər ər /

noun

  1. a person who spreads gossip, secrets, etc., that may cause trouble or harm.


Other Word Forms

Etymology

Origin of talebearer

First recorded in 1470–80; tale + bearer

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

See Examples For:

“A talebearer revealeth secrets,” says Proverbs in an early complaint, “but he that is of a faithful spirit concealeth the matter.”

From New York Times Feb. 2, 2019

Unpredictably clever, obscurely erudite, obstinately elusive about answering his own questions, Sloan could be the Comrade V. of novelists: the talebearer as dehumanized intellect.

From Time Magazine Archive

Its talebearer is gaunt, ghost-grey Dr. Hereward Carrington, director of the American Psychical Institute, an oldtime spook-hunter who likes to spend his vacations in haunted houses.

From Time Magazine Archive

Be no talebearer, nor utterer of falsehoods; be not talkative nor rashly censorious.

From The High Deeds of Finn and other Bardic Romances of Ancient Ireland by Stephen Reid

And whatever allowance may be made for exceptional situations, the instinct which brands the talebearer as mean is mainly wholesome.

From Five Young Men Messages of Yesterday for the Young Men of To-day by Charles Reynolds Brown

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