sources say
Anonymous tipsters indicate
Sources say is a journalistic attribution indicating information comes from unnamed informants rather than official statements or on-record interviews.
The phrase signals that reporters have verified something through confidential channels: Sources say the CEO will resign next week.
It can imply reliability through insider access, or serve as cover for speculation and rumor.
In casual use, it often appears ironically to mock vague attribution or lend false authority: Sources say you ate the last donut.
- reportedlyAccording to reports
- insidersThose with special access
- anonymousOf unknown origin
- leakedEscaped through opening
- whispersSpeaks very quietly
rumor · tipster · informant · off-the-record · background briefing · scoop · exclusive · breaking · alleged · claimed · murmured · confidential · unnamed · reliable · close · familiar · newsroom · journalist
- Attribution phrasesas per, based on, per, by, following
- journalismreporters, interview, editors, student editors, school paper
- attributionattributed to, cited, according to, per, via
- hedginghedging, hedge, hedges, hedge bet, qualifier
- evasionsno comment, dodge, deflection, hedging, equivocation
sources sayon the record
Openly stated, quotable
confirmed · went on record · signed statement · direct quote · verified
sources sayconfirmed
Established as accurate
verified · proven · documented · eyewitness account · incontrovertible
source, sources, sourced, sourcing, say, says, saying, sayings, unsaid