telling tales out of school
Betraying private information
Telling tales out of school is revealing information that was meant to stay private, especially gossip or secrets from within a group.
The phrase suggests betraying confidences—sharing what happened behind closed doors with outsiders: I don't want to tell tales out of school, but the board meeting was a disaster.
- rumorUnconfirmed circulating story
- spreading rumorsCirculating unverified talk
- hearsayUnverified secondhand information
- tattleReveal another's wrongdoing
- confidentialityQuality of protecting secrets
breach of trust · backlash · chatter · loose-lipped · kiss and tell · dirty laundry · privacy · embarrassment · grapevine · office gossip · scandal · innuendo · secrecy · behind closed doors · whispering · whisper campaign · loose lips · betrayal
telling tales out of schoolkeeping mum
Staying deliberately silent
discretion · saying nothing · keeping one's own counsel · keeping one's counsel · silence
telling tales out of schoolloyalty
Faithful commitment to another
keeping faith · omertà · keeping the faith · having someone's back · solidarity
telling, teller, tellers, outmost, outermost, school, schools, schooled, schooling