Word.ws English Dictionary

hiss-and-tell

hiss-and-tell adjective: disclosing private information in a hostile manner.

Adjective

hiss-and-tell (not comparable)

  1. (idiomatic, informal) Disclosing private information in a hostile manner.
    • But Miller's tale is as notable for what it isn't as for what it is. It is not a hiss-and-tell attempt to settle scores and mold history like Donald Regan's For the Record, a spin-doctored account of his time as President Reagan's chief of staff.1989 April 23, Laura Green, “The Washington years: A positive view from inside”, in Chicago Sun-Times
    • What is clear from this hiss-and-tell diary is that Hoddle feels immune to any downward glances, any disapproving charge from his bosses at the FA.1998 August 12, Rob Hughes, “Spoiled Soccer Fraternity Sets Poor Example: Hoddle Hiss-and-Tell Tells a Tale of Greed”, in The New York Times

Origin of hiss-and-tell

Blend of hiss + kiss and tell.

Questions about hiss-and-tell

What does hiss-and-tell mean?
Hiss-and-tell means disclosing private information in a hostile manner.
What part of speech is hiss-and-tell?
Hiss-and-tell is an adjective.

Words near hiss-and-tell in the dictionary

  1. hispinin
  2. hispis
  3. hispoid
  4. hispoids
  5. hiss
  6. hiss-and-tell
  7. hissable
  8. Hissarlik
  9. hissed
  10. hisself
  11. hissen

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: hiss-and-tell (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

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