telltales

Noun

telltale (plural telltales)

1. One who divulges private information with intent to hurt others.
   • Your husband is at hand; I heare his Trumpet, / We are not tell-tales, Madam; feare you not.c. 1596–1598 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Merchant of Venice”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward]...

   Synonyms:

   blabbermouth, gossip, rumormonger, squealer, talebearer, tattletale, carrytale, blab, blabtale, blabtongue

2. An indicator, such as a warning light, that serves to warn of a hazard or problem.
   • A railroad company, which has properly erected a “telltale,” or signal board, to give warning of the approach of a train to a bridge and which lights the place at night by an electric light, is not responsible for injury caused at night by the “telltale” to a brakeman who had been passing under it...1893, “Case No. 2: Phillips vs. The Railroad Co.”, in The Counsellor: The New York Law School Law Journal, page 63
3. (figuratively) Something that serves to reveal something else.
   • The telltale was the lipstick on his shirt collar.
4. A movable piece of ivory, lead, or other material, connected to the bellows of an organ, whose position indicates when the wind is exhausted.
5. A length of yarn or ribbon attached to a sail or shroud etc to indicate the direction of the flow of the air relative to the boat.
   • The sailmakers mistake can be an excellent way to lose a race as the telltale signals were disturbed and confusing.1997, Patrick M. Royce, Royce's Sailing Illustrated - Volume 2
6. A mechanical attachment to the steering wheel, which, in the absence of a tiller, shows the position of the helm.

See all 11 meanings of telltale