Tattle for Dummies

Tattle is a word that we often hear in school, especially when we're talking about how we communicate with each other. It's kind of like when we tell someone about something that someone else did that we think they shouldn't have done. Let's pretend we're in the playground and we see two friends, Mark and Sarah, playing a game together. If Mark accidentally knocks down Sarah's tower of blocks and she tells the teacher, we can say that she tattled on him. It's a way of letting someone in charge know that something happened and someone might need help or something needs to be fixed.

But wait, there's another meaning to the word "tattle" that we often hear when we talk about telling on someone. Sometimes we might hear people say that someone is a tattletale, and that's not always a nice thing. It means that someone tells on others a lot, even about really small things that might not really matter. It's kind of like if Sarah keeps telling the teacher every time Mark makes a tiny mistake or does something she doesn't like. Being a tattletale means that you're constantly telling on others, which can sometimes be annoying to others.

So, to sum it all up, "tattle" means to tell someone about something that someone else did that we think they shouldn't have done. It can also mean when someone tells on others a lot, even about really small things. It's important to remember that it's good to let someone know if something wrong is happening or if someone needs help, but we should also try not to be tattletales and tell on others for every little thing.