inform on/against

idiom

: to give information about the secret or criminal activity of (someone) to the police
Despite pressure from the police he refused to inform on the other conspirators.

Examples of inform on/against in a Sentence

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Another document, likely written by an officer, recorded acts of disloyalty by North Korean subordinates - a common practice in the totalitarian state, where citizens are encouraged to inform on each other. Nick Paton Walsh, CNN, 28 Jan. 2025 The government encouraging Americans to inform on other people or businesses will produce collateral damage. Stuart Anderson, Forbes, 20 Jan. 2025 It should be made prohibitively risky and time-consuming for the IRS national office to give lobbyists inside access, and the IRS should be prevented from paying external whistleblowers who inform on their fellow citizens. William Henck, Orlando Sentinel, 20 Dec. 2024 Some see in his critique of the Mao era parallels to the current situation in China: the arbitrary rule of an aging leader, harsh treatment of dissent, and government programs that encourage people to inform on one another. Ian Johnson, The New Yorker, 18 Aug. 2024 See all Example Sentences for inform on/against 

Dictionary Entries Near inform on/against

Cite this Entry

“Inform on/against.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/inform%20on%2Fagainst. Accessed 10 Feb. 2025.

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