1577-Caller-Alex-Telltale by A Way with Words published on 2021-09-12T19:33:47Z Ten-year-old Alex, from Oceanside, California, wonders if a cat's flicking tail inspired the expression telltale sign, meaning "an indicator." The word is telltale, not its soundalike telltail. About 400 years ago, a telltale was a "tattler." Today a telltale on a sailboat is "a piece of ribbon or fabric that indicates a change in the wind," and Australians use the word telltale to denote "the rear indicator light on a motor vehicle." One memorable use of the term is in the title of Edgar Allan Poe chilling story, "The Tell-Tale Heart." http://waywordradio.org