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Glite Dictionary
to dish the dirt

to dish the dirt

1 8.5
To tell private or bad things about someone to other people
  • phrasal verb
  • Informal
translation icon : hablar mal
  • You can always count on her to dish the dirt about the latest celebrity scandals.

Examples

  • Sure and dish the dirt.

    Three on a Match (1932)

  • Listen, we're not dishing the dirt on your husband for the fun of it.

    Another Thin Man (1939)

  • You seemed to like what he had to say because he was dishing dirt on his former boss, Republican Ron Paul.

    Blog text (11)

  • This time some insiders are dishing the dirt that he knew all about the remarks in them and signed off on it as a marketing strategy.

    Blog text (33)

  • She was popular with foreign journalists, appearing frequently on Al Jazeera or the BBC to dish dirt on Sri Lankan politics.

    Academic text (2011)

  • At the party, everyone was dishing the dirt on their coworkers' embarrassing moments.

  • When they got together, the old friends couldn't resist dishing the dirt about their high school days.

Synonyms

to talk
vsto dish the dirt
  • Informal
435 6.1

Tell secrets or private facts because of pressure

usually refers to voluntary gossip rather than pressured disclosure
to spill
vsto dish the dirt
164 4.5

To reveal secret information, often by mistake

is more about social sharing rather than accidental disclosure
to betray
vsto dish the dirt
143 4.6

Tell someone's secret to other people

is less about betrayal and more about social spreading of secrets
to tell all
vsto dish the dirt
  • Literature
47 5.6

Say all private things about a person or event

is less extreme and often means sharing some secrets socially
to divulge
vsto dish the dirt
45 6.2

To tell secret or private information to people

is more informal and focused on social spreading of personal secrets
to gossip
vsto dish the dirt
  • Informal
27 1.3

To talk about other people's private lives and share rumors

is the same idea but emphasizes revealing personal secrets
to dish
vsto dish the dirt
  • UK
22 6.8

To talk about other people's private lives

is more focused on spreading gossip and personal secrets specifically
to spill the beans
vsto dish the dirt
  • Informal
18 6.0

Tell a secret by accident before others know

is similar but usually done intentionally as gossip
to dig up dirt
vsto dish the dirt
  • Informal
9 6.5

Look for and tell secret or bad things about someone to harm them

is broader gossip that may not aim to damage reputation
to tattle
vsto dish the dirt
  • Informal
8 7.0

Tell a person in charge about someone else's bad actions in a childish way

is similar but used more by adults as social gossip
to blow the lid off
vsto dish the dirt
  • Literature
8 6.8

Reveal secret information that shocks people

is usual gossip that spreads private details without dramatic exposure
to blabber
vsto dish the dirt
  • Informal
6 7.8

To talk too much and tell secrets carelessly

is purposeful gossip aimed at sharing personal secrets with others
to babble
vsto dish the dirt
3 5.3

Tell secret information carelessly to others

focuses more on deliberate gossip or spreading others' secrets
to tell tales out of school
vsto dish the dirt
  • Informal
1 8.4

To tell secrets about someone to other people

is similar but usually meant as casual social gossip
to blab out
vsto dish the dirt
  • Informal
1 7.9

To tell a secret carelessly or without meaning to

is similar but often implies deliberate sharing among peers
to air dirty linen
vsto dish the dirt
  • Informal
8.6

To talk about private, embarrassing problems in public

is similar but centers on sharing personal secrets as gossip
to air dirty laundry
vsto dish the dirt
  • Informal
8.4

To talk about private or embarrassing family matters in public

focuses more on casual gossip rather than deliberate public exposure
to wash dirty laundry in public
vsto dish the dirt
  • Informal
7.9

To talk about private, embarrassing things in front of other people

shares the same exposure but in informal gossiping contexts
to babble out
vsto dish the dirt
  • Informal
8.0

To tell secrets without thinking

is more about spreading gossip intentionally or socially

Antonyms

to keep quiet
90 2.5

To say nothing or not tell a secret

How Gossipy

to air dirty laundry
  • Informal
8.4
to dish the dirt
  • Informal
1 8.5
to gossip
  • Informal
27 1.3
to chat
  • Informal
269 1.0
to mention
∞ 1.0

Surface Forms

dish the dirt infinitive
dished the dirt past
dished the dirt past participle
dishing the dirt present participle
dishes the dirt third person singular

Morphology

dish + the + dirt

The MWE's meaning is directly derived from the constituents: 'dish' (to spread or give out, here gossip) combined with 'dirt' (negative information or rumors) yields the sense of spreading personal gossip. This is a straightforward verb + noun composition and follows common English patterns, so a B1 learner who knows both constituent meanings would likely infer the MWE's meaning.

Etymology

Dish the dirt comes from the image of someone serving secrets like food: dish means to put food on a plate and dirt means dirty or bad information. One popular story says people and writers began to 'dish' up others' private problems like a meal, so today it means 'to spread gossip or reveal personal secrets'.