tell it like it is
Proposed by a contributor, not yet supported by evidence.
Meaning · English
Speak honestly and directly, without sugarcoating
Nghĩa · Tiếng Việt
Nói một cách trung thực và trực tiếp, không che giấu
Machine-translated — suggest a fix
Literally: report facts as they are
Where it’s used:
Used
Widespread English
Examples
Straightforward and educational, I Don't Sound Like Nobody cuts the crap and lets one of the greats tell it like it is.
Switching effortlessly into promo interview automatic pilot mode, Lenny tells it like it is.
British National Corpus sentence via the MAGPIE corpus (CC BY 4.0, retrieved 2026-07-30)
Sources & notes
Listed in Wiktionary’s “English idioms” category (retrieved 2026-07-29); definition pending editorial review. Definition drafted by AI (@cf/meta/llama-3.3-70b-instruct-fp8-fast) and auto-approved by rule on 2026-07-31; pending editor spot-check.
Common questions
What does “tell it like it is” mean?
Speak honestly and directly, without sugarcoating Literally: report facts as they are
Is “tell it like it is” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.