English

Noun

tell-all ‎(plural tell-alls)

1. A publication, usually a book or magazine article, which tells all, revealing everything, particularly what is normally withheld.
   • 2011, Star Jones, Satan's Sisters: A Novel Work of Fiction, page 23:

     Of all the people in the world to write a tell-all about The Lunch Club, it had to be Missy Adams?!

   • 2010, Zoe Fishman, Balancing Acts: A Novel, page 357:

     Surprise! I wrote a tell-all about each and every one of you!

   • 2009, Kennedy Shaw, Tour of Duty, page 308:

     Mikerra had been offered a seven-figure book deal for a tell-all chronicling her relationship with Senator McCaffrey, his death, and the project's ultimate demise.

   • 1998, Laurie Stone, Close to the Bone: Memoirs of Hurt, Rage, and Desire, page xi:

     At this point, we could all write a tell-all about our tabloid childhoods and contrive an autobiographical performance about the pleasures of humiliation.

Adjective

tell-all ‎(not comparable)

1. Telling all; revealing everything, particularly what is normally withheld.

   The statesman's tell-all memoirs were not published until long after death.

   Open source is a tell-all software development strategy.