Ir con el cuento a alguien

/iɾ kon el ˈkwen·to a ˈal·ɣjen/

To go to someone with the story.

Frequency

ConversationVery common

JournalismCommon

LiteraryOccasional

AcademicRare

In English

to tell on someone; **to tell on someone**; **to snitch on someone**; **to tattle on someone**; **to go and tell someone**; **to grass on someone** (British informal); **to report someone**

Meaning

Ir con el cuento a alguien means to go and tell someone what another person has said or done, especially when doing so may cause trouble or get the other person into trouble.

Examples

Como vayas con el cuento a tu madre, te vas a enterar.

If you go and tell your mother, you'll be in trouble.

No vayas con el cuento al profesor.

Don't go and tell the teacher.

Seguro que ha ido con el cuento al jefe.

I'm sure he went and told the boss.

Le dije que no se lo contara a nadie, pero fue con el cuento a su hermano.

I told him not to tell anyone, but he went and told his brother.

Siempre está yendo con el cuento a los demás.

He's always telling on other people.

It often implies snitching, tattling or reporting someone to an authority or another interested person.

A very common construction is:

Ir con el cuento a alguien.

→ To go and tell someone / to snitch to someone.

Used when

tells another person what someone else has said
reports someone's behaviour to a third party
informs a parent, teacher, boss or authority about someone
reveals information that was supposed to remain private
tries to get another person into trouble by telling on them

Origin

The expression is based on the traditional meaning of cuento as a story or piece of information passed from one person to another.

The word eventually acquired a figurative sense associated with tales, gossip or information about other people's affairs.

Thus, ir con el cuento evokes the image of someone carrying a story or piece of information to another person.

Cultural note

The expression is particularly common in situations involving children, school, families and workplaces.

For example:

Como vayas con el cuento a mamá...

is something a parent or child might say when warning someone not to tell another person what has happened.

The third person does not have to be an authority, however. It can simply be someone who should not be told.

Did you know?

Spanish has several expressions involving cuento that have developed meanings connected with deception, gossip or information:

Ir con el cuento a alguien → tell on someone / snitch.
Tener más cuento que Calleja → be very full of excuses or stories.
Vivir del cuento → live off others / take advantage of a situation.
No me vengas con cuentos → don't give me excuses / don't give me that.
El cuento de nunca acabar → an endless story or problem.

In these expressions, cuento has moved far beyond its original meaning of a simple "story".

For English speakers

The Spanish construction is slightly different from English to tell on someone.

In Spanish:

ir con el cuento a alguien

literally focuses on going to the third person with the story.

The person being reported is often understood from context:

Fue con el cuento al jefe.

→ He went and told the boss about it.

or, if the context is clear:

He snitched on him to the boss.