What does snitchy mean?
Snitchy is an informal adjective describing someone who tells on other people or reveals information they were expected to keep confidential. It often implies that the person is petty, malicious, or eager to gain favour by reporting another’s behaviour. In British English, the word can also stand independently for petty or mean-spirited, as in a description of someone being snitchy over a minor disagreement. The term is typically used about children, classmates, colleagues, or family members, and it carries a clear critical or humorous tone rather than belonging to formal discussion. Although often treated as synonymous with tattling, snitchy can suggest a habitual or characteristically suspicious tendency to inform on others.
Inclined to tell on others or reveal information that should have been kept confidential.
"We cannot trust someone so snitchy with other people’s secrets."
Informal and usually negative; often implies pettiness or malice.
Petty, mean-spirited, or excessively fault-finding.
"She was being snitchy about a tiny mistake that nobody else considered important."
This sense is especially common in British English.
Snitchy carries two overlapping warnings: it can mean a tattler, or simply a person who is petty and difficult.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does snitchy come from?
The adjective was formed in the early 20th century from the noun snitch, meaning a person who informs on others, with the suffix -y. The further origin of snitch is uncertain; it may relate to earlier British and American uses involving informing or telling, but its precise development is not securely established. The family also includes the verb snitch and forms such as snitched and snitching, while snitchiness is the noun derived from the adjective.
Related word forms
How snitchy is actually used
Informal and usually disparaging. The sense involving telling on others is common in both British and American English, while the sense meaning petty or mean is especially associated with British English.
Easily confused with snitchy
A snitch is someone who tells on another person, whereas snitchy describes a person who has a tendency to do so.