diff --git a/pkg/pod/status.go b/pkg/pod/status.go
index 21988e5f51b..2716cb0fff3 100644
--- a/pkg/pod/status.go
+++ b/pkg/pod/status.go
@@ -784,6 +784,10 @@ func extractContainerFailureMessage(logger *zap.SugaredLogger, status corev1.Con
 			}
 		}
 		if term.ExitCode != 0 {
+			// Include the termination reason, if available to add clarity for causes such as external signals, e.g. OOM
+			if term.Reason != "" {
+				return fmt.Sprintf("%q exited with code %d: %s", status.Name, term.ExitCode, term.Reason)
+			}
 			return fmt.Sprintf("%q exited with code %d", status.Name, term.ExitCode)
 		}
 	}
diff --git a/pkg/pod/status_test.go b/pkg/pod/status_test.go
index 34a521a9eb9..08f89c7f319 100644
--- a/pkg/pod/status_test.go
+++ b/pkg/pod/status_test.go
@@ -1468,7 +1468,7 @@ func TestMakeTaskRunStatus(t *testing.T) {
 			}},
 		},
 		want: v1.TaskRunStatus{
-			Status: statusFailure(v1.TaskRunReasonFailed.String(), "\"step-one\" exited with code 137"),
+			Status: statusFailure(v1.TaskRunReasonFailed.String(), "\"step-one\" exited with code 137: OOMKilled"),
 			TaskRunStatusFields: v1.TaskRunStatusFields{
 				Steps: []v1.StepState{{
 					ContainerState: corev1.ContainerState{