talladj.n.adv.

Brit.

/tɔːl/, U.S.

/tɔl/,

/tɑl/

Forms: Also Middle English–1600s tal, Middle English–1500s talle, 1500s tawl(l)e.

Etymology: Of obscure history. Most probably representing (with loss of prefix) Old English ge-tæl (plural ge-tale) swift, prompt = Old High German gizal, Middle High German gezal quick. Compare Gothic untals unaccommodating, uncompliant, disobedient, Old Northumbrian untal evil, improper. For the phonology, compare small < Old English smæl.The sense-development is remarkable, but is paralleled more or less by that of other adjectives expressing estimation, as buxom , canny , clean , clever , cunning , deft , elegant , handsome , pretty , proper ; German klein , as compared with English clean , presents the antithesis to modern tall as compared with tall in early Middle English. It has been conjectured that in the sense ‘high of stature’ it is a different word, adopted < Welsh tal in same sense; but the latter is, according to Prof. Rhŷs, merely a 16th cent. borrowing of the English word (in Owen Pughe's Dictionary erroneously mixed up with the genuine Welsh noun tal end, brow, forehead, with which it has no possible connection). The 15th cent. instance of the adjective cited by Pughe is probably from sense A. 2 or A. 3 below.

A. adj. (and n.)

I. Senses relating to speed and facility.

†1. Quick, prompt, ready, active. Obsolete. rare.But the sense in both quots. is doubtful; in quot. c1374, tall has been taken by some as = ‘meek, docile’; quot. 1542 may belong to sense A. 2.

ΘΚΠ

the world > action or operation > manner of action > rapidity or speed of action or operation > [adjective] > prompt to act

radeOE

yevereOE

snellOE

ratheOE

spacka1200

quickc1300

eagerc1325

readyc1330

tallc1374

smartc1380

desirousc1386

rifec1390

promptc1425

speedy?1504

nimblea1547

present1548

go-ahead1825

the world > action or operation > manner of action > rapidity or speed of action or operation > [adjective] > speedy or prompt (of service or attention)

rathest?1440

tall1542

snappy1977

c1000 Ags. Ps. lvi. 5 Wæron hyra tungan getale teonan gehwylcre.]

c1374 G. Chaucer Compl. Mars 38 (Harl. 7333) Sche [Venus] made him [Mars] at hir lust [v.r. list] so humble & talle [v.rr. tal, tall; Fairf. MS. humble and calle; Tan. MS. humble in alle].

1530 [see sense A. 4].

1542 N. Udall tr. Erasmus Apophthegmes f. 51 For lesse money..myght I bye a bondeman, that should dooe me tall & hable seruice.

1590 [see sense A. 4]. 1598 [see sense A. 4]. 1600¹ [see sense A. 4].

†2.

a. Meet, becoming, seemly, proper, decent. Obsolete.[Cf. a1375 –c1440 at tally adv. 1.]

ΘΚΠ

society > morality > dueness or propriety > [adjective]

goodOE

proper?c1225

felea1250

featc1325

seeming1338

rightful1340

thriftyc1386

sittingc1390

duea1393

truea1398

goodly1398

convenienta1400

wella1400

seemc1400

likelyc1425

fitc1440

tallc1440

befalling1542

fittinga1616

the world > relative properties > order > agreement, harmony, or congruity > suitability or appropriateness > [adjective] > fitting or proper

methelyeOE

ylikeeOE

fairOE

i-meteOE

rightOE

becomelyc1175

proper?c1225

featc1325

conablea1340

rightful1340

worthyc1350

pursuanda1375

covenable1382

dignec1385

convenablec1386

thriftyc1386

sittingc1390

comenablea1400

gainlya1400

meeta1400

wortha1400

convenientc1400

meetlya1425

suinga1425

fitc1440

tallc1440

worthyc1450

good1477

dueful?a1527

beseeminga1530

fitting1535

straighta1538

decent1539

answerable1542

becoming1565

condecent1575

becomed1599

respective1605

befittinga1612

comely1617

decorous1664

shape-like1672

beseemly1737

farrantly?1748

fitly1840

in order1850

c1440 Promptorium Parvulorum 486/1 Tal, or semely, decens, elegans.

c1540 (?a1400) Destr. Troy 3098 Ho tentit not in tempull to no tall prayers, Ne no melody of mouthe made at þe tyme.

b. Comely, goodly, fair, handsome; elegant, fine. Cf. proper adj. 7. Obsolete.

ΘΚΠ

the mind > attention and judgement > beauty > pleasing appearance > [adjective] > of fine or dignified appearance > of man

tallc1450

c1450 Cov. Myst. xxiii. (1841) 215 A fayre ȝonge qwene..Bothe ffresche and gay upon to loke, And a talle man with her dothe melle.

1451 Paston Lett. I. 224 On of the tallest younge men of this parysch lyth syke.

1530 J. Palsgrave Lesclarcissement 327/1 Talle..bel, as bel home.

c1592 C. Marlowe Jew of Malta iv. iv That such a base slave as he should be saluted by such a tall man as I am, from such a beautiful dame as you.

1656 H. More Enthusiasmus Triumphatus 31 He was a tal proper man..but of a very pale wasted melancholy countenance.

†3. Good at arms; stout or strong in combat; doughty, brave, bold, valiant. Cf. pretty adj. 2a. Obsolete.

ΘΚΠ

the mind > emotion > courage > valour > warlike valour > [adjective]

proudc1275

steepc1275

wightc1275

sturdy1297

stoutc1325

valiantc1330

stern1390

martialc1425

pertc1450

stalwartc1480

talla1529

handsome1665

a1529 J. Skelton Magnyfycence (?1530) sig. Eii^v Cou. Ab. I waraunt you I wyll not go away. Cra. Con. By saynt mary he is a tawle man Clo. Col. Ye and do ryght good seruyce he can.

a1529 J. Skelton Poems against Garnesche in Poet Wks. (1843) I. 116 Syr Frollo de Franko was neuer halfe so talle.

c1540 (?a1400) Destr. Troy 8574 Mageron..macchet with Achilles, Wold haue takon the talle kyng, & to toun led.

1548 Hall's Vnion: Henry VI f. clix This capitayn [sc. Jack Cade]..assembled together a great company of talle personages.

a1556 N. Udall Ralph Roister Doister (?1566) iv. viii. sig. H.j Now sirs, quite our selues like tall men and hardie.

?1577 J. Northbrooke Spiritus est Vicarius Christi: Treat. Dicing To Rdr. sig. A.iiij^v If he can kil a man,..he is called a tall man, and a valiant man of his hands.

1592 R. Greene Thirde Pt. Conny-catching sig. C3 He that had done this tall exploit, in a place so open.

1598 J. Dickenson Greene in Conceipt 37 With hir tongue shee was as tall a warriouresse as any of hir sexe.

a1604 M. Hanmer Chron. Ireland 126 in J. Ware Two Hist. Ireland (1633) Both sides lost many a tall man.

1622 Ess. Valour in T. Overbury et al. His Wife (11th impr.) sig. Q6^v It maketh a little fellow to be called a Tall man.

1641 W. Prynne Antipathie 16 He like a tall fellow, thereupon interdicted the King, with the whole Realme.

1670 J. Milton Hist. Brit. ii. 65 Telling the tall Champions as a great encouragement, that with the Britans it was usual for Woemen to be thir Leaders.

1820 W. Irving John Bull in Sketch Bk. vi. 26 The old fellow's spirit is as tall and vain-glorious as ever.

1825 W. Scott Betrothed i, in Tales Crusaders I. 6 Beloved among the ‘Tall men’, or Champions of Wales.

†4. Phrase tall of (his) hand(s): sometimes, (cf. sense A. 1) Ready, active, deft, skilful with (his) hands; dexterous, handy; sometimes, (cf. sense A. 3) Stout of arm, formidable with weapons. So tall of tongue, stout of speech or argument. Obsolete.

ΘΚΠ

the world > action or operation > manner of action > vigour or energy > [adjective]

sprindeOE

livelyOE

kaskc1300

wightc1300

courageousc1386

wighty14..

wieldya1413

ablec1440

tall of hand1530

sappy1558

energical1565

energetical1585

greenya1586

stout1600

strenuous1602

forceful?1624

actuous1626

vigorous1638

vivid1638

high-spirited1653

hearty1665

actuose1677

living1699

full-blooded1707

executive1708

rugged1731

sousing1735

energic1740

bouncing1743

two-fisted1774

energetic1782

zestful1797

rollicking1801

through-ganging1814

throughgoing1814

slashing1828

high-powered1829

high pressure1834

rip-roaring1834

red-blooded1836

ripsnorting1846

zesty1853

dynamic1856

throbbing1864

goey1875

torpedoic1893

kinky1903

zippy1903

go-at-it1904

punchy1907

up-and-at-'em1909

driving1916

vibranta1929

kinetic1931

zinging1931

high-octane1936

zingy1938

slam-bang1939

balls-to-the-wall1967

balls-out1968

ass-kicking1977

hi-octane1977

the mind > attention and judgement > testing > debate, disputation, argument > putting forward for discussion > [adjective] > strong in argument

tall of tongue1530

the world > life > the body > bodily constitution > bodily strength > [adjective] > strong (of specific part of body) > of arm or hand

arm-strongOE

tall of (his) hand(s)1530

strong-armed1600

strong arm1886

1530 J. Palsgrave Lesclarcissement 784/1 He is a tall man of his handes,..cest ung habille homme de ses mains.

1590 R. Harvey Plaine Percevall Ded. sig. A3 They were neuer tall fellows of their hands that were such hacksters in the street.

1598 J. Florio Worlde of Wordes Manesco, readie, nimble, or quicke-handed..a tall man of his hands.

1600 P. Holland tr. Livy Rom. Hist. ii. xxxiii. 65 A Noble yoong gentleman, right politicke of advise, active besides, and tall of his hands [L. promptus manu].

1600 P. Holland tr. Livy Rom. Hist. iii. lxx. 136 Agrippa being a tall man of his handes [L. viribus ferox] and young withall,..caught the ensignes from the ensigne-bearers, advanced them forward his owne selfe.

1600 P. Holland tr. Livy Rom. Hist. xxi. xl. 415 Stout in heart, and tall of hand [L. vigens corpore].

1607 J. Marston What you Will Induct. Goe stand to it; shew thyselfe a tall man of thy tongue.

1632 P. Holland tr. Xenophon Cyrupædia 46 Swift I am not of foot, nor yet a tall man of my hands.

†5. Big, large, bulky. Obsolete. rare.

ΘΚΠ

the world > space > extension in space > measurable spatial extent > largeness > [adjective]

unlittleeOE

mickleeOE

greateOE

mucha1154

mainc1275

boldc1300

fadec1330

largec1392

tallc1430

big1444

masterfula1450

grand1452

largy1558

fine1590

bonnya1600

large-sized1628

roomly1682

lumping?1706

maun1743

strapping1827

barn door1829

serious1843

jumboesque1893

jumbo1897

economy-sized1930

L1942

jumbo-size1949

economy size1950

c1430 J. Lydgate Minor Poems 200 This fair floure of woman~heed Hath too pappys also smalle, Bolsteryd out of lenghth and breed, Lyche a large campyng balle; There is no bagpipe halff so talle,..Whan they been full of wynde at alle.

II. Senses relating to height, and similar uses.

(a) Of a person: high of stature; of more than average height. Usually appreciative. Also of animals, as a giraffe, stag, or the like. (Cf. elegant adj. 3b = tall of stature.)

ΘΚΠ

the world > life > the body > bodily height > tallness > [adjective]

higheOE

longeOE

elegant1516

tall1530

procere1542

tallish1748

towering1756

sesquipedalian1857

1530 J. Palsgrave Lesclarcissement 327/1 Talle or hye..hault.

1538 T. Elyot Dict. Procerus, longe, talle.

1552 R. Huloet Abcedarium Anglico Latinum Talle or verye hyghe in personage aboue other.

1599 R. Fitch in R. Hakluyt Princ. Navigations (new ed.) II. i. 256 The men are tall and slender.

1697 J. Dryden tr. Virgil Pastorals vii, in tr. Virgil Wks. 33 Fair Galathea,..Tall as a Poplar, taper as the Bole.

1719 E. Young Paraphr. Job in Wks. (1757) I. 215 Will the tall Reem..Low at the crib, and ask an alms of thee?

1796 H. Hunter tr. J.-H. B. de Saint-Pierre Stud. Nature (1799) I. 398 Tall as giants, hairy like bears.

1858 T. Carlyle Hist. Friedrich II of Prussia I. v. v. 579 One Hohmann, a born Prussian, was so tall, you could not..touch his bare crown with your hand.

1861 R. T. Hulme tr. C. H. Moquin-Tandon Elements Med. Zool. i. ii. 14 A man..is called tall when he is above 5.754 feet in height.

1885 J. Ruskin Præterita I. vii. 210 A tall, handsome, and very finely made girl.

(b) In proverbial phrase tall, dark, and handsome, denoting a type of attractive man (see also quot. 1965).

ΘΚΠ

the mind > attention and judgement > attractiveness > [adjective] > sexually attractive > of a man

tall, dark, and handsome1906

Valentino1934

buff1982

1906 R. E. Knowles Undertow xi. 135 He was tall—and dark—and handsome.

1940 Chatelaine Dec. 55/3 One Squadron Leader tells of filling an ‘order’ for ‘three tall, dark and handsomes to go dancing’.

1958 M. Stewart Nine Coaches Waiting vii. 93 Tall, dark and handsome—the romantic cliché repeated itself in my head.

1965 T. Wolfe Kandy-kolored Tangerine-flake Streamline Baby (1966) ix. 178 It was Cary Grant that Mae West was talking about when she launched the phrase ‘tall, dark and handsome’ in ‘She Done Him Wrong’ (1933).

1978 ‘H. Carmichael’ Life Cycle v. 64 If she felt like leaning on his shoulder it was certainly not because he was tall, dark and handsome.

b. Having a specified or relative height; measuring in stature (so much): without implication of great height. (Cf. big adj. and adv., broad adj. and n.¹, high adj. and n.², etc.)

ΚΠ

1598 W. Shakespeare Love's Labour's Lost iv. i. 46 Clow. Which is the greatest Ladie, the highest? Quee. The thickest, and the tallest .

1685 R. Baxter Paraphr. New Test. Matt. vi. 27 All your care cannot make you any taller of stature.

1732 J. Macky Mem., Charac. (ed. 2) 47 [Marquis of Hartington was] taller than a middle Stature.

1744 S. Fielding Adventures David Simple ii. iii If a Man could make himself happy by imagining himself six Foot tall, tho' he was but three.

1845 G. P. R. James Arrah Neil I. ii. 19 A good deal taller than his companion.

1853 Visct. S. de Redcliffe in S. Lane-Poole Life Ld. S. de Redcliffe (1890) II. 242 He is..6 ft. 3 in. tall.

1910 N.E.D. at Tall Mod. How tall are you? He is a little taller than his brother, but both are dwarfs.

c. absol. as n. nonce-use.

ΚΠ

1903 M. Pemberton Dr. Xavier i They want ‘talls’ for the first row and she's just the height.

a. Of things, as ships (spec. square-riggers), trees, mountains: High, lofty; esp. of things high in proportion to their width, as tall chimney, column, house, mast, spire.

ΘΚΠ

the world > space > extension in space > measurable spatial extent > vertical extent > [adjective] > great or considerable

higheOE

steepOE

heaven-highOE

highlyOE

brentc1400

hightc1480

hichty1513

procere1542

tall1548

spiringa1552

towereda1552

tower-like1552

upstretched1563

airy1565

excelse1569

haughty1570

topless1589

lofty1590

procerous1599

kiss-sky1603

skyish1604

topful?1611

aspiringc1620

sky-high1622

hiddy1632

tiptoed1632

sublime1635

towering1638

soaring1687

mountain high1693

clamberinga1717

skied1730

towery1731

pyramidic1740

skyey1750

skyward1792

skyscraping1797

exulting1798

high-reaching1827

steepling1892

high-rise1964

hi1972

society > travel > travel by water > vessel, ship, or boat > vessel propelled by sail > [adjective] > rigged > in specific ways

lateen1540

high-riggeda1547

tall1548

well-rigged1577

under-sailed1599

over-rigged1627

schooner-rigged1769

sloop-rigged1769

ketch-rigged1775

spritsail1791

brig-rigged1796

square-rigged1802

ship-rigged1803

taunt-rigged1825

Bermudian-rigged1846

Bermudian1847

maphrodite1849

bark-rigged1858

butter-rigged1881

jackass rigged1883

1548 Hall's Vnion: Henry IV f. xxxii^v Talle shippes furnished with vitayles municions and all thynges necessary.

1562 W. Turner 2nd Pt. Herball f. 6 There are two kyndes of ashes [trees], of y^e whiche the one is verye high and tawlle.

1582 M. Phillips in Hakl. Voy. (1589) 579 Two good tall ships of warre.

1615 G. Sandys Relation of Journey 220 To be imbargued in two tall Ships, and a great Gallion.

1655 T. Stanley Hist. Philos. I. iii. 73 Above the tallest hill or wood.

1702 N. Rowe Tamerlane i. i Yon tall Mountains That seem to reach the Clouds.

1715 A. Pope tr. Homer Iliad I. iii. 66 When thy tall Ships triumphant stem'd the Tide.

1718 A. Pope tr. Homer Iliad IV. xiii. 493 The Mountain Oak, or Poplar tall, Or Pine, fit Mast for some great Admiral.

1725 E. Fenton in A. Pope et al. tr. Homer Odyssey I. iv. 694 From his tall ship the King of men descends.

1785 W. Cowper Task i. 450 Upon the ship's tall side he stands, possess'd With visions prompted by intense desire.

1853 G. P. R. James Agnes Sorel I. i. 5 There was a small, square room..in the turret of a tall house in the city of Paris.

1856 E. K. Kane Arctic Explor. I. xviii. 222 Its tallest summit near the water at thirteen hundred [feet].

1867 W. H. Smyth & E. Belcher Sailor's Word-bk. 674 Tall ship, a phrase among the early voyagers for square-rigged vessels having topmasts.

1902 J. Masefield Salt-water Ballads 59 All I ask is a tall ship and a star to steer her by.

1908 E. Fowler Between Trent & Ancholme 18 Where..the Fuchsias grow tall, up to the eaves.

1916 J. Joyce Portrait of Artist v. 298 The spell of arms and voices; the white arms of roads..and the black arms of tall ships that stand against the moon.

1975 Times 4 July 4/8 The Admiralty Court yesterday granted..an order that the tall ship, Regina Maris, be appraised and sold by the Admiralty marshal to pay a debt... The 137ft-long ship..competed in last year's Tall Ships Race.

b. Of more than average length measured from bottom to top, as a tall copy of a book, a tall folio. tall hat, a silk hat with high cylindrical crown.

ΚΠ

1608 E. Topsell Hist. Serpents 217 Very like a small and vulgar Lyzard, except..theyr legges taller, and their tayle longer.

1623 W. Shakespeare & J. Fletcher Henry VIII i. iii. 30 The faith they haue in Tennis and tall Stockings, Short blistred Breeches, and those types of Trauell.

a1704 T. Brown Lett. from Dead (new ed.) in Wks. (1707) II. ii. 4 I..was to Write Bills as tall as the Monument.

17.. John o' Hazelgreen v, in F. J. Child Eng. & Sc. Pop. Ballads (1894) V. ix. 163 Wi arms tall, and fingers small—He's comely to be seen.

1807 R. Southey Lett. from Eng. I. xxi. 237 The size of the margin is of great importance. I could not conceive what was meant by a tall copy, till this was explained to me. If the leaves of an old book have never been cut smooth, its value is greatly enhanced.

1819 W. Scott Let. 20 July (1933) V. 420 A second edition of Walter Scott, a tall copy, as collectors say, and bound in Turkey leather.

1847 L. Hunt Men, Women, & Bks. II. vi. 78 The charms of vellums, tall copies, and blind tooling.

1890 ‘Ouida’ Syrlin xiv They would go to Eton and wear ridiculous jackets and tall hats.

c. Applied distinctively to species or varieties of plants which grow higher than other species. Cf. tall-grass adj. at Compounds 2 below. tall red-top n. a tall reddish grass, Triodia cuprea.

ΘΚΠ

the world > plants > appearance of plant > defined by size or stature > [adjective] > of particular size or stature

littleeOE

lessOE

lesser?a1425

dwarf1548

stubby1572

least1597

pumil1776

tall1789

1789 Ann. Agric. 12 441 I was surprized to see no tall oat grass there, the best and most useful of the grasses which meadows can be laid down with.

1830 J. Baxter Libr. Agric. & Hort. Knowl. 247 Tall oat-like soft-grass, Holcus avenaceus.

1835 W. J. Hooker Brit. Flora (ed. 3) 50 Festuca elatior, Tall Fescue grass.

1850 C. Kingsley Alton Locke I. xiv. 229 The tender green of the tall rape, a plant till then unknown to me.

1861 A. Pratt Flowering Plants & Ferns Great Brit. IV. 79 Tall Broom-rape..growing on the roots of the Great Knapweed.

1898 N. L. Britton & A. Brown Illustr. Flora Northern U.S. III. Index 574/4 Moss,..Tall, Sedum acre.

1979 United States 1980–1 (Penguin Travel Guides) 763 Now scarcely 1% of the original 400,000 square miles of tallgrass remain.

d. absol. as n.

ΘΚΠ

the world > plants > appearance of plant > defined by size or stature > [noun] > small or large plant

dwarf1593

plantleta1711

subdwarf1902

tall1909

1909 19th Cent. Jan. 76 Two thirds gave plants divided into ‘talls’ and dwarfs.

e. tall timber (North American), uninhabited forest. Usually in to break (strike, etc.) for (the) tall timber; also transferred, to run away, escape. Hence tall-timbered adj.

ΘΚΠ

the world > movement > motion in a certain direction > going away > go away [verb (intransitive)] > run away or flee

fleec825

afleeeOE

atrina1000

atfleec1000

to run awayOE

to turn to or into flighta1225

to turn the ridgec1225

atrenc1275

atshakec1275

to give backa1300

flemec1300

startc1330

to take (on oneself) the flighta1500

to take the back upon oneselfa1500

fly1523

to take (also betake) (oneself) to one's legs1530

to flee one's way1535

to take to one's heels1548

flought?1567

fuge1573

to turn taila1586

to run off1628

to take flighta1639

refugea1641

to run for it1642

to take leg1740

to give (also take) leg-bail1751

bail1775

sherry1788

to pull foot1792

fugitate1830

to tail off (out)1830

to take to flight1840

to break (strike, etc.) for (the) tall timber1845

guy1879

to give leg (or legs)1883

rabbit1887

to do a guy1889

high-tail1908

to have it on one's toes1958

the world > the earth > land > landscape > fertile land or place > land with vegetation > [noun] > wooded land > types of

ripplelOE

wildwooda1122

rough1332

firth?a1400

tod stripec1446

osiard1509

bush1523

bush-ground1523

fritha1552

island1638

oak landc1658

pinelandc1658

piney wood1666

broom-land1707

pine barrenc1721

pine savannah1735

savannah1735

thick woods1754

scrub-land1779

olive wood1783

primeval forest1789

open wood1790

strong woods1792

scrub1805

oak flata1816

sertão1816

sprout-land1824

flatwoods1841

bush-land1842

tall timber1845

amber forest1846

caatinga1846

mahogany scrub1846

bush-flat1847

myall country1847

national forest1848

selva1849

monte1851

virgin forest1851

bush-country1855

savannah forest1874

bush-range1879

bushveld1879

protection forest1889

mulga1896

wood-bush1896

shinnery1901

fringing forest1903

monsoon forest1903

rainforest1903

savannah woodland1903

thorn forest1903

tropical rainforest1903

gallery forest1920

cloud forest1922

rain jungle1945

mato1968

1831 Boston Transcript 24 June 2/4 Why didn't Van just go and tell the old man he wanted to break for high timber?]

1845 St. Louis Reveille 22 Jan. 1/6 Knowing the direction of the trees that stood in the grove, I ‘broke for the tall timber’.

1877 J. M. Beard K.K.K. Sketches 166 The panic-stricken darkies broke across the landscape with a yearning desire for tall timber that was eloquently depicted on every motion of the supple limbs.

1904 S. E. White Blazed Trail Stories i. 5 This little town will scratch fer th' tall timber..when the boys goes in to take her apart.

1914 D. W. Roberts Rangers & Sovereignty 128 The ‘bad men’..began to strike for ‘tall timber’.

1921 Daily Colonist (Victoria, Brit. Columbia) 22 Mar. 13/1 The northern correspondent of The Colonist has just emerged from the tall timber, where he has been living under canvas for the past two years.

1949 Skyline Trail Oct. 18/1 I fell off three times; finally the disgusted critter took to the tall timber, leaving me to hike onward and to get across the frigid stream as best I could.

1966 Times 28 Feb. (Canada Suppl.) p. ii Canada is a tall-timbered..rod-and-gun of a country.

f. Of game birds: high-flying. Occasionally applied to a shot at such a bird.

ΘΚΠ

the world > animals > birds > wild or domestic birds > [adjective] > high-flying

tall1913

the world > food and drink > hunting > shooting > [adjective] > high-flying

tall1913

1913 R. Payne-Gallwey High Pheasants iv. 37 The tallest pheasants I know of are at Harpton.

1913 R. Payne-Gallwey High Pheasants v. 45 These high birds..afford most sporting and tall shots.

1922 H. S. Gladstone Record Bags & Shooting Rec. 197 Correct judgment of distance is essential for accurate shooting..hence the tall stories of tall birds.

1952 J. W. Day New Yeomen of Eng. xi. 125 It was all done in the sacred service of King Pheasant, by men who laid out their woods in order to show tall birds.

1962 Times 28 Apr. 11/4 But equally tall pheasants can and do come over at shoots on ground as flat as a billiard table.

1976 Shooting Times & Country Mag. 18–24 Nov. 16/2 Half a dozen superb tall birds came over the gate.

8. figurative.

†a. Lofty, grand, eminent. Obsolete.

ΘΚΠ

the mind > attention and judgement > importance > [adjective] > worthy of notice

specialc1405

eminentc1420

markablec1449

noteworthy1552

regardable1572

respectable1584

of —— observation1587

considerable1589

of (great, little, etc.) mark1590

signal1591

remarkable1593

conspicuous1604

noble1604

observative1608

observable1609

significant1642

noteful1644

signalized1652

tall1655

curious1682

notice-worthy1713

unco1724

noticeable1793

handsome1813

epoch-forming1816

measurable1839

epochal1857

epoch-making1863

era-making1894

epoch-marking1895

high profile1950

landmark1959

the mind > attention and judgement > esteem > reputation > majesty, glory, or grandeur > [adjective] > specifically of things or ideas

regal1561

prince-worthy1574

mounted1601

august1602

elevated1604

venerable1615

tall1655

seraphical1656

big1660

rarefied1662

elevate1667

grand1678

dignified1763

princessly1813

sublimized1827

high-stepping1867

1655 T. Stanley Hist. Philos. I. i. 89 Who in tall Corinth and Pirene dwell.

1686 W. de Britaine Humane Prudence (ed. 3) xix. 88 Princes may bestow the tallest Preferments, but they cannot make Men truly Honourable.

1701 I. Watts Death T. Gunston in Horæ Lyricæ iii. 187 The tall titles, insolent and proud.

1827 C. Lamb Lett. (1935) III. 85 Thine briefly in a tall friendship[,] C. Lamb.

b. Grandiloquent, magniloquent; high-flown; esp. in tall talk (talk n. 6). colloquial.

ΘΚΠ

the mind > mental capacity > knowledge > conformity with what is known, truth > exaggeration, hyperbole > [adjective] > of language

windya1382

wide1574

fustian1592

high-flown1632

tall1670

screamy1882

society > leisure > the arts > literature > style of language or writing > ornateness > [adjective] > lofty or grandiloquent

magnificenta1460

statelya1525

magnifical1533

tragical1533

lofty1565

tragic1566

sublime1586

over-high1587

magnific1589

heroic1590

buskina1593

grandiloquous1593

full-mouthed1594

high-pitched1594

buskined1595

full-mouth1595

high-borne1596

altisonant1612

Roman1619

high-sounding1624

transcendent1631

magniloquent1640

loud1651

altiloquent1656

grandiloquent1656

largiloquent1656

altisonous1661

tall1670

elevate1673

grandisonous1674

sounding1683

exalted1684

grandisonant1684

grandific1727

magniloquous1727

orotund1799

superb1825

spread eagle1839

grandiose1840

magnisonanta1843

togated1868

elevated1875

mandarin1959

1670 J. Eachard Grounds Contempt of Clergy 39 Others..whose parts stand not so much towards tall Words and lofty Notions, but consist in..besprinkling all their Sermons with plenty of Greek and Latin.

1864 Spectator No. 1884. 911 The somewhat tall title of ‘Analysis and Synthesis in Painting’.

1869 Routledge's Every Boy's Ann. 518 What the Yankees call ‘tall talk’.

1876 C. M. Davies Unorthodox London (rev. ed.) 55 Then succeeded the minister herself, whose prayer was ‘taller’ than the young girl's.

1890 Spectator 3 May 628/1 The diction is as impetuous as Niagara, as ‘tall’ as the Eiffel Tower.

c. Exaggerated, highly coloured. U.S. colloquial.

ΘΚΠ

the mind > mental capacity > knowledge > conformity with what is known, truth > disregard for truth, falsehood > fabrication of statement or story > a false or foolish tale > [adjective] > exaggerated

tall1846

Munchausenish1849

1846 T. B. Thorpe Big Bear of Arkansas in Myst. Backwoods The live Sucker from Illinois had the daring to say that our Arkansaw friend's stories smelt rather tall.

1870 Zoologist 5 2350 The producers of what is called ‘tall writing’.

1891 N.Y. Times 26 Jan. (Cent. Dict.) A tall yarn about the Jews wanting to buy the Vatican copy of the Hebrew Bible.

1897 Dublin Rev. Oct. 267 ‘Tall stories’ are the perquisite of every traveller.

1902 E. Banks Autobiogr. Newspaper Girl 279 Nor do I think that there is anything ‘tall’ in this statement.

d. Large in amount, big. slang (originally U.S.). tall order, something expected to be hard to achieve or fulfil: cf. big (large, strong) order at order n. 23f.

ΘΚΠ

the world > relative properties > quantity > greatness of quantity, amount, or degree > [adjective]

mickleeOE

wideOE

largec1300

greata1325

muchc1330

mightyc1390

millionc1390

dreicha1400

rudea1450

massive1581

massy1588

heavy1728

magnitudinous1777

powerful1800

almighty1824

tall1842

hefty1930

honking1943

mondo1968

1842 C. Dickens Amer. Notes II. vi. 156 We were a pretty tall time coming that last fifteen mile.

1865 F. Lillywhite Guide to Cricketers (ed. 20) 95 The..match..between Surrey and Thirteen of Cambridge University,..owing to the ‘very tall’ scoring, was also unfinished.

1884 I. Bligh in James Lillywhite's Cricketers' Ann. i. ii. 4 G. B. Studd's 19 including some tall hits.

1891 W. G. Grace Cricket iv. 119 The season, so far, had been dry, and favourable for tall scoring.

1893 F. W. L. Adams New Egypt 128 It's a tall order, but it's worth trying, isn't it?

1902 Westm. Gaz. 13 Feb. 12/2 America is the land of ‘tall’ things, and this is certainly a ‘tall’ drink for twenty-five persons.

1905 Sat. Rev. 24 June 825 Usurping the functions of the King is rather a ‘tall order’ for a private M.P.

1920 C. A. W. Monckton Some Exper. New Guinea Resident Magistr. xviii. 201 I..told the police we would make the attempt; clearly they thought we were taking on a devil of a tall order.

1946 Civil & Mil. Gaz. 26 May 15 (heading) Tall scoring by Indians at Lords.

1950 H. Read Educ. for Peace iv. 51 It is, to use our slang expression, ‘a tall order’, but it has been attempted before.

1976 Norwich Mercury 19 Nov. 2/1 ‘You do not by any chance know of anybody with an old lion's skin?’ she asked. A tall order indeed.

†9. figurative.

a. Great, eminent (at something). Obsolete.

ΘΚΠ

the mind > attention and judgement > importance > [adjective] > outstanding > of people

tall1591

1591 T. Lodge Diogenes (Hunterian Club) 29 Verie earnest to prooue himselfe a tall a b c Clearke, he read on [etc.].

a1657 G. Daniel Poems (1878) I. 83 A hundred Rhiming Fellowes, that have bin Tall Men at Meeter.

1662 A. Cokayne Trag. Ovid iv. vi. 93 in Poems Though she's but little, she's a tall woman at a Trencher.

b. Great in quality, excellent, good, first-class. (U.S. slang.)

ΘΚΠ

the mind > goodness and badness > quality of being good > excellence > [adjective]

faireOE

bremea1000

goodlyOE

goodfulc1275

noblec1300

pricec1300

specialc1325

gentlec1330

fine?c1335

singulara1340

thrivena1350

thriven and throa1350

gaya1375

properc1380

before-passinga1382

daintiful1393

principala1398

gradelya1400

burlyc1400

daintyc1400

thrivingc1400

voundec1400

virtuousc1425

hathelc1440

curiousc1475

singlerc1500

beautiful1502

rare?a1534

gallant1539

eximious1547

jolly1548

egregious?c1550

jellyc1560

goodlike1562

brawc1565

of worth1576

brave?1577

surprising1580

finger-licking1584

admirablea1586

excellinga1586

ambrosial1598

sublimated1603

excellent1604

valiant1604

fabulous1609

pure1609

starryc1610

topgallant1613

lovely1614

soaringa1616

twanging1616

preclarent1623

primea1637

prestantious1638

splendid1644

sterling1647

licking1648

spankinga1666

rattling1690

tearing1693

famous1695

capital1713

yrare1737

pure and —1742

daisy1757

immense1762

elegant1764

super-extra1774

trimming1778

grand1781

gallows1789

budgeree1793

crack1793

dandy1794

first rate1799

smick-smack1802

severe1805

neat1806

swell1810

stamming1814

divine1818

great1818

slap-up1823

slapping1825

high-grade1826

supernacular1828

heavenly1831

jam-up1832

slick1833

rip-roaring1834

boss1836

lummy1838

flash1840

slap1840

tall1840

high-graded1841

awful1843

way up1843

exalting1844

hot1845

ripsnorting1846

clipping1848

stupendous1848

stunning1849

raving1850

shrewd1851

jammy1853

slashing1854

rip-staving1856

ripping1858

screaming1859

up to dick1863

nifty1865

premier cru1866

slap-bang1866

clinking1868

marvellous1868

rorty1868

terrific1871

spiffing1872

all wool and a yard wide1882

gorgeous1883

nailing1883

stellar1883

gaudy1884

fizzing1885

réussi1885

ding-dong1887

jim-dandy1888

extra-special1889

yum-yum1890

out of sight1891

outasight1893

smooth1893

corking1895

large1895

super1895

hot dog1896

to die for1898

yummy1899

deevy1900

peachy1900

hi1901

v.g.1901

v.h.c.1901

divvy1903

doozy1903

game ball1905

goodo1905

bosker1906

crackerjack1910

smashinga1911

jake1914

keen1914

posh1914

bobby-dazzling1915

juicy1916

pie on1916

jakeloo1919

snodger1919

whizz-bang1920

wicked1920

four-star1921

wow1921

Rolls-Royce1922

whizz-bang1922

wizard1922

barry1923

nummy1923

ripe1923

shrieking1926

crazy1927

righteous1930

marvy1932

cool1933

plenty1933

brahmaa1935

smoking1934

solid1935

mellow1936

groovy1937

tough1937

bottler1938

fantastic1938

readyc1938

ridge1938

super-duper1938

extraordinaire1940

rumpty1940

sharp1940

dodger1941

grouse1941

perfecto1941

pipperoo1945

real gone1946

bosting1947

supersonic1947

whizzo1948

neato1951

peachy-keen1951

ridgey-dite1953

ridgy-didge1953

top1953

whizzing1953

badass1955

wild1955

belting1956

magic1956

bitching1957

swinging1958

ridiculous1959

a treat1959

fab1961

bad-assed1962

uptight1962

diggish1963

cracker1964

marv1964

radical1964

bakgat1965

unreal1965

pearly1966

together1968

safe1970

bad1971

brilliant1971

fabby1971

schmick1972

butt-kicking1973

ripper1973

Tiffany1973

bodacious1976

rad1976

kif1978

awesome1979

death1979

killer1979

fly1980

shiok1980

stonking1980

brill1981

dope1981

to die1982

mint1982

epic1983

kicking1983

fabbo1984

mega1985

ill1986

posho1989

pukka1991

lovely jubbly1992

awesomesauce2001

nang2002

bess2006

amazeballs2009

boasty2009

daebak2009

beaut2013

1840 T. C. Haliburton Clockmaker 3rd Ser. xxi. 303 Won't it be tall feedin' at Queen's table, that's all.

1847 J. S. Robb Streaks Squatter Life (new ed.) I didn't estimate him very tall.

1852 H. B. Stowe Uncle Tom's Cabin II. xxxvii. 233 They..make jist the tallest kind o' broth and knicknacks.

B. adv.

In a tall manner; elatedly, proudly; to walk tall, to carry one's head high; to have dignity or self-respect; to sit tall, to sit erect, with a straight back (in quot. figurative). Also in combinations, as tall-talking.

ΘΚΠ

the mind > emotion > pride > proper pride or self-respect > retain one's self-respect [verb (intransitive)]

to hold up one's head1553

to walk tall1846

to live with oneself1962

the world > space > relative position > posture > assume or hold a posture [verb (intransitive)] > hold body in a posture > with head held high

to walk tall1846

the world > space > relative position > posture > action or fact of sitting > be sitting or seated [verb (intransitive)] > upright

to sit upa1535

to sit up1848

to sit up like Jacky1918

to sit tall1976

1846 T. B. Thorpe Myst. Backwoods 131 (Bartl.) I will walk tall into varmint and Indian.

1860 W. M. Thackeray De Finibus in Roundabout Papers (1862) 282 The sin of grandiloquence, or tall-talking.

1869 H. B. Stowe Oldtown Folks vi. 72 I 'm 'mazing proud on 't. I tell you I walk tall.

1970 Guardian 3 June 20/6 Officials gave the doctors folders entitled, ‘Walk Tall in Australia’.

1970 Guardian 6 Aug. 9/1 Walk tall, sisters... One woman's distinction adds a tiny bit to the stature of every other woman.

1976 Billings (Montana) Gaz. 6 July 3 d/6 ‘We need to sit tall in the saddle and ride like hell in the right direction,’ the governor added.

1980 Times 15 Feb. 16/8 ‘Walk tall,’ say the television commercials [in Hongkong], ‘report corruption.’

Compounds

C1. Parasynthetic, as tall-bodied (having a tall body), tall-elmed, tall-hatted, tall-masted, tall-necked, tall-sceptred, tall-stemmed, tall-tussocked, tall-wheeled, etc.; quasi-adv., as tall-growing, tall-sitting.

ΚΠ

c1725 J. Armstrong Imitations Shaks. in Misc. (1770) I. 147 A blast so shrewd makes the tall-bodied pines Unsinew'd bend.

1825 J. G. Whittier Poet. Wks. (1898) 522/2 With tall-masted ships on their broad bosoms riding.

1855 P. J. Bailey Spiritual Legend in Mystic 105 Tall-sceptred law, and loin-girt liberty.

1877 F. J. Furnivall Leopold Shakspere Introd. 117 You ride through Charlecote's tall-elmd park.

1885 R. Kipling Departm. Ditties (1886) 33 I drive no tall-wheeled traps.

1886 P. Robinson Valley Teetotum Trees 63 The tall-tussocked grass of the waste lands.

1897 Westm. Gaz. 6 July 2/1 A very tall-sitting lady, with a tremendous matinée hat, sat down in front of me.

1908 E. Fowler Between Trent & Ancholme 203 Sun-flowers, and other succulent tall-growing things.

1922 J. Joyce Ulysses ii. x. [Wandering Rocks] 243 H. halted and four tallhatted white flagons halted behind him.

1925 J. Ferguson in Oxf. Poetry 18 The tall-stemmed candles brighten.

1951 Dict. Gardening (Royal Hort. Soc.) II. 921/1 In the tall-stemmed section, such as G[rammatophyllum] speciosum, there are probably six species.

1972 D. Lees Zodiac 27 A tall-hatted chef [was] serving a cold lunch.

C2.

tall-grass adj. (esp. of a prairie) characterized by tall grasses ( A. 7c).

ΘΚΠ

the world > the earth > land > landscape > fertile land or place > land with vegetation > [adjective] > grassland

swarded1513

turfy1552

swarth1598

laundy1611

swarthy1613

turfed1628

swardy1639

scurfy1712

herbaged1727

lawny1744

turfen1778

greenswarded1797

open range1905

tall-grass1920

the world > plants > by growth or development > defined by habit > herb or herbaceous plant > [adjective] > full of or abounding in herbaceous plants > of or relating to grass > forming characteristic vegetation

tall-grass1920

short-grass1929

1920 Carnegie Inst. Washington Publ. No. 290. 256 The tall-grass prairies are typical of regions in which humid farming prevails.

1972 T. McHugh Time of Buffalo ii. 16 On the lush eastern half of the tall-grass prairie, one buffalo could have lived for a year on about ten acres.

1980 Outdoor Life (U.S.) Oct. (Northeast ed.) 97/1 Oak thickets, tall-grass ridges,..and aspen groves.

tall poppy n. see poppy n.

† tall-sail n. (also tal-sail) Obsolete = topsail n. and adv.

ΘΚΠ

society > travel > travel by water > vessel, ship, or boat > equipment of vessel > masts, rigging, or sails > sail > [noun] > topsail

topsail1390

tall-saila1450

top1513

a1450 Siege Jerus. 289 Þey tyȝten vp tal-sail [v.r. topsaill], whan þe tide asked, Hadde byr at þe bake, & þe bonke lefte.

Draft additions September 2006

tall poppy n. [see note at poppy n. 5] chiefly Australian a prominent or conspicuously successful person or thing, frequently with implication of attracting hostility from envious detractors.In quot. tall adj. and adv. as part of an extended metaphor.

ΚΠ

1858 Times 14 Sept. 10/2 It was not the intent of their Legislature merely to cut down every tall poppy, but to reduce every flower in the garden to the same proportions.

1902 H. L. Nielsen Voice of People 8 The ‘tall poppies’ were the ones it was desired to retrench, but fear was expressed that as usual, retrenchment might begin at the bottom of the ladder, and hardly touch those at the top at all.

1975 Sydney Morning Herald 8 Apr. 6 Labor is obsessed with the ‘tall poppies’, and seems determined to pull them down.

2003 S. Brown Free Gift Inside! 60 In an era not exactly renowned for its shrinking violets, Elbert Hubbard was a tall poppy.

Draft additions September 2006

tall poppy syndrome n. originally and chiefly Australian a perceived tendency to disparage prominent or successful people.

ΚΠ

1854 Empire (Sydney) 16 Dec. 5/3 Typhus and cholera..seem to take a malignant delight in striking at the apparently sound and fair—as if they had received the instruction given by the Roman tyrant, when he cut off the heads of the tallest poppies.]

1980 Canberra Times 13 Sept. 42/2 They go into the grand final..with logic suggesting a win to Royals and almost overwhelming support for Wests... Which is a reversal of the role in recent years and probably reflects something of the tall-poppy syndrome.

1983 Austral. Financial Rev. 18 Jan. 11/4 Is this not another example of the great Australian ‘tall poppy syndrome’ at work?.. To suggest that that these elite be punished fiscally for their endeavours is an especially negative approach.

1990 Vanity Fair (N.Y.) June 170/1 The Tall Poppy Syndrome is as familiar to Australians as the kangaroo.

2003 A. Craig Love in Idleness (2004) ix. 212 You know, it's the worst thing about living in Britain, the tall poppy syndrome they call it. First you get built up, then, when they think you're going to get too big for your boots, they come along and chop you down.

Draft additions June 2022

tall relative n. East African (chiefly Kenyan English) a relative, friend, or acquaintance with money or power who advances the interests of another person; an influential patron or sponsor.

ΚΠ

1976 F. D. Imbuga Betrayal in City i. ii. 31 You need a tall relative to get anything these days.

1999 Africa News: Monitor (Kampala) (Nexis) 25 Apr. Richard got a job in a leading bank due to a tall relative..despite the fact that he had failed the interview!

2018 Internat. Jrnl. Lang. & Lit. (online journal, Internet Archive Wayback Machine 13 Apr. 2019) 6 99 Sometimes we engage in taking bribes, under working, or even giving our relatives first priority in job opportunities regardless of their qualification but simply because they have a ‘tall relative’.

This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1910; most recently modified version published online June 2022).

单词	tall
释义	talladj.n.adv. Brit. /tɔːl/, U.S. /tɔl/, /tɑl/ Forms: Also Middle English–1600s tal, Middle English–1500s talle, 1500s tawl(l)e. Etymology: Of obscure history. Most probably representing (with loss of prefix) Old English ge-tæl (plural ge-tale) swift, prompt = Old High German gizal, Middle High German gezal quick. Compare Gothic untals unaccommodating, uncompliant, disobedient, Old Northumbrian untal evil, improper. For the phonology, compare small < Old English smæl.The sense-development is remarkable, but is paralleled more or less by that of other adjectives expressing estimation, as buxom , canny , clean , clever , cunning , deft , elegant , handsome , pretty , proper ; German klein , as compared with English clean , presents the antithesis to modern tall as compared with tall in early Middle English. It has been conjectured that in the sense ‘high of stature’ it is a different word, adopted < Welsh tal in same sense; but the latter is, according to Prof. Rhŷs, merely a 16th cent. borrowing of the English word (in Owen Pughe's Dictionary erroneously mixed up with the genuine Welsh noun tal end, brow, forehead, with which it has no possible connection). The 15th cent. instance of the adjective cited by Pughe is probably from sense A. 2 or A. 3 below. A. adj. (and n.) I. Senses relating to speed and facility. †1. Quick, prompt, ready, active. Obsolete. rare.But the sense in both quots. is doubtful; in quot. c1374, tall has been taken by some as = ‘meek, docile’; quot. 1542 may belong to sense A. 2. ΘΚΠ the world > action or operation > manner of action > rapidity or speed of action or operation > [adjective] > prompt to act radeOE yevereOE snellOE ratheOE spacka1200 quickc1300 eagerc1325 readyc1330 tallc1374 smartc1380 desirousc1386 rifec1390 promptc1425 speedy?1504 nimblea1547 present1548 go-ahead1825 the world > action or operation > manner of action > rapidity or speed of action or operation > [adjective] > speedy or prompt (of service or attention) rathest?1440 tall1542 snappy1977 c1000 Ags. Ps. lvi. 5 Wæron hyra tungan getale teonan gehwylcre.] c1374 G. Chaucer Compl. Mars 38 (Harl. 7333) Sche [Venus] made him [Mars] at hir lust [v.r. list] so humble & talle [v.rr. tal, tall; Fairf. MS. humble and calle; Tan. MS. humble in alle]. 1530 [see sense A. 4]. 1542 N. Udall tr. Erasmus Apophthegmes f. 51 For lesse money..myght I bye a bondeman, that should dooe me tall & hable seruice. 1590 [see sense A. 4]. 1598 [see sense A. 4]. 1600¹ [see sense A. 4]. †2. a. Meet, becoming, seemly, proper, decent. Obsolete.[Cf. a1375 –c1440 at tally adv. 1.] ΘΚΠ society > morality > dueness or propriety > [adjective] goodOE proper?c1225 felea1250 featc1325 seeming1338 rightful1340 thriftyc1386 sittingc1390 duea1393 truea1398 goodly1398 convenienta1400 wella1400 seemc1400 likelyc1425 fitc1440 tallc1440 befalling1542 fittinga1616 the world > relative properties > order > agreement, harmony, or congruity > suitability or appropriateness > [adjective] > fitting or proper methelyeOE ylikeeOE fairOE i-meteOE rightOE becomelyc1175 proper?c1225 featc1325 conablea1340 rightful1340 worthyc1350 pursuanda1375 covenable1382 dignec1385 convenablec1386 thriftyc1386 sittingc1390 comenablea1400 gainlya1400 meeta1400 wortha1400 convenientc1400 meetlya1425 suinga1425 fitc1440 tallc1440 worthyc1450 good1477 dueful?a1527 beseeminga1530 fitting1535 straighta1538 decent1539 answerable1542 becoming1565 condecent1575 becomed1599 respective1605 befittinga1612 comely1617 decorous1664 shape-like1672 beseemly1737 farrantly?1748 fitly1840 in order1850 c1440 Promptorium Parvulorum 486/1 Tal, or semely, decens, elegans. c1540 (?a1400) Destr. Troy 3098 Ho tentit not in tempull to no tall prayers, Ne no melody of mouthe made at þe tyme. b. Comely, goodly, fair, handsome; elegant, fine. Cf. proper adj. 7. Obsolete. ΘΚΠ the mind > attention and judgement > beauty > pleasing appearance > [adjective] > of fine or dignified appearance > of man tallc1450 c1450 Cov. Myst. xxiii. (1841) 215 A fayre ȝonge qwene..Bothe ffresche and gay upon to loke, And a talle man with her dothe melle. 1451 Paston Lett. I. 224 On of the tallest younge men of this parysch lyth syke. 1530 J. Palsgrave Lesclarcissement 327/1 Talle..bel, as bel home. c1592 C. Marlowe Jew of Malta iv. iv That such a base slave as he should be saluted by such a tall man as I am, from such a beautiful dame as you. 1656 H. More Enthusiasmus Triumphatus 31 He was a tal proper man..but of a very pale wasted melancholy countenance. †3. Good at arms; stout or strong in combat; doughty, brave, bold, valiant. Cf. pretty adj. 2a. Obsolete. ΘΚΠ the mind > emotion > courage > valour > warlike valour > [adjective] proudc1275 steepc1275 wightc1275 sturdy1297 stoutc1325 valiantc1330 stern1390 martialc1425 pertc1450 stalwartc1480 talla1529 handsome1665 a1529 J. Skelton Magnyfycence (?1530) sig. Eii^v Cou. Ab. I waraunt you I wyll not go away. Cra. Con. By saynt mary he is a tawle man Clo. Col. Ye and do ryght good seruyce he can. a1529 J. Skelton Poems against Garnesche in Poet Wks. (1843) I. 116 Syr Frollo de Franko was neuer halfe so talle. c1540 (?a1400) Destr. Troy 8574 Mageron..macchet with Achilles, Wold haue takon the talle kyng, & to toun led. 1548 Hall's Vnion: Henry VI f. clix This capitayn [sc. Jack Cade]..assembled together a great company of talle personages. a1556 N. Udall Ralph Roister Doister (?1566) iv. viii. sig. H.j Now sirs, quite our selues like tall men and hardie. ?1577 J. Northbrooke Spiritus est Vicarius Christi: Treat. Dicing To Rdr. sig. A.iiij^v If he can kil a man,..he is called a tall man, and a valiant man of his hands. 1592 R. Greene Thirde Pt. Conny-catching sig. C3 He that had done this tall exploit, in a place so open. 1598 J. Dickenson Greene in Conceipt 37 With hir tongue shee was as tall a warriouresse as any of hir sexe. a1604 M. Hanmer Chron. Ireland 126 in J. Ware Two Hist. Ireland (1633) Both sides lost many a tall man. 1622 Ess. Valour in T. Overbury et al. His Wife (11th impr.) sig. Q6^v It maketh a little fellow to be called a Tall man. 1641 W. Prynne Antipathie 16 He like a tall fellow, thereupon interdicted the King, with the whole Realme. 1670 J. Milton Hist. Brit. ii. 65 Telling the tall Champions as a great encouragement, that with the Britans it was usual for Woemen to be thir Leaders. 1820 W. Irving John Bull in Sketch Bk. vi. 26 The old fellow's spirit is as tall and vain-glorious as ever. 1825 W. Scott Betrothed i, in Tales Crusaders I. 6 Beloved among the ‘Tall men’, or Champions of Wales. †4. Phrase tall of (his) hand(s): sometimes, (cf. sense A. 1) Ready, active, deft, skilful with (his) hands; dexterous, handy; sometimes, (cf. sense A. 3) Stout of arm, formidable with weapons. So tall of tongue, stout of speech or argument. Obsolete. ΘΚΠ the world > action or operation > manner of action > vigour or energy > [adjective] sprindeOE livelyOE kaskc1300 wightc1300 courageousc1386 wighty14.. wieldya1413 ablec1440 tall of hand1530 sappy1558 energical1565 energetical1585 greenya1586 stout1600 strenuous1602 forceful?1624 actuous1626 vigorous1638 vivid1638 high-spirited1653 hearty1665 actuose1677 living1699 full-blooded1707 executive1708 rugged1731 sousing1735 energic1740 bouncing1743 two-fisted1774 energetic1782 zestful1797 rollicking1801 through-ganging1814 throughgoing1814 slashing1828 high-powered1829 high pressure1834 rip-roaring1834 red-blooded1836 ripsnorting1846 zesty1853 dynamic1856 throbbing1864 goey1875 torpedoic1893 kinky1903 zippy1903 go-at-it1904 punchy1907 up-and-at-'em1909 driving1916 vibranta1929 kinetic1931 zinging1931 high-octane1936 zingy1938 slam-bang1939 balls-to-the-wall1967 balls-out1968 ass-kicking1977 hi-octane1977 the mind > attention and judgement > testing > debate, disputation, argument > putting forward for discussion > [adjective] > strong in argument tall of tongue1530 the world > life > the body > bodily constitution > bodily strength > [adjective] > strong (of specific part of body) > of arm or hand arm-strongOE tall of (his) hand(s)1530 strong-armed1600 strong arm1886 1530 J. Palsgrave Lesclarcissement 784/1 He is a tall man of his handes,..cest ung habille homme de ses mains. 1590 R. Harvey Plaine Percevall Ded. sig. A3 They were neuer tall fellows of their hands that were such hacksters in the street. 1598 J. Florio Worlde of Wordes Manesco, readie, nimble, or quicke-handed..a tall man of his hands. 1600 P. Holland tr. Livy Rom. Hist. ii. xxxiii. 65 A Noble yoong gentleman, right politicke of advise, active besides, and tall of his hands [L. promptus manu]. 1600 P. Holland tr. Livy Rom. Hist. iii. lxx. 136 Agrippa being a tall man of his handes [L. viribus ferox] and young withall,..caught the ensignes from the ensigne-bearers, advanced them forward his owne selfe. 1600 P. Holland tr. Livy Rom. Hist. xxi. xl. 415 Stout in heart, and tall of hand [L. vigens corpore]. 1607 J. Marston What you Will Induct. Goe stand to it; shew thyselfe a tall man of thy tongue. 1632 P. Holland tr. Xenophon Cyrupædia 46 Swift I am not of foot, nor yet a tall man of my hands. †5. Big, large, bulky. Obsolete. rare. ΘΚΠ the world > space > extension in space > measurable spatial extent > largeness > [adjective] unlittleeOE mickleeOE greateOE mucha1154 mainc1275 boldc1300 fadec1330 largec1392 tallc1430 big1444 masterfula1450 grand1452 largy1558 fine1590 bonnya1600 large-sized1628 roomly1682 lumping?1706 maun1743 strapping1827 barn door1829 serious1843 jumboesque1893 jumbo1897 economy-sized1930 L1942 jumbo-size1949 economy size1950 c1430 J. Lydgate Minor Poems 200 This fair floure of woman~heed Hath too pappys also smalle, Bolsteryd out of lenghth and breed, Lyche a large campyng balle; There is no bagpipe halff so talle,..Whan they been full of wynde at alle. II. Senses relating to height, and similar uses. 6. a. (a) Of a person: high of stature; of more than average height. Usually appreciative. Also of animals, as a giraffe, stag, or the like. (Cf. elegant adj. 3b = tall of stature.) ΘΚΠ the world > life > the body > bodily height > tallness > [adjective] higheOE longeOE elegant1516 tall1530 procere1542 tallish1748 towering1756 sesquipedalian1857 1530 J. Palsgrave Lesclarcissement 327/1 Talle or hye..hault. 1538 T. Elyot Dict. Procerus, longe, talle. 1552 R. Huloet Abcedarium Anglico Latinum Talle or verye hyghe in personage aboue other. 1599 R. Fitch in R. Hakluyt Princ. Navigations (new ed.) II. i. 256 The men are tall and slender. 1697 J. Dryden tr. Virgil Pastorals vii, in tr. Virgil Wks. 33 Fair Galathea,..Tall as a Poplar, taper as the Bole. 1719 E. Young Paraphr. Job in Wks. (1757) I. 215 Will the tall Reem..Low at the crib, and ask an alms of thee? 1796 H. Hunter tr. J.-H. B. de Saint-Pierre Stud. Nature (1799) I. 398 Tall as giants, hairy like bears. 1858 T. Carlyle Hist. Friedrich II of Prussia I. v. v. 579 One Hohmann, a born Prussian, was so tall, you could not..touch his bare crown with your hand. 1861 R. T. Hulme tr. C. H. Moquin-Tandon Elements Med. Zool. i. ii. 14 A man..is called tall when he is above 5.754 feet in height. 1885 J. Ruskin Præterita I. vii. 210 A tall, handsome, and very finely made girl. (b) In proverbial phrase tall, dark, and handsome, denoting a type of attractive man (see also quot. 1965). ΘΚΠ the mind > attention and judgement > attractiveness > [adjective] > sexually attractive > of a man tall, dark, and handsome1906 Valentino1934 buff1982 1906 R. E. Knowles Undertow xi. 135 He was tall—and dark—and handsome. 1940 Chatelaine Dec. 55/3 One Squadron Leader tells of filling an ‘order’ for ‘three tall, dark and handsomes to go dancing’. 1958 M. Stewart Nine Coaches Waiting vii. 93 Tall, dark and handsome—the romantic cliché repeated itself in my head. 1965 T. Wolfe Kandy-kolored Tangerine-flake Streamline Baby (1966) ix. 178 It was Cary Grant that Mae West was talking about when she launched the phrase ‘tall, dark and handsome’ in ‘She Done Him Wrong’ (1933). 1978 ‘H. Carmichael’ Life Cycle v. 64 If she felt like leaning on his shoulder it was certainly not because he was tall, dark and handsome. b. Having a specified or relative height; measuring in stature (so much): without implication of great height. (Cf. big adj. and adv., broad adj. and n.¹, high adj. and n.², etc.) ΚΠ 1598 W. Shakespeare Love's Labour's Lost iv. i. 46 Clow. Which is the greatest Ladie, the highest? Quee. The thickest, and the tallest . View more context for this quotation 1685 R. Baxter Paraphr. New Test. Matt. vi. 27 All your care cannot make you any taller of stature. 1732 J. Macky Mem., Charac. (ed. 2) 47 [Marquis of Hartington was] taller than a middle Stature. 1744 S. Fielding Adventures David Simple ii. iii If a Man could make himself happy by imagining himself six Foot tall, tho' he was but three. 1845 G. P. R. James Arrah Neil I. ii. 19 A good deal taller than his companion. 1853 Visct. S. de Redcliffe in S. Lane-Poole Life Ld. S. de Redcliffe (1890) II. 242 He is..6 ft. 3 in. tall. 1910 N.E.D. at Tall Mod. How tall are you? He is a little taller than his brother, but both are dwarfs. c. absol. as n. nonce-use. ΚΠ 1903 M. Pemberton Dr. Xavier i They want ‘talls’ for the first row and she's just the height. 7. a. Of things, as ships (spec. square-riggers), trees, mountains: High, lofty; esp. of things high in proportion to their width, as tall chimney, column, house, mast, spire. ΘΚΠ the world > space > extension in space > measurable spatial extent > vertical extent > [adjective] > great or considerable higheOE steepOE heaven-highOE highlyOE brentc1400 hightc1480 hichty1513 procere1542 tall1548 spiringa1552 towereda1552 tower-like1552 upstretched1563 airy1565 excelse1569 haughty1570 topless1589 lofty1590 procerous1599 kiss-sky1603 skyish1604 topful?1611 aspiringc1620 sky-high1622 hiddy1632 tiptoed1632 sublime1635 towering1638 soaring1687 mountain high1693 clamberinga1717 skied1730 towery1731 pyramidic1740 skyey1750 skyward1792 skyscraping1797 exulting1798 high-reaching1827 steepling1892 high-rise1964 hi1972 society > travel > travel by water > vessel, ship, or boat > vessel propelled by sail > [adjective] > rigged > in specific ways lateen1540 high-riggeda1547 tall1548 well-rigged1577 under-sailed1599 over-rigged1627 schooner-rigged1769 sloop-rigged1769 ketch-rigged1775 spritsail1791 brig-rigged1796 square-rigged1802 ship-rigged1803 taunt-rigged1825 Bermudian-rigged1846 Bermudian1847 maphrodite1849 bark-rigged1858 butter-rigged1881 jackass rigged1883 1548 Hall's Vnion: Henry IV f. xxxii^v Talle shippes furnished with vitayles municions and all thynges necessary. 1562 W. Turner 2nd Pt. Herball f. 6 There are two kyndes of ashes [trees], of y^e whiche the one is verye high and tawlle. 1582 M. Phillips in Hakl. Voy. (1589) 579 Two good tall ships of warre. 1615 G. Sandys Relation of Journey 220 To be imbargued in two tall Ships, and a great Gallion. 1655 T. Stanley Hist. Philos. I. iii. 73 Above the tallest hill or wood. 1702 N. Rowe Tamerlane i. i Yon tall Mountains That seem to reach the Clouds. 1715 A. Pope tr. Homer Iliad I. iii. 66 When thy tall Ships triumphant stem'd the Tide. 1718 A. Pope tr. Homer Iliad IV. xiii. 493 The Mountain Oak, or Poplar tall, Or Pine, fit Mast for some great Admiral. 1725 E. Fenton in A. Pope et al. tr. Homer Odyssey I. iv. 694 From his tall ship the King of men descends. 1785 W. Cowper Task i. 450 Upon the ship's tall side he stands, possess'd With visions prompted by intense desire. 1853 G. P. R. James Agnes Sorel I. i. 5 There was a small, square room..in the turret of a tall house in the city of Paris. 1856 E. K. Kane Arctic Explor. I. xviii. 222 Its tallest summit near the water at thirteen hundred [feet]. 1867 W. H. Smyth & E. Belcher Sailor's Word-bk. 674 Tall ship, a phrase among the early voyagers for square-rigged vessels having topmasts. 1902 J. Masefield Salt-water Ballads 59 All I ask is a tall ship and a star to steer her by. 1908 E. Fowler Between Trent & Ancholme 18 Where..the Fuchsias grow tall, up to the eaves. 1916 J. Joyce Portrait of Artist v. 298 The spell of arms and voices; the white arms of roads..and the black arms of tall ships that stand against the moon. 1975 Times 4 July 4/8 The Admiralty Court yesterday granted..an order that the tall ship, Regina Maris, be appraised and sold by the Admiralty marshal to pay a debt... The 137ft-long ship..competed in last year's Tall Ships Race. b. Of more than average length measured from bottom to top, as a tall copy of a book, a tall folio. tall hat, a silk hat with high cylindrical crown. ΚΠ 1608 E. Topsell Hist. Serpents 217 Very like a small and vulgar Lyzard, except..theyr legges taller, and their tayle longer. 1623 W. Shakespeare & J. Fletcher Henry VIII i. iii. 30 The faith they haue in Tennis and tall Stockings, Short blistred Breeches, and those types of Trauell. View more context for this quotation a1704 T. Brown Lett. from Dead (new ed.) in Wks. (1707) II. ii. 4 I..was to Write Bills as tall as the Monument. 17.. John o' Hazelgreen v, in F. J. Child Eng. & Sc. Pop. Ballads (1894) V. ix. 163 Wi arms tall, and fingers small—He's comely to be seen. 1807 R. Southey Lett. from Eng. I. xxi. 237 The size of the margin is of great importance. I could not conceive what was meant by a tall copy, till this was explained to me. If the leaves of an old book have never been cut smooth, its value is greatly enhanced. 1819 W. Scott Let. 20 July (1933) V. 420 A second edition of Walter Scott, a tall copy, as collectors say, and bound in Turkey leather. 1847 L. Hunt Men, Women, & Bks. II. vi. 78 The charms of vellums, tall copies, and blind tooling. 1890 ‘Ouida’ Syrlin xiv They would go to Eton and wear ridiculous jackets and tall hats. c. Applied distinctively to species or varieties of plants which grow higher than other species. Cf. tall-grass adj. at Compounds 2 below. tall red-top n. a tall reddish grass, Triodia cuprea. ΘΚΠ the world > plants > appearance of plant > defined by size or stature > [adjective] > of particular size or stature littleeOE lessOE lesser?a1425 dwarf1548 stubby1572 least1597 pumil1776 tall1789 1789 Ann. Agric. 12 441 I was surprized to see no tall oat grass there, the best and most useful of the grasses which meadows can be laid down with. 1830 J. Baxter Libr. Agric. & Hort. Knowl. 247 Tall oat-like soft-grass, Holcus avenaceus. 1835 W. J. Hooker Brit. Flora (ed. 3) 50 Festuca elatior, Tall Fescue grass. 1850 C. Kingsley Alton Locke I. xiv. 229 The tender green of the tall rape, a plant till then unknown to me. 1861 A. Pratt Flowering Plants & Ferns Great Brit. IV. 79 Tall Broom-rape..growing on the roots of the Great Knapweed. 1898 N. L. Britton & A. Brown Illustr. Flora Northern U.S. III. Index 574/4 Moss,..Tall, Sedum acre. 1979 United States 1980–1 (Penguin Travel Guides) 763 Now scarcely 1% of the original 400,000 square miles of tallgrass remain. d. absol. as n. ΘΚΠ the world > plants > appearance of plant > defined by size or stature > [noun] > small or large plant dwarf1593 plantleta1711 subdwarf1902 tall1909 1909 19th Cent. Jan. 76 Two thirds gave plants divided into ‘talls’ and dwarfs. e. tall timber (North American), uninhabited forest. Usually in to break (strike, etc.) for (the) tall timber; also transferred, to run away, escape. Hence tall-timbered adj. ΘΚΠ the world > movement > motion in a certain direction > going away > go away [verb (intransitive)] > run away or flee fleec825 afleeeOE atrina1000 atfleec1000 to run awayOE to turn to or into flighta1225 to turn the ridgec1225 atrenc1275 atshakec1275 to give backa1300 flemec1300 startc1330 to take (on oneself) the flighta1500 to take the back upon oneselfa1500 fly1523 to take (also betake) (oneself) to one's legs1530 to flee one's way1535 to take to one's heels1548 flought?1567 fuge1573 to turn taila1586 to run off1628 to take flighta1639 refugea1641 to run for it1642 to take leg1740 to give (also take) leg-bail1751 bail1775 sherry1788 to pull foot1792 fugitate1830 to tail off (out)1830 to take to flight1840 to break (strike, etc.) for (the) tall timber1845 guy1879 to give leg (or legs)1883 rabbit1887 to do a guy1889 high-tail1908 to have it on one's toes1958 the world > the earth > land > landscape > fertile land or place > land with vegetation > [noun] > wooded land > types of ripplelOE wildwooda1122 rough1332 firth?a1400 tod stripec1446 osiard1509 bush1523 bush-ground1523 fritha1552 island1638 oak landc1658 pinelandc1658 piney wood1666 broom-land1707 pine barrenc1721 pine savannah1735 savannah1735 thick woods1754 scrub-land1779 olive wood1783 primeval forest1789 open wood1790 strong woods1792 scrub1805 oak flata1816 sertão1816 sprout-land1824 flatwoods1841 bush-land1842 tall timber1845 amber forest1846 caatinga1846 mahogany scrub1846 bush-flat1847 myall country1847 national forest1848 selva1849 monte1851 virgin forest1851 bush-country1855 savannah forest1874 bush-range1879 bushveld1879 protection forest1889 mulga1896 wood-bush1896 shinnery1901 fringing forest1903 monsoon forest1903 rainforest1903 savannah woodland1903 thorn forest1903 tropical rainforest1903 gallery forest1920 cloud forest1922 rain jungle1945 mato1968 1831 Boston Transcript 24 June 2/4 Why didn't Van just go and tell the old man he wanted to break for high timber?] 1845 St. Louis Reveille 22 Jan. 1/6 Knowing the direction of the trees that stood in the grove, I ‘broke for the tall timber’. 1877 J. M. Beard K.K.K. Sketches 166 The panic-stricken darkies broke across the landscape with a yearning desire for tall timber that was eloquently depicted on every motion of the supple limbs. 1904 S. E. White Blazed Trail Stories i. 5 This little town will scratch fer th' tall timber..when the boys goes in to take her apart. 1914 D. W. Roberts Rangers & Sovereignty 128 The ‘bad men’..began to strike for ‘tall timber’. 1921 Daily Colonist (Victoria, Brit. Columbia) 22 Mar. 13/1 The northern correspondent of The Colonist has just emerged from the tall timber, where he has been living under canvas for the past two years. 1949 Skyline Trail Oct. 18/1 I fell off three times; finally the disgusted critter took to the tall timber, leaving me to hike onward and to get across the frigid stream as best I could. 1966 Times 28 Feb. (Canada Suppl.) p. ii Canada is a tall-timbered..rod-and-gun of a country. f. Of game birds: high-flying. Occasionally applied to a shot at such a bird. ΘΚΠ the world > animals > birds > wild or domestic birds > [adjective] > high-flying tall1913 the world > food and drink > hunting > shooting > [adjective] > high-flying tall1913 1913 R. Payne-Gallwey High Pheasants iv. 37 The tallest pheasants I know of are at Harpton. 1913 R. Payne-Gallwey High Pheasants v. 45 These high birds..afford most sporting and tall shots. 1922 H. S. Gladstone Record Bags & Shooting Rec. 197 Correct judgment of distance is essential for accurate shooting..hence the tall stories of tall birds. 1952 J. W. Day New Yeomen of Eng. xi. 125 It was all done in the sacred service of King Pheasant, by men who laid out their woods in order to show tall birds. 1962 Times 28 Apr. 11/4 But equally tall pheasants can and do come over at shoots on ground as flat as a billiard table. 1976 Shooting Times & Country Mag. 18–24 Nov. 16/2 Half a dozen superb tall birds came over the gate. 8. figurative. †a. Lofty, grand, eminent. Obsolete. ΘΚΠ the mind > attention and judgement > importance > [adjective] > worthy of notice specialc1405 eminentc1420 markablec1449 noteworthy1552 regardable1572 respectable1584 of —— observation1587 considerable1589 of (great, little, etc.) mark1590 signal1591 remarkable1593 conspicuous1604 noble1604 observative1608 observable1609 significant1642 noteful1644 signalized1652 tall1655 curious1682 notice-worthy1713 unco1724 noticeable1793 handsome1813 epoch-forming1816 measurable1839 epochal1857 epoch-making1863 era-making1894 epoch-marking1895 high profile1950 landmark1959 the mind > attention and judgement > esteem > reputation > majesty, glory, or grandeur > [adjective] > specifically of things or ideas regal1561 prince-worthy1574 mounted1601 august1602 elevated1604 venerable1615 tall1655 seraphical1656 big1660 rarefied1662 elevate1667 grand1678 dignified1763 princessly1813 sublimized1827 high-stepping1867 1655 T. Stanley Hist. Philos. I. i. 89 Who in tall Corinth and Pirene dwell. 1686 W. de Britaine Humane Prudence (ed. 3) xix. 88 Princes may bestow the tallest Preferments, but they cannot make Men truly Honourable. 1701 I. Watts Death T. Gunston in Horæ Lyricæ iii. 187 The tall titles, insolent and proud. 1827 C. Lamb Lett. (1935) III. 85 Thine briefly in a tall friendship[,] C. Lamb. b. Grandiloquent, magniloquent; high-flown; esp. in tall talk (talk n. 6). colloquial. ΘΚΠ the mind > mental capacity > knowledge > conformity with what is known, truth > exaggeration, hyperbole > [adjective] > of language windya1382 wide1574 fustian1592 high-flown1632 tall1670 screamy1882 society > leisure > the arts > literature > style of language or writing > ornateness > [adjective] > lofty or grandiloquent magnificenta1460 statelya1525 magnifical1533 tragical1533 lofty1565 tragic1566 sublime1586 over-high1587 magnific1589 heroic1590 buskina1593 grandiloquous1593 full-mouthed1594 high-pitched1594 buskined1595 full-mouth1595 high-borne1596 altisonant1612 Roman1619 high-sounding1624 transcendent1631 magniloquent1640 loud1651 altiloquent1656 grandiloquent1656 largiloquent1656 altisonous1661 tall1670 elevate1673 grandisonous1674 sounding1683 exalted1684 grandisonant1684 grandific1727 magniloquous1727 orotund1799 superb1825 spread eagle1839 grandiose1840 magnisonanta1843 togated1868 elevated1875 mandarin1959 1670 J. Eachard Grounds Contempt of Clergy 39 Others..whose parts stand not so much towards tall Words and lofty Notions, but consist in..besprinkling all their Sermons with plenty of Greek and Latin. 1864 Spectator No. 1884. 911 The somewhat tall title of ‘Analysis and Synthesis in Painting’. 1869 Routledge's Every Boy's Ann. 518 What the Yankees call ‘tall talk’. 1876 C. M. Davies Unorthodox London (rev. ed.) 55 Then succeeded the minister herself, whose prayer was ‘taller’ than the young girl's. 1890 Spectator 3 May 628/1 The diction is as impetuous as Niagara, as ‘tall’ as the Eiffel Tower. c. Exaggerated, highly coloured. U.S. colloquial. ΘΚΠ the mind > mental capacity > knowledge > conformity with what is known, truth > disregard for truth, falsehood > fabrication of statement or story > a false or foolish tale > [adjective] > exaggerated tall1846 Munchausenish1849 1846 T. B. Thorpe Big Bear of Arkansas in Myst. Backwoods The live Sucker from Illinois had the daring to say that our Arkansaw friend's stories smelt rather tall. 1870 Zoologist 5 2350 The producers of what is called ‘tall writing’. 1891 N.Y. Times 26 Jan. (Cent. Dict.) A tall yarn about the Jews wanting to buy the Vatican copy of the Hebrew Bible. 1897 Dublin Rev. Oct. 267 ‘Tall stories’ are the perquisite of every traveller. 1902 E. Banks Autobiogr. Newspaper Girl 279 Nor do I think that there is anything ‘tall’ in this statement. d. Large in amount, big. slang (originally U.S.). tall order, something expected to be hard to achieve or fulfil: cf. big (large, strong) order at order n. 23f. ΘΚΠ the world > relative properties > quantity > greatness of quantity, amount, or degree > [adjective] mickleeOE wideOE largec1300 greata1325 muchc1330 mightyc1390 millionc1390 dreicha1400 rudea1450 massive1581 massy1588 heavy1728 magnitudinous1777 powerful1800 almighty1824 tall1842 hefty1930 honking1943 mondo1968 1842 C. Dickens Amer. Notes II. vi. 156 We were a pretty tall time coming that last fifteen mile. 1865 F. Lillywhite Guide to Cricketers (ed. 20) 95 The..match..between Surrey and Thirteen of Cambridge University,..owing to the ‘very tall’ scoring, was also unfinished. 1884 I. Bligh in James Lillywhite's Cricketers' Ann. i. ii. 4 G. B. Studd's 19 including some tall hits. 1891 W. G. Grace Cricket iv. 119 The season, so far, had been dry, and favourable for tall scoring. 1893 F. W. L. Adams New Egypt 128 It's a tall order, but it's worth trying, isn't it? 1902 Westm. Gaz. 13 Feb. 12/2 America is the land of ‘tall’ things, and this is certainly a ‘tall’ drink for twenty-five persons. 1905 Sat. Rev. 24 June 825 Usurping the functions of the King is rather a ‘tall order’ for a private M.P. 1920 C. A. W. Monckton Some Exper. New Guinea Resident Magistr. xviii. 201 I..told the police we would make the attempt; clearly they thought we were taking on a devil of a tall order. 1946 Civil & Mil. Gaz. 26 May 15 (heading) Tall scoring by Indians at Lords. 1950 H. Read Educ. for Peace iv. 51 It is, to use our slang expression, ‘a tall order’, but it has been attempted before. 1976 Norwich Mercury 19 Nov. 2/1 ‘You do not by any chance know of anybody with an old lion's skin?’ she asked. A tall order indeed. †9. figurative. a. Great, eminent (at something). Obsolete. ΘΚΠ the mind > attention and judgement > importance > [adjective] > outstanding > of people tall1591 1591 T. Lodge Diogenes (Hunterian Club) 29 Verie earnest to prooue himselfe a tall a b c Clearke, he read on [etc.]. a1657 G. Daniel Poems (1878) I. 83 A hundred Rhiming Fellowes, that have bin Tall Men at Meeter. 1662 A. Cokayne Trag. Ovid iv. vi. 93 in Poems Though she's but little, she's a tall woman at a Trencher. b. Great in quality, excellent, good, first-class. (U.S. slang.) ΘΚΠ the mind > goodness and badness > quality of being good > excellence > [adjective] faireOE bremea1000 goodlyOE goodfulc1275 noblec1300 pricec1300 specialc1325 gentlec1330 fine?c1335 singulara1340 thrivena1350 thriven and throa1350 gaya1375 properc1380 before-passinga1382 daintiful1393 principala1398 gradelya1400 burlyc1400 daintyc1400 thrivingc1400 voundec1400 virtuousc1425 hathelc1440 curiousc1475 singlerc1500 beautiful1502 rare?a1534 gallant1539 eximious1547 jolly1548 egregious?c1550 jellyc1560 goodlike1562 brawc1565 of worth1576 brave?1577 surprising1580 finger-licking1584 admirablea1586 excellinga1586 ambrosial1598 sublimated1603 excellent1604 valiant1604 fabulous1609 pure1609 starryc1610 topgallant1613 lovely1614 soaringa1616 twanging1616 preclarent1623 primea1637 prestantious1638 splendid1644 sterling1647 licking1648 spankinga1666 rattling1690 tearing1693 famous1695 capital1713 yrare1737 pure and —1742 daisy1757 immense1762 elegant1764 super-extra1774 trimming1778 grand1781 gallows1789 budgeree1793 crack1793 dandy1794 first rate1799 smick-smack1802 severe1805 neat1806 swell1810 stamming1814 divine1818 great1818 slap-up1823 slapping1825 high-grade1826 supernacular1828 heavenly1831 jam-up1832 slick1833 rip-roaring1834 boss1836 lummy1838 flash1840 slap1840 tall1840 high-graded1841 awful1843 way up1843 exalting1844 hot1845 ripsnorting1846 clipping1848 stupendous1848 stunning1849 raving1850 shrewd1851 jammy1853 slashing1854 rip-staving1856 ripping1858 screaming1859 up to dick1863 nifty1865 premier cru1866 slap-bang1866 clinking1868 marvellous1868 rorty1868 terrific1871 spiffing1872 all wool and a yard wide1882 gorgeous1883 nailing1883 stellar1883 gaudy1884 fizzing1885 réussi1885 ding-dong1887 jim-dandy1888 extra-special1889 yum-yum1890 out of sight1891 outasight1893 smooth1893 corking1895 large1895 super1895 hot dog1896 to die for1898 yummy1899 deevy1900 peachy1900 hi1901 v.g.1901 v.h.c.1901 divvy1903 doozy1903 game ball1905 goodo1905 bosker1906 crackerjack1910 smashinga1911 jake1914 keen1914 posh1914 bobby-dazzling1915 juicy1916 pie on1916 jakeloo1919 snodger1919 whizz-bang1920 wicked1920 four-star1921 wow1921 Rolls-Royce1922 whizz-bang1922 wizard1922 barry1923 nummy1923 ripe1923 shrieking1926 crazy1927 righteous1930 marvy1932 cool1933 plenty1933 brahmaa1935 smoking1934 solid1935 mellow1936 groovy1937 tough1937 bottler1938 fantastic1938 readyc1938 ridge1938 super-duper1938 extraordinaire1940 rumpty1940 sharp1940 dodger1941 grouse1941 perfecto1941 pipperoo1945 real gone1946 bosting1947 supersonic1947 whizzo1948 neato1951 peachy-keen1951 ridgey-dite1953 ridgy-didge1953 top1953 whizzing1953 badass1955 wild1955 belting1956 magic1956 bitching1957 swinging1958 ridiculous1959 a treat1959 fab1961 bad-assed1962 uptight1962 diggish1963 cracker1964 marv1964 radical1964 bakgat1965 unreal1965 pearly1966 together1968 safe1970 bad1971 brilliant1971 fabby1971 schmick1972 butt-kicking1973 ripper1973 Tiffany1973 bodacious1976 rad1976 kif1978 awesome1979 death1979 killer1979 fly1980 shiok1980 stonking1980 brill1981 dope1981 to die1982 mint1982 epic1983 kicking1983 fabbo1984 mega1985 ill1986 posho1989 pukka1991 lovely jubbly1992 awesomesauce2001 nang2002 bess2006 amazeballs2009 boasty2009 daebak2009 beaut2013 1840 T. C. Haliburton Clockmaker 3rd Ser. xxi. 303 Won't it be tall feedin' at Queen's table, that's all. 1847 J. S. Robb Streaks Squatter Life (new ed.) I didn't estimate him very tall. 1852 H. B. Stowe Uncle Tom's Cabin II. xxxvii. 233 They..make jist the tallest kind o' broth and knicknacks. B. adv. In a tall manner; elatedly, proudly; to walk tall, to carry one's head high; to have dignity or self-respect; to sit tall, to sit erect, with a straight back (in quot. figurative). Also in combinations, as tall-talking. ΘΚΠ the mind > emotion > pride > proper pride or self-respect > retain one's self-respect [verb (intransitive)] to hold up one's head1553 to walk tall1846 to live with oneself1962 the world > space > relative position > posture > assume or hold a posture [verb (intransitive)] > hold body in a posture > with head held high to walk tall1846 the world > space > relative position > posture > action or fact of sitting > be sitting or seated [verb (intransitive)] > upright to sit upa1535 to sit up1848 to sit up like Jacky1918 to sit tall1976 1846 T. B. Thorpe Myst. Backwoods 131 (Bartl.) I will walk tall into varmint and Indian. 1860 W. M. Thackeray De Finibus in Roundabout Papers (1862) 282 The sin of grandiloquence, or tall-talking. 1869 H. B. Stowe Oldtown Folks vi. 72 I 'm 'mazing proud on 't. I tell you I walk tall. 1970 Guardian 3 June 20/6 Officials gave the doctors folders entitled, ‘Walk Tall in Australia’. 1970 Guardian 6 Aug. 9/1 Walk tall, sisters... One woman's distinction adds a tiny bit to the stature of every other woman. 1976 Billings (Montana) Gaz. 6 July 3 d/6 ‘We need to sit tall in the saddle and ride like hell in the right direction,’ the governor added. 1980 Times 15 Feb. 16/8 ‘Walk tall,’ say the television commercials [in Hongkong], ‘report corruption.’ Compounds C1. Parasynthetic, as tall-bodied (having a tall body), tall-elmed, tall-hatted, tall-masted, tall-necked, tall-sceptred, tall-stemmed, tall-tussocked, tall-wheeled, etc.; quasi-adv., as tall-growing, tall-sitting. ΚΠ c1725 J. Armstrong Imitations Shaks. in Misc. (1770) I. 147 A blast so shrewd makes the tall-bodied pines Unsinew'd bend. 1825 J. G. Whittier Poet. Wks. (1898) 522/2 With tall-masted ships on their broad bosoms riding. 1855 P. J. Bailey Spiritual Legend in Mystic 105 Tall-sceptred law, and loin-girt liberty. 1877 F. J. Furnivall Leopold Shakspere Introd. 117 You ride through Charlecote's tall-elmd park. 1885 R. Kipling Departm. Ditties (1886) 33 I drive no tall-wheeled traps. 1886 P. Robinson Valley Teetotum Trees 63 The tall-tussocked grass of the waste lands. 1897 Westm. Gaz. 6 July 2/1 A very tall-sitting lady, with a tremendous matinée hat, sat down in front of me. 1908 E. Fowler Between Trent & Ancholme 203 Sun-flowers, and other succulent tall-growing things. 1922 J. Joyce Ulysses ii. x. [Wandering Rocks] 243 H. halted and four tallhatted white flagons halted behind him. 1925 J. Ferguson in Oxf. Poetry 18 The tall-stemmed candles brighten. 1951 Dict. Gardening (Royal Hort. Soc.) II. 921/1 In the tall-stemmed section, such as G[rammatophyllum] speciosum, there are probably six species. 1972 D. Lees Zodiac 27 A tall-hatted chef [was] serving a cold lunch. C2. tall-grass adj. (esp. of a prairie) characterized by tall grasses ( A. 7c). ΘΚΠ the world > the earth > land > landscape > fertile land or place > land with vegetation > [adjective] > grassland swarded1513 turfy1552 swarth1598 laundy1611 swarthy1613 turfed1628 swardy1639 scurfy1712 herbaged1727 lawny1744 turfen1778 greenswarded1797 open range1905 tall-grass1920 the world > plants > by growth or development > defined by habit > herb or herbaceous plant > [adjective] > full of or abounding in herbaceous plants > of or relating to grass > forming characteristic vegetation tall-grass1920 short-grass1929 1920 Carnegie Inst. Washington Publ. No. 290. 256 The tall-grass prairies are typical of regions in which humid farming prevails. 1972 T. McHugh Time of Buffalo ii. 16 On the lush eastern half of the tall-grass prairie, one buffalo could have lived for a year on about ten acres. 1980 Outdoor Life (U.S.) Oct. (Northeast ed.) 97/1 Oak thickets, tall-grass ridges,..and aspen groves. tall poppy n. see poppy n. † tall-sail n. (also tal-sail) Obsolete = topsail n. and adv. ΘΚΠ society > travel > travel by water > vessel, ship, or boat > equipment of vessel > masts, rigging, or sails > sail > [noun] > topsail topsail1390 tall-saila1450 top1513 a1450 Siege Jerus. 289 Þey tyȝten vp tal-sail [v.r. topsaill], whan þe tide asked, Hadde byr at þe bake, & þe bonke lefte. Draft additions September 2006 tall poppy n. [see note at poppy n. 5] chiefly Australian a prominent or conspicuously successful person or thing, frequently with implication of attracting hostility from envious detractors.In quot. tall adj. and adv. as part of an extended metaphor. ΚΠ 1858 Times 14 Sept. 10/2 It was not the intent of their Legislature merely to cut down every tall poppy, but to reduce every flower in the garden to the same proportions. 1902 H. L. Nielsen Voice of People 8 The ‘tall poppies’ were the ones it was desired to retrench, but fear was expressed that as usual, retrenchment might begin at the bottom of the ladder, and hardly touch those at the top at all. 1975 Sydney Morning Herald 8 Apr. 6 Labor is obsessed with the ‘tall poppies’, and seems determined to pull them down. 2003 S. Brown Free Gift Inside! 60 In an era not exactly renowned for its shrinking violets, Elbert Hubbard was a tall poppy. Draft additions September 2006 tall poppy syndrome n. originally and chiefly Australian a perceived tendency to disparage prominent or successful people. ΚΠ 1854 Empire (Sydney) 16 Dec. 5/3 Typhus and cholera..seem to take a malignant delight in striking at the apparently sound and fair—as if they had received the instruction given by the Roman tyrant, when he cut off the heads of the tallest poppies.] 1980 Canberra Times 13 Sept. 42/2 They go into the grand final..with logic suggesting a win to Royals and almost overwhelming support for Wests... Which is a reversal of the role in recent years and probably reflects something of the tall-poppy syndrome. 1983 Austral. Financial Rev. 18 Jan. 11/4 Is this not another example of the great Australian ‘tall poppy syndrome’ at work?.. To suggest that that these elite be punished fiscally for their endeavours is an especially negative approach. 1990 Vanity Fair (N.Y.) June 170/1 The Tall Poppy Syndrome is as familiar to Australians as the kangaroo. 2003 A. Craig Love in Idleness (2004) ix. 212 You know, it's the worst thing about living in Britain, the tall poppy syndrome they call it. First you get built up, then, when they think you're going to get too big for your boots, they come along and chop you down. Draft additions June 2022 tall relative n. East African (chiefly Kenyan English) a relative, friend, or acquaintance with money or power who advances the interests of another person; an influential patron or sponsor. ΚΠ 1976 F. D. Imbuga Betrayal in City i. ii. 31 You need a tall relative to get anything these days. 1999 Africa News: Monitor (Kampala) (Nexis) 25 Apr. Richard got a job in a leading bank due to a tall relative..despite the fact that he had failed the interview! 2018 Internat. Jrnl. Lang. & Lit. (online journal, Internet Archive Wayback Machine 13 Apr. 2019) 6 99 Sometimes we engage in taking bribes, under working, or even giving our relatives first priority in job opportunities regardless of their qualification but simply because they have a ‘tall relative’. This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1910; most recently modified version published online June 2022). > as lemmas tall c. to talk big, tall, etc. (colloquial or slang): to talk boastfully; to indulge in inflated language; see also big adv. 3. to talk down (to an audience), to lower one's discourse to the assumed level of their intelligence; also transferred (in quots., of writers). to talk through one's hat: see hat n. Phrases 17; to talk through (the back of) one's neck: see neck n.¹ Phrases 13; to talk turkey: see turkey n.² 2d. ΘΚΠ the mind > language > speech > manner of speaking > speak in a particular manner [verb (intransitive)] > speak loudly or angrily thundera1340 raisec1384 to speak outc1515 jowlc1540 fulmine1623 to talk big1680 tang1686 to speak upa1723 to go ona1753 rip1828 whalea1852 yap1864 to rip and tear1884 megaphone1901 to pop off1914 foghorn1918 to sound off1918 loudmouth1931 woof1934 1680 R. L'Estrange tr. Erasmus 20 Select Colloquies xvii. 224 I talk Big; and wherever I find an Hungry Buzzard, I throw him out a Bait. 1702 Eng. Theophrastus 336 Some people think they need only talk loud and big and be very positive, to make all the World of their Opinion. 1841 C. Thirlwall Lett. (1881) I. 175 We are able to talk big about light and freedom. 1856 C. M. Yonge Daisy Chain ii. xiv. 498 ‘Say it again—what you said about the sea,’ said Mary, more comforted than if Ethel had been talking down to her. 1888 J. Bryce Amer. Commonw. III. cxi. 597 On the Fourth of July..the speaker feels bound to talk his very tallest. 1919 H. S. Walpole Jeremy ii. 43 He always talked down to us as though we were beings of another and inferior planet. He called it, ‘Getting on with the little ones.’ 1954 M. F. Rodell Myst. Fiction i. 1 This does not mean that mystery fiction need be hack work; nor that the authors of it must ‘talk down’ to their audiences. 1970 Sci. Jrnl. Apr. 84/2 The authors for future titles all seem to be practising scientists. The problem will be whether they can achieve the necessary clarity of style without ‘talking down’ to their new audiences. extracted from talkv. < adj.n.adv.c1374 as lemmas
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talladj.n.adv.

Compounds

Draft additions September 2006

Draft additions September 2006

Draft additions June 2022

> as lemmas