the hindmost part of an animal, especially that forming a distinct, flexible appendage to the trunk.
something resembling or suggesting this in shape or position: the tail of a kite.
Astronomy. the luminous stream extending from the head of a comet.
the reverse of a coin (opposed to head).
Aeronautics. the after portion of an airplane or the like.
tails,
tail coat.
the tapering skirts or ends at the back of a coat, especially a tail coat.
men's full-dress attire.
Distilling.alcohol obtained in the final distillation.Compare head (def. 22).
Slang. the buttocks or rump.
Informal. a person who trails or keeps a close surveillance of another, as a detective or spy: The police decided to put a tail on the suspect.
Informal. the area directly behind a person in motion; the wake or trail of a person: They put a detective on his tail.The car behind me was riding my tail far too closely.
Slang: Vulgar.
sexual intercourse.
Usually Disparaging and Offensive.a woman considered as a sex object.
the hinder, bottom, or end part of anything; the rear.
a final or concluding part of a sentence, conversation, social gathering, etc.; conclusion; end: The tail of the speech was boring. Toward the tail of the concert I'd begun to get tired.
the inferior or unwanted part of anything.
a long braid or tress of hair.
an arrangement of objects or persons extending as or as if a tail.
a line of persons awaiting their turns at something; queue.
a retinue; train.
the lower part of a pool or stream.
the exposed portion of a piece of roofing, as a slate.
Printing, Bookbinding. the bottom of a page or book.
Printing. the lower portion of a type, as of g, y, or Q.
adjective
coming from behind: a tail breeze.
being in the back or rear: the tail section of a plane.
verb (used with object)
Informal. to follow in order to hinder escape of or to observe: to tail a suspect.
to form or furnish with a tail.
to form or constitute the tail or end of (a procession, retinue, etc.).
to terminate; come after or behind; follow like a tail.
to join or attach (one thing) at the tail or end of another.
Building Trades. to fasten (a beam, stone, etc.) by one end (usually followed by in or into).
to dock the tail of (a horse, dog, etc.).
verb (used without object)
to follow close behind: She always tails after her sister.
to disappear gradually or merge into: The path tails off into the woods.
to form, or move or pass in, a line or column suggestive of a tail: The hikers tailed up the narrow path.
(of a boat) to have or take a position with the stern in a particular direction.
Building Trades. (of a beam, stone, etc.) to be fastened by one end (usually followed by in or into).
Idioms for tail
turn tail,
to turn one's back on, as in aversion or fright.
to run away from difficulty, opposition, etc.; flee: The sight of superior forces made the attackers turn tail.
with one's tail between one's legs, utterly humiliated; defeated; cowed: They were forced to retreat with their tails between their legs.
Origin of tail
1
First recorded before 900; Middle English; Old English tægl, tægel; cognate with Old Norse tagl “horse's tail,” Gothic tagl “(single) hair,” Middle High German zagel “tail,” Middle Low German tagel “rope, rope-end, scourge”
usage note for tail
The meanings “sexual intercourse” and “female sexual partner” are both vulgar slang. When referring to a person, the term tail is usually used with disparaging intent and perceived as insulting.
taig, taiga, taihoa, Taihu, taikonaut, tail, tailback, tailband, tail between one's legs, with one's, tailboard, tailbone
Definition for tail (2 of 2)
tail2
[ teyl ]
/ teɪl /
Law.
noun
the limitation of an estate to a person and the person’s heirs or some particular class of such heirs.
adjective
limited to a specified line of heirs; entailed.
Origin of tail
2
1200–50; (noun) Middle English taille<Old French, derivative of taillier to cut <Late Latin tāliāre (see tailor1); (adj.) late Middle English taille<Anglo-French tailé cut, shaped, limited, past participle of tailler
The US was at the tail end of what should have been a severe flu season in 2020, but when the pandemic was declared there was a precipitous drop in cases.
The COVID-19 pandemic is about to collide with flu season. Here’s what to expect.|Sara Chodosh|August 26, 2020|Popular Science
What you see here, never seen before, is the first stage of the process that gives comets their tails.
These Images Expose the Dark Side of the Solar System - Issue 89: The Dark Side|Corey S. Powell|August 26, 2020|Nautilus
The thieves could’ve stolen them, but clearly the effort seemed too much, since it was a fat bike and a road bike and they were nose to tail.
The most secure ways to lock up your bike|By Michael Frank/Cycle Volta|August 26, 2020|Popular Science
Long-tail keywords may not necessarily attract the same traffic as the general keywords, but they can lead to better business prospects since the search intent is more specific.
Three SEO mistakes that can impact your search rankings|Tereza Litsa|August 24, 2020|Search Engine Watch
In fact, the two tails of escapees possess more stars than does the cluster.
Milky Way’s tidal forces are shredding a nearby star cluster|Ken Croswell|August 18, 2020|Science News For Students
The young man had the presence of mind to tail Gaylard Williams out of the park and jot down his license plate.
Exposed: The Gay-Bashing Pastor’s Same-Sex Assault|M.L. Nestel|December 21, 2014|DAILY BEAST
We thought that Sonny was inspiring us and he was out there and responding and sweating and playing his tail off.
A bombing spate in Lebanon last year started to tail off in the winter.
ISIS May Open a Third Front in Lebanon|Jamie Dettmer|June 25, 2014|DAILY BEAST
He notes that “at least one paper” recognizes that the cause of the tail is “poorly understood.”
The Crazy Way Creationists Try To Explain Human Tails Without Evolution|Karl W. Giberson|June 1, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Like the wings, the tail surfaces—horizontal and vertical—easily break away from the fuselage and float.
Mysterious Debris Near Australia Looks like MH370’s Wing|Clive Irving|March 20, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The first thing Buddy did was to stoop and study attentively the dead snake, to see if the tail still wiggled.
Cow-Country|B. M. Bower
Had it a tail it would be at a loss to know what to do with it in this position.
The Western World|W.H.G. Kingston
The dog indicated, both by his eyes and his tail, that he perfectly understood his instructions.
Tales of the Sun|Mrs. Howard Kingscote
Any one of them would have twisted the tail of the devil himself; but they were off Old Man Hooper.
The Killer|Stewart Edward White
He had smelt the parson before, and wagged his tail faintly as he saw him.
A Flat Iron for a Farthing|Juliana Horatia Ewing
British Dictionary definitions for tail (1 of 2)
tail1
/ (teɪl) /
noun
the region of the vertebrate body that is posterior to or above the anus and contains an elongation of the vertebral column, esp forming a flexible movable appendageRelated adjective: caudal
anything resembling such an appendage in form or position; the bottom, lowest, or rear partthe tail of a shirt
the last part or partsthe tail of the storm
the rear part of an aircraft including the fin, tailplane, and control surfaces; empennage
astronomythe luminous stream of gas and dust particles, up to 200 million kilometres long, driven from the head of a comet, when close to the sun, under the effect of the solar wind and light pressure
the rear portion of a bomb, rocket, missile, etc, usually fitted with guiding or stabilizing vanes
a line of people or things
a long braid or tress of haira ponytail; a pigtail
Also called: tailflyanglingthe lowest fly on a wet-fly cast
a final short line in a stanza
informala person employed to follow and spy upon another or others
an informal word for buttocksSee buttock
taboo, slang
the female genitals
a woman considered sexually (esp in the phrases piece of tail, bit of tail)
printing
the margin at the foot of a page
the bottom edge of a book
the lower end of a pool or part of a stream
informalthe course or track of a fleeing person or animalthe police are on my tail
(modifier)coming from or situated in the reara tail wind
turn tailto run away; escape
with one's tail between one's legsin a state of utter defeat or confusion
verb
to form or cause to form the tail
to remove the tail of (an animal); dock
(tr)to remove the stalk ofto top and tail the gooseberries
(tr)to connect (objects, ideas, etc) together by or as if by the tail
(tr)informalto follow stealthily
(tr)Australianto tend (cattle) on foot
(intr)(of a vessel) to assume a specified position, as when at a mooring
to build the end of (a brick, joist, etc) into a wall or (of a brick, etc) to have one end built into a wall
The rear, elongated part of many animals, extending beyond the trunk or main part of the body. Tails are used variously for balance, combat, communication, mating displays, fat storage, propulsion and course correction in water, and course correction in air.
A long, stream of gas or dust forced from the head of a comet when it is close to the Sun. Tails can be up to 150 million km (93 million miles) long, and they always point away from the Sun because of the force of the solar wind.♦ Plasma tails, or ion tails, appear bluish and straight and narrow, and are formed when solar wind forces ionized gas to stream off the coma. Dust tails are wide and curved, and are formed when solar heat forces trails of dust off the coma; solid particles reflecting the Sun's light create their bright yellow color.