tail : Idioms & Phrases

Index


band-tail pigeon

  • noun wild pigeon of western North America; often mistaken for the now extinct passenger pigeon
    Columba fasciata; band-tail pigeon; bandtail.
WordNet

band-tailed pigeon

  • noun wild pigeon of western North America; often mistaken for the now extinct passenger pigeon
    Columba fasciata; band-tail pigeon; bandtail.
WordNet

black-tailed deer

  • noun mule deer of western Rocky Mountains
    Odocoileus hemionus columbianus; blacktail; blacktail deer.
WordNet

boat-tail

Boat"-tail` noun
Definitions
  1. (Zoöl.) A large grackle or blackbird (Quiscalus major), found in the Southern United States.
Webster 1913

brown-tail moth

  • noun small brown and white European moth introduced into eastern United States; pest of various shade and fruit trees
    Euproctis phaeorrhoea; browntail.
WordNet

brush-tail porcupine

  • noun porcupine with a tuft of large beaded bristles on the tail
    brush-tail porcupine.
WordNet

brush-tailed phalanger

  • noun bushy-tailed phalanger
    Trichosurus vulpecula.
WordNet

brush-tailed porcupine

  • noun porcupine with a tuft of large beaded bristles on the tail
    brush-tail porcupine.
WordNet

Cat o' nine tails

  • an instrument of punishment consisting of nine pieces of knotted line or cord fastened to a handle; formerly used to flog offenders on the bare back.
Webster 1913

cat's-tail

  • noun tall marsh plant with cylindrical seed heads that explode when mature shedding large quantities of down; its long flat leaves are used for making mats and chair seats; of North America, Europe, Asia and North Africa
    bulrush; nailrod; reed mace; bullrush; reedmace; Typha latifolia.
WordNet
Cat's"-tail noun
Definitions
  1. See Timothy, Cat-tail, Cirrus.
Webster 1913

cat-o'-nine-tails

  • noun a whip with nine knotted cords
    cat.
    • British sailors feared the cat
WordNet

cat-tail

Cat"-tail noun
Definitions
  1. (Bot.) A tall rush or flag (Typha latifolia) growing in marshes, with long, glat leaves, and having its flowers in a close cylindrical spike at the top of the stem. The leaves are frequently used for seating chairs, making mats, etc. See Catkin. ✍ The lesser cat-tail is Typha angustifolia.
Webster 1913

crop-tailed

Crop"-tailed` adjective
Definitions
  1. Having the tail cropped.
Webster 1913

cross-tail

Cross"-tail` noun
Definitions
  1. (Steam Engine) A bar connecting the ends of the side rods or levers of a backaction or side-lever engine.
Webster 1913

dag-tailed

Dag"-tailed` adjective
Etymology
Dag a loose end + tail.
Definitions
  1. Daggle-tailed; having the tail clogged with daglocks. "Dag-tailed sheep." Bp. Hall.
Webster 1913

daggle-tail

Dag"gle-tail`, Dag"gle-tailed` adjective (Also<
  • Daggle-tail
  • Daggle-tailed
)
Definitions
  1. Having the lower ends of garments defiled by trailing in mire or filth; draggle-tailed.
Dag"gle-tail` noun
Definitions
  1. A slovenly woman; a slattern; a draggle-tail.
Webster 1913

dog's-tail grass

Dog's"-tail grass` noun
Definitions
  1. (Bot.) A hardy species of British grass (Cynosurus cristatus) which abounds in grass lands, and is well suited for making straw plait; -- called also goldseed.
Webster 1913

drabble-tail

Drab"ble-tail` noun
Definitions
  1. A draggle-tail; a slattern. Halliwell.
Webster 1913

draggle-tail

Drag"gle-tail` noun
Definitions
  1. A slattern who suffers her gown to trail in the mire; a drabble-tail.
Webster 1913

draggle-tailed

Drag"gle-tailed` adjective
Definitions
  1. Untidy; sluttish; slatternly. W. Irving.
Webster 1913

Dragon's tail

  • (Astron.), the descending node of a planet, indicated by the symbol . See Dragon's head (above).
Webster 1913

Estate in tail

  • a limited, abridged, or reduced fee; an estate limited to certain heirs, and from which the other heirs are precluded; called also estate tail. Blackstone.
Webster 1913

fan-tailed

Fan"-tailed` adjective
Definitions
  1. (Zoöl.) Having an expanded, or fan-shaped, tail; as, the fan-tailed pigeon.
Webster 1913

Fee tail

  • noun a fee limited to a particular line of heirs; they are not free to sell it or give it away
WordNet
  • (Law), an estate of inheritance, limited and restrained to some particular heirs. Burill.
Webster 1913

fee-tail

  • verb limit the inheritance of property to a specific class of heirs
    entail.
WordNet

fish-tail

Fish"-tail` adjective
Definitions
  1. Like the of a fish; acting, or producing something, like the tail of a fish.
Webster 1913

Fish-tail burner

  • a gas burner that gives a spreading flame shaped somewhat like the tail of a fish.
Webster 1913

Fish-tail propeller

  • (Steamship), a propeller with a single blade that oscillates like the tail of a fish when swimming.
Webster 1913

fork-tailed

Fork"-tailed` adjective
Definitions
  1. (Zoöl.) Having the outer tail feathers longer than the median ones; swallow-tailed; -- said of many birds.
Webster 1913

Fork-tailed flycatcher

  • (Zoöl.), a tropical American flycatcher (Milvulus tyrannus).
Webster 1913

Fork-tailed gull

  • (Zoöl.), a gull of the genus Xema, of two species, esp. X. Sabinii of the Arctic Ocean.
Webster 1913

Fork-tailed kite

  • (Zoöl.), a graceful American kite (Elanoides forficatus); called also swallow-tailed kite.
Webster 1913

four-tailed bandage

  • noun a bandage consisting of a strip of cloth split in two on both ends; the central part is placed under the chin to restrict motion of the mandible and the tails are tied over the top of the head
WordNet

free-tailed bat

  • noun small swift insectivorous bat with leathery ears and a long tail; common in warm regions
    freetail; freetailed bat.
WordNet

gold-tail moth

  • noun white furry-bodied European moth with a yellow tail tuft
    Euproctis chrysorrhoea.
WordNet

green-tailed towhee

  • noun towhee of the Rocky Mountains
    Chlorura chlorura.
WordNet

gridiron-tailed lizard

  • noun swift lizard with long black-banded tail and long legs; of deserts of United States and Mexico
    gridiron-tailed lizard; Callisaurus draconoides.
WordNet

hair-tailed mole

  • noun mole of eastern North America
    Parascalops breweri; brewer's mole.
WordNet

Hardboaded, ∨ Yellow-tailed, shad

  • the menhaden.
Webster 1913

hare's-tail

Hare's"-tail` noun
Definitions
  1. (Bot.) A kind of grass (Eriophorum vaginatum). See Cotton grass, under Cotton.
Webster 1913

Hare's-tail grass

  • (Bot.), a species of grass (Lagurus ovatus) whose head resembles a hare's tail.
Webster 1913

Head or tail

  • this side or that side; this thing or that; a phrase used in throwing a coin to decide a choice, guestion, or stake, head being the side of the coin bearing the effigy or principal figure (or, in case there is no head or face on either side, that side which has the date on it), and tail the other side.
Webster 1913

high-tail

  • verb retreat at full speed
    • The actress high-tailed to her villa when reporters began to follow her to the restaurant
WordNet

horizontal tail

  • noun the horizontal stabilizer and elevator in the tail assembly of an aircraft
WordNet

kite tail

  • noun a bob on a kite to provide balance
WordNet

kitten-tails

  • noun a plant of the genus Besseya having fluffy spikes of flowers
WordNet

lion's tail

Li"on's tail`
Definitions
  1. (Bot.) A genus of labiate plants (Leonurus); -- so called from a fancied resemblance of its flower spikes to the tuft of a lion's tail. L. Cardiaca is the common motherwort.
Webster 1913

lizard's tail

Liz"ard's tail`
Definitions
  1. (Bot.) A perennial plant of the genus Saururus (S. cernuus), growing in marshes, and having white flowers crowded in a slender terminal spike, somewhat resembling in form a lizard's tail; whence the name. Gray.
Webster 1913

lizard's-tail

  • noun North American herbaceous perennial of wet places having slender curled racemes of small white flowers
    swamp lily; water dragon; Saururus cernuus.
WordNet

lizard's-tail family

  • noun family of perennial aromatic herbs: genera Saururus, Anemopsis, Houttuynia
    Saururaceae; family Saururaceae.
WordNet

lobster tail

  • noun lobster tail meat; usually from spiny rock lobsters
WordNet

long-tailed porcupine

  • noun porcupine of Borneo and Sumatra having short spines and a long tail
    Trichys lipura.
WordNet

long-tailed weasel

  • noun the common American weasel distinguished by large size and black-tipped tail
    Mustela frenata; longtail weasel.
WordNet

mare's tail

  • noun a long narrow flowing cirrus cloud
WordNet

mare's-tail

Mare's"-tail` noun
Definitions
  1. A long streaky cloud, spreading out like a horse's tail, and believed to indicate rain; a cirrus cloud. See Cloud.
    Mackerel sky and mare's-tails Make tall ships carry low sails. Old Rhyme.
  2. (Bot.) An aquatic plant of the genus Hippuris (H.vulgaris), having narrow leaves in whorls.
Webster 1913

Mill tail

  • the water which flows from a mill wheel after turning it, or the channel in which the water flows.
Webster 1913

nail-tailed kangaroo

  • noun small wallabies with a horny nail on the tip of the tail
    nail-tailed kangaroo.
WordNet

nail-tailed wallaby

  • noun small wallabies with a horny nail on the tip of the tail
    nail-tailed kangaroo.
WordNet

naked-tailed

  • adjective satellite having a tail that is hairless
WordNet

Neither head nor tail

  • neither beginning nor end; neither this thing nor that; nothing distinct or definite; a phrase used in speaking of what is indefinite or confused; as, they made neither head nor tail of the matter. Colloq.
Webster 1913

pen-tail

  • noun brown tree shrew having a naked tail bilaterally fringed with long stiff hairs on the distal third; of Malaysia
    pen-tail; pentail.
WordNet

pen-tailed tree shrew

  • noun brown tree shrew having a naked tail bilaterally fringed with long stiff hairs on the distal third; of Malaysia
    pen-tail; pentail.
WordNet

piece of tail

  • noun slang for sexual intercourse
    ass; screw; fucking; shtup; screwing; fuck; roll in the hay; nookie; piece of ass; nooky; shag.
WordNet

pin-tailed

Pin"-tailed` adjective
Definitions
  1. (Zoöl.) Having a tapered tail, with the middle feathers longest; -- said of birds.
Webster 1913

pin-tailed duck

  • noun long-necked river duck of the Old and New Worlds having elongated central tail feathers
    pintail; Anas acuta.
WordNet

pin-tailed grouse

  • noun sandgrouse of Europe and Africa having elongated middle tail feathers
    pin-tailed grouse; Pterocles alchata.
WordNet

pin-tailed sandgrouse

  • noun sandgrouse of Europe and Africa having elongated middle tail feathers
    pin-tailed grouse; Pterocles alchata.
WordNet

rat's-tail cactus

  • noun commonly cultivated tropical American cactus having slender creeping stems and very large showy crimson flowers that bloom for several days
    rattail cactus; Aporocactus flagelliformis.
WordNet

rat-tail

Rat"-tail` adjective
Definitions
  1. Like a rat's tale in form; as, a rat-tail file, which is round, slender, and tapering. See Illust. of File.
Rat"-tail` noun
Definitions
  1. (Far.) pl. An excrescence growing from the pastern to the middle of the shank of a horse.
  2. (Zoöl.) (a) The California chimæra. See Chimæra. (b) Any fish of the genus Macrurus. See Grenadier, 2.
Webster 1913

rat-tail file

  • noun a thin round file shaped like the tail of a rat
WordNet

rat-tailed

Rat"-tailed` adjective
Definitions
  1. (Zoöl.) Having a long, tapering tail like that of a rat.
Webster 1913

Rat-tailed larva

  • (Zoöl.), the larva of a fly of the genus Eristalis. See Eristalis.
Webster 1913

Rat-tailed radish

  • (Bot.), an herb (Raphanus caudatus) having a long, slender pod, which is sometimes eaten.
Webster 1913

Rat-tailed serpent

  • (Zoöl.), the fer-de-lance.
Webster 1913

Rat-tailed shrew

  • (Zoöl.), the musk shrew.
Webster 1913

red-tailed

Red"-tailed` adjective
Definitions
  1. Having a red tail.
Webster 1913

Red-tailed hawk

  • noun dark brown American hawk species having a reddish-brown tail
    redtail; Buteo jamaicensis.
WordNet
  • (Zoöl.), a large North American hawk (Buteo borealis). When adult its tail is chestnut red. Called also hen hawck, and red-tailed buzzard.
Webster 1913

ring-tailed

Ring"-tailed` adjective
Definitions
  1. (Zoöl.) Having the tail crossed by conspicuous bands of color.
Webster 1913

Ring-tailed cat

  • noun raccoon-like omnivorous mammal of Mexico and the southwestern United States having a long bushy tail with black and white rings
    cacomixle; bassarisk; coon cat; civet cat; cacomistle; Bassariscus astutus; ringtail; miner's cat; raccoon fox.
WordNet
  • (Zoöl.), the cacomixle.
Webster 1913

Ring-tailed eagle

  • (Zoöl.), a young golden eagle.
Webster 1913

ring-tailed lemur

  • noun small lemur having its tail barred with black
    Lemur catta; Madagascar cat.
WordNet

round-tailed muskrat

  • noun of Florida wetlands
    Neofiber alleni; Florida water rat.
WordNet

ruby-tailed

Ru"by-tailed` adjective
Definitions
  1. Having the tail, or lower part of the body, bright red.
Webster 1913

scaly-tailed

  • adjective satellite having a scaly tail
WordNet

Scansorial tail

  • (Zoöl.), a tail in which the feathers are stiff and sharp at the tip, as in the woodpeckers.
Webster 1913

scissor-tailed

  • adjective satellite (of birds) having a deeply forked tail
    • scissor-tailed birds
WordNet

scissors-tailed

Scis"sors-tailed` adjective
Definitions
  1. (Zoöl.) Having the outer feathers much the longest, the others decreasing regularly to the median ones.
Webster 1913

Scorpion's tail

  • (Bot.), any plant of the leguminous genus Scorpiurus, herbs with a circinately coiled pod; also called caterpillar.
Webster 1913

sharp-tailed grouse

  • noun large grouse of prairies and open forests of western North America
    sprigtail; sharp-tailed grouse; Pedioecetes phasianellus.
WordNet

short-tailed

  • adjective satellite having a short tail
WordNet

short-tailed shrew

  • noun North American shrew with tail less than half its body length
    Blarina brevicauda.
WordNet

slender-tailed meerkat

  • noun a meerkat with a thin and elongated tail
    Suricata suricatta.
WordNet

spine-tailed

Spine"-tailed adjective
Definitions
  1. (Zoöl.) Having the tail quills ending in sharp, naked tips.
Webster 1913

Spine-tailed swift

  • . (Zoöl.) See Spinetail (a).
Webster 1913

split-tail

Split"-tail` noun
Definitions
  1. (Zoöl.) (a) A california market fish (Pogonichthys macrolepidotus) belonging to the Carp family. (b) The pintail duck.
Webster 1913

sprig tail

  • noun large grouse of prairies and open forests of western North America
    sprigtail; sharp-tailed grouse; Pedioecetes phasianellus.
WordNet

square-tailed

  • adjective satellite having a square tail
WordNet

Squirrel-tail grass

  • (Bot.), a grass (Hordeum jubatum) found in salt marshes and along the Great Lakes, having a dense spike beset with long awns.
Webster 1913

stiff-tailed

  • adjective satellite having a stiff tail
WordNet
Stiff"-tailed` adjective
Definitions
  1. (Zoöl.) Having the quill feathers of the tail somewhat rigid.
Webster 1913

stump-tailed

Stump"-tailed` adjective
Definitions
  1. Having a short, thick tail.
Webster 1913

Stump-tailed lizard

  • (Zoöl.), a singular Australian scincoid lizard (Trachydosaurus rugosus) having a short, thick tail resembling its head in form; called also sleeping lizard.
Webster 1913

swallow-tailed

  • adjective satellite (especially of butterflies and birds) having a forked tail like that of a swallow
WordNet
Swal"low-tailed` adjective
Definitions
  1. Having a tail like that of a swallow; hence, like a swallow's tail in form; having narrow and tapering or pointed skirts; as, a swallow-tailed coat.
  2. (Carp.) United by dovetailing; dovetailed.
Webster 1913

Swallow-tailed hawk ∨ kite

  • (Zoöl.), the fork-tailed kite.
Webster 1913

swallow-tailed coat

  • noun a man's full-dress jacket with two long tapering tails at the back
    morning coat; swallowtail.
WordNet

Swallow-tailed duck

  • (Zoöl.), the old squaw.
Webster 1913

Swallow-tailed gull

  • (Zoöl.), an Arctic gull (Xema furcata), which has a deeply forked tail.
Webster 1913

swallow-tailed hawk

  • noun graceful North American black-and-white kite
    Elanoides forficatus; swallow-tailed hawk.
WordNet

swallow-tailed kite

  • noun graceful North American black-and-white kite
    Elanoides forficatus; swallow-tailed hawk.
WordNet

Swallow-tailed moth

  • (Zoöl.), a European moth (Urapteryx sambucaria) having tail-like lobes on the hind wings.
Webster 1913

tail assembly

  • noun the rear part of an aircraft
    tail; empennage.
WordNet

Tail beam

  • . (Arch.) Same as Tailpiece.
Webster 1913

tail bone

  • noun the end of the vertebral column in humans and tailless apes
    coccyx.
WordNet

tail coat

  • noun formalwear consisting of full evening dress for men
    white tie; tailcoat; tails; tail coat; full dress; dress suit.
WordNet

Tail coverts

  • (Zoöl.), the feathers which cover the bases of the tail quills. They are sometimes much longer than the quills, and form elegant plumes. Those above the quills are called the upper tail coverts, and those below, the under tail coverts.
Webster 1913

Tail end

  • noun the time of the last part of something
    tail; fag end.
    • the fag end of this crisis-ridden century
    • the tail of the storm
  • noun any projection that resembles the tail of an animal
    tail.
  • noun the fleshy part of the human body that you sit on
    bum; seat; stern; keister; prat; bottom; rear end; buns; tail; tush; rump; fanny; ass; behind; tooshie; hind end; posterior; hindquarters; butt; nates; rear; arse; buttocks; backside; derriere; can; fundament.
    • he deserves a good kick in the butt
    • are you going to sit on your fanny and do nothing?
WordNet
  • the latter end; the termination; as, the tail end of a contest. Colloq.
Webster 1913

tail feather

  • noun feather growing from the tail (uropygium) of a bird
WordNet

tail fin

  • noun a stabilizer that is part of the vertical tail structure of an airplane
    vertical stabilizer; vertical stabiliser; vertical fin; tailfin.
  • noun one of a pair of decorations projecting above the rear fenders of an automobile
    fin; tailfin.
  • noun the tail of fishes and some other aquatic vertebrates
    caudal fin.
WordNet

tail gate

  • noun a gate downstream from a lock or canal that is used to control the flow of water at the lower end
WordNet

Tail joist

  • . (Arch.) Same as Tailpiece.
Webster 1913

tail lamp

  • noun lamp (usually red) mounted at the rear of a motor vehicle
    rear lamp; taillight; rear light.
WordNet

Tail of a comet

  • (Astron.), a luminous train extending from the nucleus or body, often to a great distance, and usually in a direction opposite to the sun.
Webster 1913

Tail of a gale

  • (Naut.), the latter part of it, when the wind has greatly abated. Totten.
Webster 1913

Tail of a lock

  • (on a canal), the lower end, or entrance into the lower pond.
Webster 1913

Tail of the trenches

  • (Fort.), the post where the besiegers begin to break ground, and cover themselves from the fire of the place, in advancing the lines of approach.
Webster 1913

Tail on

  • . (Naut.) See Tally on, under Tally.
Webster 1913

tail rotor

  • noun rotor consisting of a rotating airfoil on the tail of a single-rotor helicopter; keeps the helicopter from spinning in the direction opposite to the rotation of the main rotor
    anti-torque rotor.
WordNet

Tail spindle

  • the spindle of the tailstock of a turning lathe; called also dead spindle.
Webster 1913

tail-bay

Tail"-bay` noun
Definitions
  1. (Arch.) One of the joists which rest one end on the wall and the other on a girder; also, the space between a wall and the nearest girder of a floor. Cf. Case-bay.
  2. The part of a canal lock below the lower gates.
Webster 1913

tail-flower

  • noun any of various tropical American plants cultivated for their showy foliage and flowers
    tailflower; anthurium.
WordNet

tail-shaped

  • adjective satellite shaped like the tail of an animal
WordNet

tail-water

Tail"-wa`ter noun
Definitions
  1. Water in a tailrace.
Webster 1913

tailed frog

  • noun western North American frog with a taillike copulatory organ
    Ascaphus trui; ribbed toad; tailed frog; bell toad.
WordNet

tailed toad

  • noun western North American frog with a taillike copulatory organ
    Ascaphus trui; ribbed toad; tailed frog; bell toad.
WordNet

teeter-tail

Tee"ter-tail` noun
Definitions
  1. (Zoöl.) The spotted sandpiper. See the Note under Sandpiper.
Webster 1913

To stave and tail

  • in bear baiting, (to stave) to interpose with the staff, doubtless to stop the bear; (to tail) to hold back the dog by the tail. Nares.
Webster 1913

To tail inon

  • (Arch.), to fasten by one of the ends into a wall or some other support; as, to tail in a timber.
Webster 1913

To turn tail

  • to run away; to flee.
  • to run away; to retreat ignominiously.
Webster 1913

triple-tail

Tri"ple-tail` noun
Definitions
  1. (Zoöl.) An edible fish (Lobotes Surinamensis) found in the warmer parts of all the oceans, and common on the southern and middle coasts of the United States. When living it is silvery gray, and becomes brown or blackish when dead. Its dorsal and anal fins are long, and extend back on each side of the tail. It has large silvery scales which are used in the manufacture of fancy work. Called also, locally, black perch, grouper, and flasher.
Webster 1913

turn tail

  • verb flee; take to one's heels; cut and run
    lam; run; head for the hills; hightail it; bunk; run away; take to the woods; scarper; escape; fly the coop; break away; scat.
    • If you see this man, run!
    • The burglars escaped before the police showed up
WordNet

vertical tail

  • noun the vertical airfoil in the tail assembly of an aircraft
WordNet

wedge-tailed

Wedge"-tailed" adjective
Definitions
  1. (Zoöl.) Having a tail which has the middle pair of feathers longest, the rest successively and decidedly shorter, and all more or less attenuate; -- said of certain birds. See Illust. of Wood hoopoe, under Wood.
Webster 1913

Wedge-tailed eagle

  • an Australian eagle (Aquila audax) which feeds on various small species of kangaroos, and on lambs; called also mountain eagle, bold eagle, and eagle hawk.
Webster 1913

Wedge-tailed gull

  • an arctic gull (Rhodostethia rosea) in which the plumage is tinged with rose; called also Ross's gull.
Webster 1913

white tail

  • noun common North American deer; tail has a white underside
    Odocoileus Virginianus; white tail; whitetail; Virginia deer; whitetail deer.
WordNet

white tie and tails

  • noun formalwear consisting of full evening dress for men
    white tie; tailcoat; tails; tail coat; full dress; dress suit.
WordNet

white-tailed deer

  • noun common North American deer; tail has a white underside
    Odocoileus Virginianus; white tail; whitetail; Virginia deer; whitetail deer.
WordNet

white-tailed jackrabbit

  • noun largest hare of northern plains and western mountains of United States; brownish-grey in summer and pale grey in winter; tail nearly always all white
    Lepus townsendi; whitetail jackrabbit.
WordNet

white-tailed kite

  • noun grey-and-white American kite of warm and tropical regions
    Elanus leucurus.
WordNet

white-tailed sea eagle

  • noun bulky greyish-brown eagle with a short wedge-shaped white tail; of Europe and Greenland
    erne; grey sea eagle; Haliatus albicilla; gray sea eagle; European sea eagle; ern.
WordNet

wire-tailed

Wire"-tailed` adjective
Definitions
  1. (Zoöl.) Having some or all of the tail quills terminated in a long, slender, pointed shaft, without a web or barbules.
Webster 1913

zebra-tailed lizard

  • noun swift lizard with long black-banded tail and long legs; of deserts of United States and Mexico
    gridiron-tailed lizard; Callisaurus draconoides.
WordNet