- [countable] the part that sticks out at the back of the body of a bird, an animal or a fish, which the animal can move from side to side or up and down
- The dog ran up, wagging its tail.
- My dog loves to chase his tail.
- The male has beautiful tail feathers.
- It was black from its nose to the tip of its tail.
Homophones tail | taletail talesee also ponytailTopics Animalsb1, Birdsb1, Fish and shellfishb1/teɪl//teɪl/- tail noun
- The peacock fans out its magnificent tail to attract females.
- tail verb
- A spy is sent to tail the family and find out everything they do.
- tale noun
- She told the children the tale of the tortoise and the hare.
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective- long
- short
- bushy
- …
- flick
- swish
- thrash
- …
- swish
- twitch
- wag
- …
- bone
- feathers
- fin
- …
- the tip of its/his/her tail
- (in adjectives) having the type of tail mentioned
- a white-tailed eagle
More Like This Compound adjectives for physical characteristicsCompound adjectives for physical characteristics - [countable] the back part of a plane, spacecraft, etc.
- The plane's tail section had broken off.
Oxford Collocations Dictionarytail + noun- section
- fin
- light
- …
- at the tail
- nose to tail
- [countable] tail (of something) a part of something that sticks out at the back like a tail
- the tail of a kite
Oxford Collocations Dictionarytail + noun- section
- fin
- light
- …
- at the tail
- nose to tail
- [countable] tail (of something) the last part of something that is moving away from you
- the tail of the procession
- the truck at the tail of our convoy
Oxford Collocations Dictionarytail + noun- section
- fin
- light
- …
- at the tail
- nose to tail
- tails[plural] (informal)(also tailcoat [countable])a long jacket divided at the back below the waist into two pieces that become narrower at the bottom, worn by men at very formal events
- The men all wore top hat and tails.
- tails[uncountable] the side of a coin that does not have a picture of the head of a person on it, used as one choice when a coin is tossed to decide something compare headsTopics Preferences and decisionsc1
- [countable] (informal) a person who is sent to follow somebody secretly and find out information about where that person goes, what they do, etc.
- The police have put a tail on him.
of bird/animal/fish
-tailed
of plane/spacecraft
back/end of something
jacket
side of coin
person who follows somebody
Word OriginOld English tæg(e)l, from a Germanic base meaning ‘hair, hairy tail’; related to Middle Low German tagel ‘twisted whip, rope's end’. The early sense of the verb (early 16th cent.) was ‘fasten to the back of something’.
Idioms
See tail in the Oxford Advanced American DictionarySee tail in the Oxford Learner's Dictionary of Academic Englishcan’t make head nor/or tail of something
- to be unable to understand something
- I couldn't make head nor tail of what he was saying.
chase your (own) tail
- (informal) to be very busy but in fact achieve very littleTopics Difficulty and failurec2
heads or tails?
- used to ask somebody which side of a coin they think will be facing upwards when it is tossed in order to decide something by chance
nose to tail
- (British English) if cars, etc. are nose to tail, they are moving slowly in a long line with little space between them
- The traffic was nose to tail for miles.
on somebody’s tail
- (informal) following behind somebody very closely, especially in a car
- There’s been a white van sitting on my tail for the past ten miles.
a sting in the tail
- (informal) an unpleasant feature that comes at the end of a story, an event, etc. and makes it less good, successful, etc.
the tail (is) wagging the dog
- used to describe a situation in which the most important aspect is being influenced and controlled by somebody/something that is not as important
turn tail
- to run away from a fight or dangerous situation
- When they heard the sirens, they turned tail and ran.
with your tail between your legs
- (informal) feeling ashamed or unhappy because you have been defeated or punished
Check pronunciation:
tail