Tail Dog Back Teɪl Part Ran Wagging Coin

• the dog ran up, wagging its tail.
• the male has beautiful tail feathers.
• a white-tailed eagle
• the tail wing

tail

1. the part that sticks out and can be moved at the back of the body of a bird, an animal or a fish
• see also ponytail
  https://www.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com/definition/english/ponytail
• The dog ran up, wagging its tail.
• The male has beautiful tail feathers.
2. having the type of tail mentioned
• a white-tailed eagle
3. the back part of a plane, spacecraft, etc.
• the tail wing
4. a part of something that sticks out at the back like a tail
• the tail of a kite
5. the last part of something that is moving away from you
• see also tail end
  https://www.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com/definition/english/tail-end
• the tail of the procession
6. 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
• see also coat-tails
  https://www.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com/definition/english/coat-tails
• The men all wore top hat and tails.
7. 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 head
  https://www.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com/definition/english/head_1
8. 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.
9. to be unable to understand something
• I couldn't make head nor tail of what he was saying.
10. to be very busy but in fact achieve very little
11. 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
12. if cars, etc. are nose to tail, they are moving slowly in a long line with little space between them
• See related entries: Motoring problems and accidents
  https://www.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com/topic/motoring_problems_and_accidents/tail_1
13. following behind somebody very closely, especially in a car
• There’s been a white van sitting on my tail for the past ten miles.
14. an unpleasant feature that comes at the end of a story, an event, etc. and spoils it
15. used to describe a situation in which the most important aspect is being influenced and controlled by somebody/something that is not as important
16. to run away from a fight or dangerous situation
• When they heard the sirens, they turned tail and ran.
17. feeling ashamed or unhappy because you have been defeated or punished

Extra Examples

• It was black from its nose to the tip of its tail.
• My dog loves to chase his tail.
• The dog ran out with its tail wagging madly.
• The dog wagged its tail furiously.
• The plane’s tail section had broken off.
• Traffic which used to be nose to tail now flows freely.
• the truck at the tail of our convoy

Word Origin

• Old 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’.