fishtail
To swing the back of a vehicle from side to sideTo swing the back of a vehicle (originally an aircraft) from side to side.
Meaning
3 senses(intransitive)To swing the back of a vehicle (originally an aircraft) from side to side.
As we approached the runway, the pilot fishtailed slightly to reduce landing speed.
(transitive)To cause the back of (a vehicle) to swing from side to side.
(intransitive)To move with the tail swinging from side to side in this way.
- slow down by moving the tail sideways
Origin
From Middle English fisch tayle, equivalent to fish + tail.From Middle English fisch tayle, equivalent to fish + tail.
Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0 · source
Forms
fishtails, fishtailing, fishtailed, fishtailed| Base form | fishtail · to fishtail |
|---|---|
| 3rd person singular | fishtails |
| Present participle | fishtailing |
| Past simple | fishtailed |
| Past participle | fishtailed |
regular · Lesson
Lessons for this word
3 lessons- A1Present simple — Because it is a verb
- A1Past simple, regular verbs — Because of its past form
- A2Present perfect: introduction — Because of its past participle
See also
neighbours in the dictionaryDictionary text adapted from Wiktionary (Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0) and Open English WordNet / Princeton WordNet (CC BY 4.0, WordNet License); shared under CC BY-SA 4.0. Example sentences and recordings are credited where they appear.