fish-tailn.adj.
/ˈfɪʃteɪl/, U.S. /ˈfɪʃˌteɪl/ A. n.
The tail of a fish. Chiefly attributive of things resembling a fish's tail in shape or action, e.g. a spreading flame from a kind of gas-burner, hence called fish-tail burner, fish-tail-jet (also shortened fish-tail).
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1840 Mechanics' Mag. 32 343/2 The best small light is..the fish-tail jet.
1852 J. Bourne Treat. Screw Propeller 56 Fowles's Fish-tail Propeller.
1864 G. A. Sala in Daily Tel. Oct. I turned on a fishtail burner.
c1865 H. Letheby in J. Wylde Circle of Sci. I. 128/2 In the case of cannel coal, the holes are small; and for common London gas they are rather large. The former are known by the name of Lancashire or Scotch fish-tails.
1872 O. W. Holmes Poet at Breakfast-table (1885) x. 247 We have no more reverence for the sun than we have for a fish-tail gas burner.
1892 Daily News 29 Mar. 6/6 I spliced it to the bedstead, in what they call a fishtail knot.
1931 Vanity Fair Nov. 78/2 Fishtailing, which is swishing the machine from side to side to reduce the forward speed, explains a fishtail landing as zig-zagging after touching ground, in order to slow down when coming into a small field.
1939 M. B. Picken Lang. Fashion 57/3 Fish-tail, shaped like tail of fish; having cut-out V in end.—f[ish-tail] drapery, train, as on a formal gown, shaped like fish-tail.
1963 Gloss. Mining Terms (B.S.I.) iii. 8 Drag bit (fishtail bit, pilot bit), a rotary bit which has two or more cutting blades or wings with hard~faced cutting edges. (Various types are the two-wing, three-wing, fishtail and pilot bits.)
B. adj.
As predicative adj. rare.
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1891 Daily News 28 Mar. 5/6 The wind was very fish-tail and tricky.
Compounds
fish-tail moth n. South African = silver-fish n. 2
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1891 R. Monteiro Delagoa Bay 129 Some people call them fish-tail moths—why ‘moths’ it would be difficult to discover.
fish-tail wind n. (see quot. 1875).
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the world > the earth > weather and the atmosphere > weather > wind > [noun] > wind with reference to direction > wind that is changeable in direction
monsoon1692
variable1846
fish-tail wind1875
1875 Times 16 July 5/5 A nasty shifting breeze blowing down the ranges all day, now on this side, now on that,—a ‘fishtail’ wind.
1882 Daily News 15 Sept. 6/1 The day was bright with a strong fish-tail wind.
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1896; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
fish-tailv.
/ˈfɪʃteɪl/, U.S. /ˈfɪʃˌteɪl/ intransitive. To cause the tail of an aircraft or the back of a motor car to swing from side to side (in aircraft in order to reduce the landing speed; also said of the aircraft or car itself).
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society > travel > air or space travel > specific movements or positions of aircraft > fly [verb (intransitive)] > swing from side to side
fish-tail1927
society > travel > transport > transport or conveyance in a vehicle > movement of vehicles > move or go along [verb (intransitive)] > swing from side to side at rear
fish-tail1957
1927 N.Y. World 23 July 2/6 She looped,..fish-tailed and then swooped some.
1942 J. Aldridge Signed with their Honour 14 He put his flaps down and fish-tailed in.
1957 Life 29 Apr. 132/1 Causing his rear wheels to spin or the rear end to ‘fish-tail’, that is, swing back and forth.
1967 L. Forrester Girl called Fathom xi. 129 She..sat there, stiffly swaying as the car fish-tailed, straightened out.
Derivatives
ˈfish-tailing n.
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society > travel > air or space travel > specific movements or positions of aircraft > [noun] > swinging from side to side
sidesway1839
fish-tailing1931
1931 Vanity Fair Nov. 78/2 Fishtailing, which is swishing the machine from side to side to reduce the forward speed, explains a fishtail landing as zig-zagging after touching ground, in order to slow down when coming into a small field.
1971 Daily Colonist (Victoria, Brit. Columbia) 28 Jan. 31/6 One of the cars appeared to be fishtailing.
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1972; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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n.adj.1840v.1927