fishtail
verb
No English definition recorded for this entry.
L331717 on Wikidata ↗Wiktionary
Pronunciation: /ˈfɪʃteɪl/
noun
Etymology: From Middle English fisch tayle, equivalent to fish + tail.
- The tail of a fish, or an object resembling this.
- The skidding of the back of a vehicle from side to side.
- A kind of chisel with a flared blade.
- Ellipsis of fishtail palm.
verb
Etymology: From Middle English fisch tayle, equivalent to fish + tail.
- 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.”
- To cause the back of (a vehicle) to swing from side to side.
“But Bruce wasn't done baiting the jocks. He fishtailed the car; it swerved and reversed direction, heading straight for the three jocks who were chasing them on foot. It looked like he was going to run the car over the three men.”
- To move with the tail swinging from side to side in this way.
“A large black and gold butterfly fish-tailed in and landed on a hydrangea bush almost at my elbow, moved its wings slowly up and down a few times, then took off heavily […]”
“She'd sprinted away like Betty Cuthbert and the blue F.J. Holden was fishtailing up the street as fast as it could go.”