dovetail

[ duhv-teyl ]

/ ˈdʌvˌteɪl /

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See synonyms for: dovetail / dovetailing on Thesaurus.com

noun Carpentry.

a tenon broader at its end than at its base; pin.

a joint formed of one or more such tenons fitting tightly within corresponding mortises.

verb (used with or without object)

Carpentry. to join or fit together by means of a dovetail or dovetails.

to join or fit together compactly or harmoniously.

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Origin of dovetail

First recorded in 1555–65; so named from its shape

OTHER WORDS FROM dovetail

dovetailer, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use dovetail in a sentence

That's the purpose behind the campaign, dovetailing with many other efforts to achieve the same effect.
A Hollow Call For "Justice"|Hussein Ibish|September 17, 2012|DAILY BEAST
The pieces are firmly dovetailed together, the front being clean and the dovetailing blind.
Directions for Collecting and Preserving Insects|C. V. Riley
Eventually however, the bones come close together, and are joined by a curious kind of dovetailing.
The Matron's Manual of Midwifery, and the Diseases of Women During Pregnancy and in Childbed|Frederick Hollick
An alternative method of dovetailing is that of cutting the dovetails first, as shown at Fig. 283.
Woodwork Joints|William Fairham

Then at Fig. 293 are shown two familiar examples of dovetailing the bearer to the carcase end of a dressing table or washstand.
Woodwork Joints|William Fairham
This shows the necessity of bevelled dovetailing in order that the drawer front may be kept as thin and light as possible.
Woodwork Joints|William Fairham

British Dictionary definitions for dovetail

dovetail

/ (ˈdʌvˌteɪl) /

noun

a wedge-shaped tenon

Also called: dovetail joint a joint containing such tenons

verb

(tr) to join by means of dovetails

to fit or cause to fit together closely or neatlyhe dovetailed his arguments to the desired conclusion

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

dovetail

Origin of dovetail

OTHER WORDS FROM dovetail

Words related to dovetail

How to use dovetail in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for dovetail