shirttail

[ shurt-teyl ]

/ ˈʃɜrtˌteɪl /

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noun

the part of a shirt below the waistline.

Journalism. a brief item added at the end of a related newspaper story.Compare follow-up (def. 3b).

adjective

quite young and immature in behavior.

Chiefly Midland and Southern U.S. of distant relation, especially by marriage: some shirttail cousins I'd never met.

verb (used with object)

Informal. to append or add (an item) to a discussion or writing: The tariff concessions were shirttailed onto the trade bill.

QUIZ

THINGAMABOB OR THINGUMMY: CAN YOU DISTINGUISH BETWEEN THE US AND UK TERMS IN THIS QUIZ?

Do you know the difference between everyday US and UK terminology? Test yourself with this quiz on words that differ across the Atlantic.

Question 1 of 7

In the UK, COTTON CANDY is more commonly known as…

candystring

candyfloss

candypuff

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Origin of shirttail

An Americanism dating back to 1835–45; shirt + tail¹

How to use shirttail in a sentence

But the weeks passed, and the Shirt-tail battalion was no nearer Cuba, though it was much nearer efficiency for the field.
The Code of the Mountains|Charles Neville Buck
If the men of the Shirt-tail battalion had feared the dull routine of garrison duty, they were to be pleasantly disappointed.
The Code of the Mountains|Charles Neville Buck
The Shirt-tail battalion and the bluegrass battalion stood in peril of decimation in their maiden engagement.
The Code of the Mountains|Charles Neville Buck
And then one saw, to one's amazement, that the whole of his shirt-tail was left out behind, like a sort of apron worn backwards.
Sea and Sardinia|D. H. Lawrence

He spent half an hour in stealthily tearing a square foot from his shirt-tail; then, weary and sick, went to sleep.
The Lord of the Sea|M. P. Shiel

British Dictionary definitions for shirttail

shirt-tail

noun

the part of a shirt that extends below the waist

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