long tail
2
3.3
- noun
:
cola larga
- Next, I roughed in most of the body and drew a long tail streaming out behind.
But for that to leave the room, there's that long body and long tail.
- But for that to leave the room, there's that long body and long tail.
- At the side of the lane to the Ford, I found a long tail field mouse feeding on a slope of grass.
- Milton, his huge long tail wound up in hundredfolds, does overspread his long brass scaly back.
Examples
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He has a long tail with a barb on it, and he's a reddish-brown color.
Fiction book (2000) -
The cheetah uses its long tail for balance while it runs at high speeds.
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At the side of the lane to the Ford, I found a long tail field mouse feeding on a slope of grass.
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It had a very long tail, visible during the daytime.
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Its long tail, thin enough to stick through the bars of its cage, had a large stinger on the end.
Fiction book (1992) -
An intent female tends her triplets, and in the process displays her distinctively long tail.
Academic text (2003) -
Its long tail swished back and forth, stirring up the dust on the barren plain.
Fiction book (1992) -
Walking on its hind legs, it held its long tail off the ground, reminding her of ladies raising their little fingers as they sipped tea.
Fiction book (1994) -
Compared with other Asian elephants, it is smaller, with larger ears, a longer tail, and comparatively straighter tusks.
Academic text (2008) -
At the unexpected sound, the herd of hypsilophodonts suddenly leapt into the air and bounded above the grass like kangaroos, showing their full bodies with massive hind limbs and long tails in the afternoon sunlight.
Fiction book (1990)
How Long
Surface Forms
Morphology
The noun phrase 'long tail' directly combines 'long' (exceeding typical length) and 'tail' (a rear appendage), so the meaning of a physically extended tail is fully predictable from its parts. This compositional pattern is cross-linguistically common and follows straightforward adjective+noun rules, making it immediately understandable to a B1 learner who knows both words.
Etymology
Long tail means a physically long tail. For animals or objects, a very long tail helps with balance or movement, so the phrase describes a tail that is long and useful for keeping steady or moving well.