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Glite Dictionary
tailing

tailing

12 7.1
To follow someone without their knowledge to watch where they go
  • noun
  • /ˈteɪlɪŋ/
translation icon : seguimiento
  • After a few days of tailing the politician, she gathered valuable information.

Examples

  • Bravo Team tailing subject.

    Jason Bourne (2016)

  • Tailing and surveillance doesn't happen to be my area of expertise, okay?

    Loose Cannons (1990)

  • I'm perfecting my tailing technique now that I'm a P.I.

    Lethal Weapon 4 (1998)

  • The detective was skilled at tailing suspects without being seen.

  • His job as a private investigator often involved tailing clients' spouses.

Synonyms

surveillance
vstailing
  • Specialized
526 6.2

Careful, continuous watching of people or places by the police

describes secret personal following rather than institutional continuous watching
tracking
vstailing
114 3.2

Watching where people or things are over time

is more about secret close following to watch a person's movements
spying
vstailing
66 4.6

The act of secretly watching people or places to get information

involves physical following to watch movements rather than general watching
stalking
vstailing
  • Offensive
40 6.1

Following an animal quietly to get near it before you hunt it

focuses on secret observation for information rather than hunting or close approach
shadowing
vstailing
2 6.8

A secret act of following someone to watch what they do

is the same action but often described in everyday speech
trailing
vstailing
3.7

Following tracks to find a person or animal

means secret close following beside the target rather than tracking traces

Antonyms

to lead
∞ 1.0

To guide a group or be in charge

How Persistent

stalking
  • Offensive
40 6.1
shadowing
2 6.8
tailing
12 7.1
trailing
3.7
following
4.2

Surface Forms

tailing singular
tailings plural

Morphology

tailing = tail (transparent) = tail + ing

Standard nominalization/gerund formation from the verb 'tail' meaning 'to follow'; the noun meaning 'the act of following' is directly derived and easily guessable.

Etymology

The word tailing comes from the simple word tail, which means the 'back' part of an animal. To 'tail' someone is like staying at their 'tail' or 'back', quietly following them, so tailing means secretly following someone to watch their movements.