tagalong

1 of 2

noun

tag·​along ˈta-gə-ˌlȯŋ How to pronounce tagalong (audio)
: one that persistently and often annoyingly follows the lead of another

tag along

2 of 2

verb

tagged along; tagging along; tags along

intransitive verb

: to follow another's lead especially in going from one place to another

Examples of tagalong in a Sentence

Noun His little sister was sometimes a tagalong on his outings with his friends.
Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
While there is no official bed bug season, August through October often see an uptick in infestations as those summer tagalongs find new homes and head off to dorm rooms alongside college students. John Tufts, The Courier-Journal, 23 Feb. 2024 Propelled by manic charisma, Ike careens around the New York City streets with Marty as his tagalong. Erin Qualey, Vulture, 12 Nov. 2021 The Muppet Movie chronicles Kermit the Frog's cross-country drive to Hollywood to pursue a career in show business, a trip dotted with original songs, tons of Muppet tagalongs, and an evil restauranteur with a burgeoning frog leg business. Cnt Editors, Condé Nast Traveler, 25 Mar. 2020 That bright tagalong is actually Jupiter, the largest planet in our solar system. Mike Lynch, Twin Cities, 27 Oct. 2019 Celestial tagalongs Neptune has 14 known moons as of 2019. National Geographic, 28 Mar. 2019 So despite his concerted efforts to highlight North Korea’s numerous offenses and push Moon to hold the hard line against Pyongyang, Pence seems to have been reduced to being a tagalong in yet another world leader’s entourage. Chas Danner, Daily Intelligencer, 10 Feb. 2018 But something about our tagalongs didn’t seem right. Maria Panaritis, Philly.com, 30 May 2018
Verb
Her cookbook Giada’s Italy was filled with pictures taken on location — and her daughter Jade and Veronica even tagged along for the trip. Ana Calderone, Peoplemag, 26 Feb. 2024 Lauren and their two kids weren’t just tagging along. Jim Owczarski, Journal Sentinel, 10 Jan. 2024 Ken tags along because Barbie is his sun, moon, and emotional center. Angelica Jade Bastién, Vulture, 7 Feb. 2024 That achievement for Mars came courtesy of the Ingenuity helicopter in April 2021, when the tiny craft, which had tagged along on the 2020 mission to the Red Planet, spun its blades in the extremely thin atmosphere and lifted nearly ten feet. Roger Catlin, Smithsonian Magazine, 2 Feb. 2024 Their friends may see life coaches picking up clients for a meeting and want to tag along. Darcy Costello, Baltimore Sun, 12 Feb. 2024 Consider tagging along if your partner is partial to activities like bike riding, hiking or yoga class. Ashlyn Messier, Fox News, 11 Feb. 2024 The rapper’s son has tagged along with her, including sitting with her while she got glammed up in August 2022. Francesca Gariano, Peoplemag, 6 Feb. 2024 Archie and Lili may even tag along to the 2025 Invictus Games. Stephanie Petit, Peoplemag, 1 Feb. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'tagalong.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

Noun

1935, in the meaning defined above

Verb

1900, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of tagalong was in 1900

Dictionary Entries Near tagalong

Cite this Entry

“Tagalong.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/tagalong. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

tagalong

1 of 2 noun
tag·​along ˈtag-ə-ˌlȯŋ How to pronounce tagalong (audio)
: one that tags along

tag along

2 of 2 verb
ˌtag-ə-ˈlȯŋ
: to follow another's lead especially in going from one place to another
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!