as in chased
to go after or on the track of
detectives tailed the suspect to see where he was going at that time of the evening
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Recent Examples of tailed
One rider, identified as Richard Collins, the leader of the group, told Fox 5 Atlanta the black SUV tailed the group and laid down the horn.
—
Sarah Rumpf-Whitten, FOXNews.com, 1 May 2026
The hit was outsourced to a hulking Estonian assassin, Imre (the Butcher) Arakas, who arrived at Dublin Airport on April 3, 2017, and was immediately tailed by officers from the An Garda Síochána’s Drugs and Organised Crime Bureau, who arrested him the next day.
—Ed Caesar, New Yorker, 30 Apr. 2026
Players who find themselves being tailed tend to take it first as a badge of honor.
—Jess Myers, Twin Cities, 22 Apr. 2026
Plan was to be bushy tailed & beauty rested, as I was meant to head straight to glam for a slot with our beloved Drew Barrymore upon landing.
—Zack Sharf, Variety, 10 Apr. 2026
Plan was to be bushy tailed & beauty rested [sic], as I was meant to head straight to glam for a slot with our beloved @DrewBarrymore, upon landing.
—Chanel Vargas, InStyle, 10 Apr. 2026
San Francisco Police Department The vehicle fled from the Palace of Fine Arts while being tracked by drone and tailed by plainclothes officers, police said.
—Carlos E. Castañeda, CBS News, 6 Apr. 2026
Vast numbers of gregarious Central Texas grackles — the separate common and great-tailed species — assemble by the thousands at night, especially during the winter.
—Michael Barnes, Austin American Statesman, 18 Feb. 2026
The Bride learns to view herself as a monster after a night of dancing at a club ends in violence, forcing the couple to hit the road, where they're tailed by a detective (played by Gyllenhaal's husband, Peter Sarsgaard), and his brilliant but long-suffering secretary (Penélope Cruz).
—Sydney Bucksbaum, Entertainment Weekly, 3 Feb. 2026
Sarah Rumpf-Whitten, FOXNews.com, 1 May 2026
The hit was outsourced to a hulking Estonian assassin, Imre (the Butcher) Arakas, who arrived at Dublin Airport on April 3, 2017, and was immediately tailed by officers from the An Garda Síochána’s Drugs and Organised Crime Bureau, who arrested him the next day.
—Ed Caesar, New Yorker, 30 Apr. 2026
Players who find themselves being tailed tend to take it first as a badge of honor.
—Jess Myers, Twin Cities, 22 Apr. 2026
Plan was to be bushy tailed & beauty rested, as I was meant to head straight to glam for a slot with our beloved Drew Barrymore upon landing.
—Zack Sharf, Variety, 10 Apr. 2026
Plan was to be bushy tailed & beauty rested [sic], as I was meant to head straight to glam for a slot with our beloved @DrewBarrymore, upon landing.
—Chanel Vargas, InStyle, 10 Apr. 2026
San Francisco Police Department The vehicle fled from the Palace of Fine Arts while being tracked by drone and tailed by plainclothes officers, police said.
—Carlos E. Castañeda, CBS News, 6 Apr. 2026
Vast numbers of gregarious Central Texas grackles — the separate common and great-tailed species — assemble by the thousands at night, especially during the winter.
—Michael Barnes, Austin American Statesman, 18 Feb. 2026
The Bride learns to view herself as a monster after a night of dancing at a club ends in violence, forcing the couple to hit the road, where they're tailed by a detective (played by Gyllenhaal's husband, Peter Sarsgaard), and his brilliant but long-suffering secretary (Penélope Cruz).
—Sydney Bucksbaum, Entertainment Weekly, 3 Feb. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for tailed
Verb
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Bo Bichette led off the bottom of the first with a home run against right-hander Zack Littell, and the Mets chased him from the game in the fourth inning.—
Abbey Mastracco,
New York Daily News,
29 Apr. 2026
-
Officers briefly chased the suspect through Highland Park, but backed off.—
Matthew Rodriguez,
CBS News,
28 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Perhaps influenced by her parents, who both worked in the medical field, Pau pursued an education in the sciences, receiving her degree in radiography from Hong Kong Polytechnic in 1982.—
Pauline J. Yao,
Artforum,
2 May 2026
-
Before becoming a newscaster, Gore pursued a culinary career, working as a personal chef, food columnist, caterer and a line cook for chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten.—
Edward Segarra,
USA Today,
1 May 2026
Verb
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On one side, that means making sure original materials, such as original negatives, prints, sound elements, are properly stored, tracked, and protected.—
Chris Yogerst,
HollywoodReporter,
6 May 2026
-
The Associated Press has tracked more than 150 such incidents linked to Moscow by Western officials since the invasion of Ukraine.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
6 May 2026
Verb
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In the years that followed, Blackmon and other lawyers used the law to challenge at-large election systems that prevented Black communities from electing candidates of their choice.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
2 May 2026
-
And their listeners had fun right along with them, and followed them from one station to another.—
Jim Alexander,
Oc Register,
2 May 2026
Verb
-
Dining at restaurant wars Soon thereafter, we were escorted back outside to enter the competing restaurant, Tierra Reina.—
Heidi Finley,
Charlotte Observer,
28 Apr. 2026
-
He was escorted by law enforcement at all times.—
Thao Nguyen,
USA Today,
28 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Tailed.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/tailed. Accessed 8 May. 2026.
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