shirttail
UK[ˈʃɜːt.teɪl]US[ˈʃɜːrt.teɪl]
n
the part of a shirt that extends below the waist, especially at the back.
n
a brief news item added at the end of a newspaper article or broadcast.
adj
describing a relative, especially a child, who is distantly related.
Morpheme Breakdown
shirt
tail
shirt
tail
Etymology
the compound word "shirttail" is a straightforward combination of two old english nouns, "shirt" and "tail," which entered modern english with minimal phonetic alteration. literally, it refers to the lower, loose-hanging portion of a shirt, analogous to an animal's tail. this concrete meaning was later extended metaphorically in two directions: in journalism, to denote a short, appended story, and in kinship, to describe a distant familial connection, implying something added on or only loosely attached. the logic of the word rests on the visual and conceptual similarity between the extended fabric of a garment and the appendage of an animal, a comparison deeply rooted in the descriptive nature of the germanic lexicon.
Analysis
Structure: shirt + tail
- shirt: from old english scyrte, meaning a short garment or tunic. it is a germanic word, functioning as the base noun.
- tail: from old english tægl, meaning the hindmost part of an animal. it is a germanic word, functioning as a noun to denote an extended or hanging part.
Examples
he tucked his shirttail into his trousers before the meeting.
the newspaper included a shirttail updating readers on the latest developments.
she's just a shirttail cousin, so we don't see her very often.