Tail
| Noun | 1. | tail - the posterior part of the body of a vertebrate especially when elongated and extending beyond the trunk or main part of the body |
| 2. | tail - the time of the last part of something; "the fag end of this crisis-ridden century"; "the tail of the storm" | |
| 3. | tail - any projection that resembles the tail of an animal Synonyms: tail end | |
| 4. |  tail - the fleshy part of the human body that you sit on; "he deserves a good kick in the butt"; "are you going to sit on your fanny and do nothing?" | |
| 5. | tail - a spy employed to follow someone and report their movements | |
| 6. | tail - (usually plural) the reverse side of a coin that does not bear the representation of a person's head Antonyms: head - (usually plural) an obverse side of a coin that bears the representation of a person's head; "call heads or tails!" | |
| 7. | tail - the rear part of an aircraft Synonyms: empennage, tail assembly | |
| 8. | tail - the rear part of a ship | |
| Verb | 1. | tail - go after with the intent to catch; "The policeman chased the mugger down the alley"; "the dog chased the rabbit" |
| 2. | tail - remove or shorten the tail of an animal | |
| 3. | tail - remove the stalk of fruits or berries |
TAIL. An estate tail is an estate of inheritance, to a man or a woman and
his or her heirs of his or her body, or heirs of his body of a particular
description, or to several persons and the heirs of their bodies, or the
heirs generally or specially of the body or bodies of one person, or several
bodies. Prest. on Estates, 355; Cruise, tit. 2, c. 1, s. 12.
2. Estates tail, as qualified "in their limitation and extent, are of
several sorts. They have different denominations, according to the
circumstances under which, or the persons to whom they are limited. They are
usually divided into estates tail general or special.
3. But they may be more advantageously arranged under the following
classes.
4.-1. As to the extent of the degree to which the estates may descend,
they are, 1st, general; 2d, qualified.
5.-2. As to the sex of the person who may succeed, they are, 1st.
General, as extending to males or females of the body, without exception.
2d. Special, as admitting only one sex to the succession, and excluding the
other sex.
6.-3. As to the person by whom or by whose body those heirs are to be
begotten, they are either, 1st. General, as to all the heirs of the body of
a man or woman. 2d. Special, as to the heirs of the body of a man or woman
begotten by a particular person, or to the heirs of the two bodies of a man
and woman. On the several species of estates tail noticed under this
division, it may be observed, that the same estate may at the same time, be
general in one respect; as, for example, to all the heirs of the body in
whatever degree they are related; and may be, special in another respect, as
that these heirs shall be males, &c. Prest. on Estates, 383, 4.
7. The law relating to entails is diversified in the several states. In
Indiana and Louisiana they never existed they are unknown in Illinois and
Vermont. In Ohio, Virginia, Tennessee, Kentucky, and New York, estates tail
are converted into estates in fee simple by statute; and they may be barred
by a simple conveyance in Pennsylvania. In Alabama, Missouri, Mississippi,
New Jersey, Connecticut and North Carolina, they have been modified, and in
Georgia, they have been abolished without reservation. Griff. Reg. h.t.
Vide, generally, 8 Vin. Ab. 227 to 272; 10 Id. 257 to 269; 20 Id. 163; Bac.
Ab. Estate in tail; 4 Com. Dig. 17; 4 Kent, Com. 12; Bouv. Inst. Index,
h.t.; and. 1 Bro. Civ. Law, 188, where an attempt is made to prove that an
estate resembling an estate tail was not unknown to the Romans.