Definify.com

Webster 1913 Edition

Tack

Tack

,
Noun.
[From an old or dialectal form of F.
tache
. See
Techy
.]
1.
A stain; a tache.
[Obs.]
2.
[Cf. L.
tactus
.]
A peculiar flavor or taint;
as, a musty
tack
.
[Obs. or Colloq.]
Drayton.

Tack

,
Noun.
[OE.
tak
,
takke
, a fastening; akin to D.
tak
a branch, twig, G.
zacke
a twig, prong, spike, Dan.
takke
a tack, spike; cf. also Sw.
tagg
prickle, point, Icel.
tāg
a willow twig, Ir.
taca
a peg, nail, fastening, Gael.
tacaid
, Armor. & Corn.
tach
; perhaps akin to E.
take
. Cf.
Attach
,
Attack
,
Detach
,
Tag
an end,
Zigzag
.]
1.
A small, short, sharp-pointed nail, usually having a broad, flat head.
2.
That which is attached; a supplement; an appendix. See
Tack
,
Verb.
T.
, 3.
Macaulay.
Some
tacks
had been made to money bills in King Charles’s time.
Bp. Burnet.
3.
(Naut.)
(a)
A rope used to hold in place the foremost lower corners of the courses when the vessel is closehauled (see Illust. of
Ship
); also, a rope employed to pull the lower corner of a studding sail to the boom.
(b)
The part of a sail to which the tack is usually fastened; the foremost lower corner of fore-and-aft sails, as of schooners (see Illust. of
Sail
).
(c)
The direction of a vessel in regard to the trim of her sails;
as, the starboard
tack
, or port
tack
; – the former when she is closehauled with the wind on her starboard side; hence, the run of a vessel on one tack; also, a change of direction;
as, to take a different
tack
; – often used metaphorically
.
4.
(Scots Law)
A contract by which the use of a thing is set, or let, for hire; a lease.
Burrill.
5.
Confidence; reliance.
[Prov. Eng.]
Halliwell.
Tack of a flag
(Naut.)
,
a line spliced into the eye at the foot of the hoist for securing the flag to the halyards.
–
Tack pins
(Naut.)
,
belaying pins; – also called
jack pins
.
–
To haul the tacks aboard
(Naut.)
,
to set the courses.
–
To hold tack
,
to last or hold out.
Milton.

Tack

,
Verb.
T.
[
imp. & p. p.
Tacked
;
p. pr. & vb. n.
Tacking
.]
[Cf. OD.
tacken
to touch, take, seize, fix, akin to E.
take
. See
Tack
a small nail.]
1.
To fasten or attach.
“In hopes of getting some commendam tacked to their sees.”
Swift.
And
tacks
the center to the sphere.
Herbert.
2.
Especially, to attach or secure in a slight or hasty manner, as by stitching or nailing;
as, to
tack
together the sheets of a book; to
tack
one piece of cloth to another; to
tack
on a board or shingle; to
tack
one piece of metal to another by drops of solder.
3.
In parliamentary usage, to add (a supplement) to a bill; to append; – often with on or to;
as, to
tack
on a non-germane appropriation to a bill
.
Macaulay.
4.
(Naut.)
To change the direction of (a vessel) when sailing closehauled, by putting the helm alee and shifting the tacks and sails so that she will proceed to windward nearly at right angles to her former course.
☞ In tacking, a vessel is brought to point at first directly to windward, and then so that the wind will blow against the other side.

Tack

,
Verb.
I.
(Naut.)
To change the direction of a vessel by shifting the position of the helm and sails; also (as said of a vessel), to have her direction changed through the shifting of the helm and sails. See
Tack
,
Verb.
T.
, 4.
Monk, . . . when he wanted his ship to
tack
to larboard, moved the mirth of his crew by calling out, “Wheel to the left.”
Macaulay.

Webster 1828 Edition

Tack

TACK

,
Verb.
T.
[Gr. to set,place, ordain.]
1.
To fasten; to attach. In the solemn or grave style, this word now appears ludicrous; as, to get a commendam tacked to their sees.
--And tack the center to the sphere.
2.
To unite by stitching together; as, to tack together the sheets of a book; to tack one piece of cloth to another. [In the familiar style, this word is in good use.]
3.
To fasten slightly by nails; as, to tack on a board or shingle.

TACK

Definition 2024

tack

tack

See also: täck

English

Tacks (small nails with flat heads)

Noun

Tacks (used to attach thin objects to thick ones, in this case (potentially) papers to a bulletin board)

tack ‎(plural tacks)

  1. A small nail with a flat head.
    • 2012, July 15. Richard Williams in Guardian Unlimited, Tour de France 2012: Carpet tacks cannot force Bradley Wiggins off track
      A tough test for even the strongest climber, it was new to the Tour de France this year, but its debut will be remembered for the wrong reasons after one of those spectators scattered carpet tacks on the road and induced around 30 punctures among the group of riders including Bradley Wiggins, the Tour's overall leader, and his chief rivals.
  2. A thumbtack.
  3. (sewing) A loose seam used to temporarily fasten pieces of cloth.
  4. (nautical) The lower corner on the leading edge of a sail relative to the direction of the wind.
  5. (nautical) A course or heading that enables a sailing vessel to head upwind. See also reach, gybe.
  6. A direction or course of action, especially a new one.
    • 1994, Nelson Mandela, Long Walk to Freedom, Abacus 2010, p. 637:
      I thought that my refusing Barnard would alienate Botha, and decided that such a tack was too risky.
  7. (nautical) The maneuver by which a sailing vessel turns its bow through the wind so that the wind changes from one side to the other.
  8. (nautical) The distance a sailing vessel runs between these maneuvers when working to windward; a board.
  9. (nautical) A rope used to hold in place the foremost lower corners of the courses when the vessel is close-hauled; also, a rope employed to pull the lower corner of a studding sail to the boom.
  10. Any of the various equipment and accessories worn by horses in the course of their use as domesticated animals. Saddles, stirrups, bridles, halters, reins, bits, harnesses, martingales, and breastplates are all forms of horse tack.
  11. (manufacturing, construction, chemistry) The stickiness of a compound, related to its cohesive and adhesive properties.
    The laminate adhesive has very aggressive tack and is hard to move once in place.
  12. Hardtack.
    • 1913, D. H. Lawrence, "Sons and Lovers":
      "But if a woman's got nothing but her fair fame to feed on, why, it's thin tack, and a donkey would die of it!"
  13. That which is attached; a supplement; an appendix.
    • Bishop Burnet
      Some tacks had been made to money bills in King Charles's time.
    (Can we find and add a quotation of Macaulay to this entry?)
  14. (law, Scotland) A contract by which the use of a thing is set, or let, for hire; a lease.
    (Can we find and add a quotation of Burrill to this entry?)
  15. (obsolete) Confidence; reliance.
    (Can we find and add a quotation of Halliwell to this entry?)
Synonyms
Hyponyms
  • (nail-like object for affixing thin things): thumbtack
Derived terms
Translations

Verb

tack ‎(third-person singular simple present tacks, present participle tacking, simple past and past participle tacked)

  1. To nail with a tack (small nail with a flat head).
  2. To sew/stich with a tack (loose seam used to temporarily fasten pieces of cloth).
  3. (nautical) To maneuver a sailing vessel so that its bow turns through the wind, i.e. the wind changes from one side of the vessel to the other.
  4. To add something as an extra item.
    to tack (something) onto (something)
  5. Often paired with "up", to place the tack on a horse.
Synonyms
  • (nautical: to turn the bow through the wind): to change tack
Antonyms
  • (nautical: to turn the stern through the wind): to wear
Translations

Related terms

See also

Etymology 2

From an old or dialectal form of French tache. See techy.

Noun

tack ‎(plural tacks)

  1. A stain; a tache.
  2. (obsolete) A peculiar flavour or taint.
    (Can we find and add a quotation of Drayton to this entry?)

Etymology 3

Noun

tack ‎(uncountable)

  1. (colloquial) That which is tacky; something cheap and gaudy.
    • 2014, David Leffman, The Rough Guide to China
      For souvenirs – mostly outright tack and ethnicky textiles – try your bargaining skills at the shops and stalls on Binjiang Luand Zhengyang Jie, or the nightly street market spreading for about a block either side of Shanhu Bridge along Zhongshan Lu.

Scots

Noun

tack ‎(plural tacks)

  1. Lease, tenancy
  2. The period of such a contract
  3. A leasehold; especially, the tenure of a land or a farm.

Swedish

Etymology

From Old Norse þǫkk, from Proto-Germanic *þankō, *þankaz. Cognates include English thank, German Dank, Danish tak and Icelandic and Norwegian takk.

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /tak/

Interjection

tack

  1. thanks, please

Noun

tack n

  1. a thank; a word which shows gratidude

Declension

Inflection of tack 
Singular Plural
Indefinite Definite Indefinite Definite
Nominative tack tacket tack tacken
Genitive tacks tackets tacks tackens

Etymology

From Middle English tak, takke ‎(“hook; staple; nail”), from Old Northern French taque ‎(“nail, pin, peg”), probably from a Germanic source, ultimately from Proto-Germanic *takkô ‎(“tip; point; protrusion; prong; tine; jag; spike; twig”), from Proto-Indo-European *dHgʰn-, *déHgʰ- ‎(“to pinch; tear; rip; fray”). Cognate with Saterland Frisian Takke ‎(“bough; branch; twig”), West Frisian takke ‎(“branch”), Dutch tak ‎(“twig; branch; limb”), German Zacke ‎(“jag; prong; spike; tooth; peak”).

Pronunciation

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