tailgate
verbEtymology From tail + gate. Compare liftgate.
1
Automotive, Transport, Vehicles To drive dangerously close behind another vehicle.
- That idiot has been tailgating me for the last five minutes.
- She also tailgated them at high speed in her convertible yellow Mercedes.2002 October 19, Helen Carter, “That's no lady - that's the heiress who taunted neighbours”, in The Guardian, archived from the original on 08 Dec 2021:
1 more example
- Last week the UK government announced a crackdown on unsafe driving. From now on, those of us spotted tailgating or lane hogging will face on-the-spot fines of £100 and three penalty points.2013 August 19, Chris Chambers, “Bad driving: what are we thinking?”, in The Guardian, archived from the original on 20 Apr 2021:
2
To follow another person through access control on their access, rather than on one’s own credentials, especially when entering a door controlled by a card reader.
- An email circulated to ABC employees says Gallagher is believed to have tailgated staff walking through the building’s high-security doors.2018 September 10, “ABC tightens Sydney security after man allegedly infiltrates building and assaults employee”, in The Guardian, archived from the original on 08 Dec 2021:
4
US To have a tailgate party.
- “Hey, what are you guys doing?” “Dude, we're gonna tailgate the tryouts.” “Oh, shit. That's a good idea. Oh, you gonna bust out Green Man, bro?” “No. No Green Man.” “What's Green Man?” “Well, in high school, Charlie was like our school mascot.” “A mascot nobody wanted. He'd get wasted and dress in this green spandex bodysuit.” “Spandex?” “It was really sad.” “That's it.” “You gotta bring the Green Man suit.” “Yeah, no. Done with it.” “The spandex.” “Green Man was good. It got me through some hard times. But I'm done with it. Tell you what. You can wear it if you want, but I'm just gonna be relaxing, okay? This is gonna be about chilling out for me.” “No. This is gonna be exactly like Woodstock.”2007 September 13, Charlie Day & David Hornsby & Glenn Howerton, “The Gang Gets Invincible” (3:56 from the start), in It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia, season 3, episode 2, spoken by Charlie Kelly (Charlie Day):
- The point, Goldstein discovered through a lot of long days hanging out in parking lots, is that tailgating — the gustatory madness, the multigenerational camaraderie, the decked-out vans — is as essential a part of football as the game itself.2013 September 29, Ken Belson, “The Tailgate Experience, British Style”, in The New York Times, →ISSN, archived from the original on 08 Dec 2021:
- Related terms
- security distance, draft, slipstream