tack
tack Lexical Profile
tack Game Scores & Validity
• noun
A small, sharp-pointed nail, usually with a broad and flat head.
"She used a brass tack to secure the map to the bulletin board."
A course of action or policy, especially one differing from a previous approach.
"When the initial marketing campaign failed, the company decided to try a different tack."
Equipment used for riding and driving horses, such as saddles and bridles.
"After his morning ride, he spent an hour in the barn cleaning and oiling his tack."
• verb
To fasten or fix something in place with a small nail or pin.
"He decided to tack the missing poster onto the wooden telephone pole."
To append or add something hastily, loosely, or as an afterthought.
"The committee managed to tack a controversial amendment onto the otherwise routine spending bill."
To change the course of a sailing vessel by turning its bow through the wind.
"The captain had to tack several times to navigate the narrow channel against the incoming wind."
Word Nuance & Usage
The idiom 'change tack' (meaning to take a different approach) is frequently miswritten as 'change tact', mistakenly conflating the sailing maneuver (tack) with diplomacy or sensitivity (tact).
• Rhymes for tack
• Nearby Words
Word Origin & Etymology
From Middle English 'takke' (a fastening or nail), related to Old Northern French 'taque' and Middle Dutch 'tacke' (twig, spike). The sailing sense developed in the 15th century, referring to the rope used to secure a sail's corner.
Usage Trend
Historical frequency of usage in published text.