tandem
/ˈtændəm/
Frequency: Zipf frequency 3.53 in modern English
Meaning
noun
A carriage pulled by two or more draught animals (generally draught horses) harnessed one behind the other, both providing pulling power but only the animal in front being able to steer.
Countable
noun
Two draught animals (generally draught horses) harnessed one behind the other.
Countable; Uncountable
noun
A hollow metal tube containing radioactive material, inserted through the vagina into the uterus to treat gynecological cancer.
Countable; Uncountable
noun
A group of two or more machines, people, etc., working together; hence (uncountable), close collaboration.
Countable
noun
A method of language learning based on mutual exchange, where ideally each learner is a native speaker in the language the other person wants to learn.
Uncountable
adv
One behind the other; in single file.
Example Sentences
- "[H]e was a man whose head was at this time entirely full of gigs, and tandems, and unicorns: business was his aversion; pleasure was his business."
- "A friend of mine accompanies me in my carriage to Edinburgh. There we shall leave it, and proceed in a tandem (a species of open carriage) through the western passes to Inverary, where we shall purchase shelties, to enable us to view places inaccessible to vehicular conveyances."
- "Mr. Foker was no more like a gentleman now than in his school days: and yet Pen felt a secret pride in strutting down High Street with a young fellow who owned tandems, talked to officers, and ordered turtle and champagne for dinner."
- "The chief characteristic of this set was the most reckless extravagance of every kind. […] They drove tandems in all directions, scattering their ample allowances, which they treated as pocket money, about roadside inns and Oxford taverns with open hand, and going tick for every thing which could by possibility be booked."
- "Later in the day the Row is empty, but, on the other hand, the pleasure horse monopolises the circle, now comparatively deserted. Singly, in pairs, tandems, and fours, he draws the family carriage with a lozenge on the panels, the brougham of the fashionable doctor, the coupé of the popular actress, the man about town's smart dog-cart."
- "If you want a canoe that can seat both of you comfortably, you’ll need a tandem."
Etymology
Origin
- Source language: Latin
Word Breakdown
- Root: tandem
Regional Pronunciation
- American English: /ˈtændəm/
- British English: /ˈtændəm/