Illustration of dovetail
- 1 mortises
- 2 tenons
- 3 joint
: something resembling a dove's tail
especially
: a flaring tenon and a mortise into which it fits tightly making an interlocking joint between two pieces (as of wood)
dovetailed; dovetailing; dovetails
1
a
: to join by means of dovetails
b
: to cut to a dovetail
2
a
: to fit skillfully to form a whole
b
: to fit together with
: to fit together into a whole
Examples of dovetail in a Sentence
Verb
the Union and the Confederate accounts of the battle don't dovetail at all
Recent Examples on the Web
Phillip Valys, Sun Sentinel, 20 May 2025
Shira Efron, research director of the nonpartisan Israel Policy Forum, says the Israeli government's return to war dovetails with Netanyahu's need to appease his far-right political partners to maintain his coalition.
—Daniel Estrin, NPR, 25 Mar. 2025
Jelani Cobb, New Yorker, 25 May 2025
The finding dovetailed with other results in the survey published on May 6 by the Pew Research Center, which found that Jews were among the least likely in the United States to say animals or objects can have spirits, or that features of nature such as mountains or rivers have spiritual energy.
—Ben Sales, Sun Sentinel, 7 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for dovetail
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Noun
Her takeover dovetails with the gallery’s upcoming 50th anniversary and the debut of a new 5,000-square-foot extension wing in October.
—Phillip Valys, Sun Sentinel, 20 May 2025
Shira Efron, research director of the nonpartisan Israel Policy Forum, says the Israeli government's return to war dovetails with Netanyahu's need to appease his far-right political partners to maintain his coalition.
—Daniel Estrin, NPR, 25 Mar. 2025
Verb
This news dovetails with previous events, such as Trump welcoming the prominent antisemites Nick Fuentes and Kanye West to his home for dinner.
—Jelani Cobb, New Yorker, 25 May 2025
The finding dovetailed with other results in the survey published on May 6 by the Pew Research Center, which found that Jews were among the least likely in the United States to say animals or objects can have spirits, or that features of nature such as mountains or rivers have spiritual energy.
—Ben Sales, Sun Sentinel, 7 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for dovetail
Cite this Entry
“Dovetail.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/dovetail. Accessed 7 Jun. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
dovetail
1 of 2 noun
dove·tail
-ˌtāl 
: something shaped like a dove's tail
especially
: a joint between two pieces (as of wood) formed by a wedge-shaped part that fits tightly into a wedge-shaped slot in the other piece
dovetail
2 of 2 verb1
a
: to join by means of dovetails
b
: to cut to a dovetail
2
: to fit skillfully together to form a whole
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