tandem

See also: Tandem and tándem

English

Ponies driving in tandem

Tandem bicycle

Etymology

From Latin tandem (“(of time) at length, at last”). In English, applied humorously (by someone who knew Latin) to two horses harnessed "at length" (i.e., in a single line) instead of side-by-side.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈtæn.dəm/

• Audio (US):

  (file)

Noun

tandem (plural tandems)

1. A carriage pulled by two or more draught animals (generally draught horses) harnessed one behind the other, both providing the pulling power but only the animal in front able to steer. [late 18th C.]
2. (transferred sense) A bicycle or tricycle in which two people sit one behind the other, both able to pedal but only the person in front able to steer. [late 19th C.]
3. (figurative) A group of two or more people, machines etc. working together; close collaboration.

Derived terms

Derived terms

• in tandem
• tandem axle
• tandem bicycle
• tandem cart
• tandem engine
• tandem harness

• tandem spoke
• tandem system
• tandem trailer
• tandem wheel
• tandemwise
• tridem

Descendants

• → Assamese: টমটম (tomtom)
• → Bengali: টমটম (ṭomoṭom)
• → Catalan: tàndem
• → Czech: tandem
• → Danish: tandem
• → Dutch: tandem
• → Finnish: tandem
• → French: tandem
• → German: Tandem
• → Greek: τάντεμ (tántem)
• → Hungarian: tandem
• → Italian: tandem
• → Polish: tandem
• → Portuguese: tandem
• → Russian: тандем (tandem)
• → Serbo-Croatian: та̀нде̄м (tàndēm)
• → Spanish: tándem

Translations

bicycle

• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 雙人自行車／双人自行车 (shuāngrén zìxíngchē), 双人自行车 (shuāngrén zìxíngchē)

• Czech: tandem (cs) m
• Danish: tandem (da) c, tandemcykel c
• Dutch: tandem (nl) m
• Faroese: tvísúkkla f
• Finnish: tandem (fi), tandempyörä
• French: tandem (fr) m
• German: Tandem (de) n
• Greek: τάντεμ n (tántem)
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Hungarian: tandem (hu)
• Ido: tandemo (io)
• Italian: tandem (it) m
• Japanese: タンデム自転車 (tandemu jitensha)
• Korean: 2인용 자전거 (2inyong jajeon'geo)
• Norman: bike à deux f
• Portuguese: tandem (pt) m
• Russian: танде́м (ru) m (tandɛ́m)
• Spanish: tándem m
• Vietnamese: xe đạp đôi

arrangement

• Dutch: tandem (nl) m
• Finnish: tandem (fi)
• Hebrew: טַן דּוּ (he) (tan du)
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Portuguese: fila (pt) f, linha (pt) f
• Russian: танде́м (ru) m (tandɛ́m), па́ра (ru) f (pára)
• Serbo-Croatian: tandem (sh) m

Adverb

tandem (not comparable)

1. One behind the other.

   to ride tandem on a bicycle-built-for-two

   The horses were harnessed tandem.

Synonyms

• in tandem

Translations

One behind the other

• Finnish: peräkanaa (fi)
• Ido: tandeme (io)
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Russian: гусько́м (ru) (gusʹkóm), цу́гом (ru) (cúgom), танде́мом (tandémom) (on a bicycle)
• Tagalog: angkas

Adjective

tandem (not comparable)

1. Together; working as one.

   Their skillful tandem work made the project quick and successful.

Translations

together; working as one

• Dutch: samen- (nl)
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Finnish: yhteistyössä, yhdessä (fi)

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Czech

Etymology

Via (deprecated template usage) [etyl] German Tandem, from (deprecated template usage) [etyl] English tandem, originally from (deprecated template usage) [etyl] Latin tandem (“at last”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈtandɛm/

Noun

1. tandem

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Dutch

Etymology

From Latin tandem.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈtɑn.dɛm/

• Audio:

  (file)

Noun

tandem m (plural tandems, diminutive tandempje n)

1. tandem (vehicle, bicycle)
2. tandem (arrangement)
3. (biology) A phase in the mating ritual of dragonflies.
4. A pair, a couple, a duo.

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French

Etymology

From (deprecated template usage) [etyl] Latin tandem.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /tɑ̃.dɛm/

Noun

tandem m (plural tandems)

1. tandem (vehicle, bicycle)

Further reading

• “tandem”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.

Anagrams

• dament

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Italian

Etymology

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈtan.dem/

Noun

tandem m (uncountable)

1. tandem (all senses)

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Latin

Etymology

From tam (“so”) +‎ -dem (“new interpreted particle from īdem”). Compare with its earlier doublet: tamen. Both with original meaning supposedly "so(much)ever".

Pronunciation

• (Classical Latin) IPA^(key): /ˈtan.dem/, [ˈt̪än̪d̪ɛ̃ˑ]
• (modern Italianate Ecclesiastical) IPA^(key): /ˈtan.dem/, [ˈt̪än̪d̪em]

Adverb

tandem (not comparable)

1. at length, at last, finally, eventually

Related terms

Latin correlatives ^(edit)

type	demonstrative			anaphoric	identity	interrogative/ relative	indefinite					negative	other
	proximal	medial	distal				relative	indefinite	universal	free choice	negative polarity
basic	hic	iste, istic	ille, illic	is	ipse, īdem	quis/quī	quisquis, quīcumque	quis, quī, quīdam, aliquis, aliquī, quispiam	quisque	quīvis, quīlibet	quisquam, ūllus, °aliquisquam	nēmō, nihil, nūllus	alius
dual						uter	utercumque	alteruter	uterque	utervīs, uterlibet		neuter	alter
place	hīc	istīc	illīc	ibī̆	ibī̆dem	ubī̆	ubiubi, ubī̆cumque	alicubī, uspiam	ubīque	ubivīs, ubilibet	usquam	nusquam, nūllibī	alibī, aliās
source	hinc	istinc	illinc	inde	indidem	unde	undecumque, undeunde	alicunde	undique	°undelibet			aliunde
destination	hūc, °hōrsum	istūc, °istōrsum	illūc, °illōrsum	eō	eōdem	quō, quōrsum	quōquō, quōcumque	aliquō, quōpiam, °aliquōvorsum		quōvīs, quōlibet	quōquam	nusquam, nūllōrsum	aliō, aliōrsum
method, means, path, place	hāc	istāc	illāc	eā	eādem	quā	quāquā, quācumque	aliquā	quāque	quāvīs, quālibet		nēquāquam, haudquāquam	aliā
manner	hōc modō	istō modō	illō modō	ita, sīc, eō modō	item, itidem	ut, quī, quō modō, quōmodo, quemadmodum	utut, utcumque, quōmodocumque	quī, quōdam modō, aliquō modō	utique	quōmodolibet	ūllō modō	nūllō modō	aliter, aliōquī, alterō/aliō modō
time	num, nunc		ōlim	tum, tunc	simul	quandō, ‡cum	cumque, quandōcumque, quandōque	quondam, aliquandō	quandōque	quandōlibet	umquam	numquam	aliās
quantity				tam	†tamen, †tandem	quam	†quamquam	aliquam		quamvīs, quamlibet
size				tantus	tantusdem	quantus	quantuscumque	aliquantus		quantusvīs, quantuslibet
quality				tālis		quālis	quālis, quāliscumque	aliquālis		quālislibet
number				tot	totidem	quot	quotquot, quotcumque	aliquot		quotlibet
order				totus		quotus	quotuscumque	aliquotus		quotuslibet
repetition				totiēns		quotiēns	quotiēnscumque	aliquotiēns		quotiēnslibet
multiplication				totuplex		quotuplex
† Turned conjunction with original meaning somewhat dissimulated ° Rare ‡only used as a conjunction, not as an interrogative

References

• “tandem”, in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879) A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
• “tandem”, in Charlton T. Lewis (1891) An Elementary Latin Dictionary, New York: Harper & Brothers
• tandem in Gaffiot, Félix (1934) Dictionnaire illustré latin-français, Hachette.
• Sihler, Andrew L. (1995) New Comparative Grammar of Greek and Latin, Oxford, New York: Oxford University Press, →ISBN

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Portuguese

Noun

tandem m (plural tandens)

1. tandem (bicycle with two seats and two sets of pedals)

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Spanish

Noun

tandem m (plural tandems)

1. tandem
2. language exchange