tailor1

[tey-ler] /ˈteɪ lər/
noun
1.
a person whose occupation is the making, mending, or altering of clothes, especially suits, coats, and other outer garments.
verb (used with object)
2.
to make by tailor's work.
3.
to fashion or adapt to a particular taste, purpose, need, etc.:
to tailor one's actions to those of another.
4.
to fit or furnish with clothing.
5.
Chiefly U.S. Military. to make (a uniform) to order; cut (a ready-made uniform) so as to cause to fit more snugly; taper.
verb (used without object)
6.
to do the work of a tailor.
Origin
1250-1300; Middle English (noun) < Anglo-French tailour, Old French tailleor, equivalent to taill(ier) to cut (< Late Latin tāliāre, derivative of Latin tālea a cutting, literally, heel-piece; see tally) + -or -or2

tailor2

[tey-ler] /ˈteɪ lər/
noun, British Dialect
1.
a stroke of a bell indicating someone's death; knell.
Origin
alteration by folk etymology of teller
Examples from the web for tailor
  • Blues musicians frequented local hairdressers, tailor shops and clothing stores.
  • Add any of the following enhancements to tailor your job ad to your unique hiring needs.
  • It should be possible to tailor these so that sound waves are bent such that no echo results.
  • Unlike other specs, these come with a companion smartphone app to tailor them for your eyes only.
  • Only if you tailor your presentation and results to impress each audience.
  • Years of continuous growth have taught the auction houses how to tailor sales to suit their audience.
  • Have partygoers ladle soup into mugs or small bowls, and offer condiments so they can tailor each soup to their liking.
  • Customizable icon menu can tailor apps for each subject.
  • Researchers can use it to look for mutations unique to their areas-and to tailor their control strategies around them.
  • Many firms tailor their services to silver shoppers without letting on, explains a marketing specialist.
British Dictionary definitions for tailor

tailor

/ˈteɪlə/
noun
1.
a person who makes, repairs, or alters outer garments, esp menswear related adjective sartorial
2.
a voracious and active marine food fish, Pomatomus saltator, of Australia with scissor-like teeth
verb
3.
to cut or style (material, clothes, etc) to satisfy certain requirements
4.
(transitive) to adapt so as to make suitable for something specific: he tailored his speech to suit a younger audience
5.
(intransitive) to follow the occupation of a tailor
Word Origin
C13: from Anglo-Norman taillour, from Old French taillier to cut, from Latin tālea a cutting; related to Greek talis girl of marriageable age
Word Origin and History for tailor
n.

late 13c., from Anglo-French tailour, Old French tailleor "tailor," literally "a cutter," from tailler "to cut," from Medieval Latin taliator vestium "a cutter of clothes," from Late Latin taliare "to split," from Latin talea "a slender stick, rod, staff, a cutting, twig," on the notion of a piece of a plant cut for grafting.

Possible cognates include Sanskrit talah "wine palm," Old Lithuanian talokas "a young girl," Greek talis "a marriageable girl" (for sense, cf. slip of a girl, twiggy), Etruscan Tholna, name of the goddess of youth.

Although historically the tailor is the cutter, in the trade the 'tailor' is the man who sews or makes up what the 'cutter' has shaped. [OED]
Tailor-made first recorded 1832 (in a figurative sense); originally "heavy and plain," as of women's garments made by a tailor rather than a dress-maker.

v.

1660s, from tailor (n.). Figurative sense of "to design (something) to suit needs" is attested from 1942. Related: Tailored; tailoring.