tiger [OE] Tiger goes back via French and Latin to Greek tigris—the beast was formerly found in Turkey and the Middle East, and would have been known to Europeans in classical times. The tiger is a fierce and dangerous creature, and to have a tiger by the tail [E20] is to have embarked on a course of action which turns out to be unexpectedly difficult, but which you cannot easily abandon. Since the start of the 1980s the successful smaller economies, particularly of East Asia tiger economies. See also ride.