tarry

1 of 3

verb

tar·​ry ˈter-ē How to pronounce tarry (audio)
ˈta-rē
tarried; tarrying

intransitive verb

1
a
: to delay or be tardy in acting or doing
b
: to linger in expectation : wait
2
: to abide or stay in or at a place

tarry

2 of 3

noun

plural tarries

tarry

3 of 3

adjective

tar·​ry ˈtär-ē How to pronounce tarry (audio)
: of, resembling, or covered with tar

Examples of tarry in a Sentence

Verb Tarry with us a while. upon seeing the sun beginning to sink in the sky, we realized we had tarried too long on the summit of the mountain Noun a fable about the tarry of two Americans in a Scottish village that every century magically comes into existence for a day
Recent Examples on the Web
Verb
To avoid suspicion, the young men decided to tarry for a couple of days rather than cross into the neighboring socialist republic right away. Longreads, 6 July 2022 However, these birds do not tarry long. Matt Wyatt, ExpressNews.com, 10 Sep. 2020
Adjective
Often, Petite Sirah produces a wine that is too tarry, too dense, too chewy. Esther Mobley, SFChronicle.com, 1 Sep. 2020 Ingestion of sago palm leaves, seeds or other plant parts causes liver failure, usually signaled by drooling, vomiting, diarrhea or a tarry black stool, depression, appetite loss, abdominal pain, lethargy and jaundice. Kim Campbell Thornton, sacbee, 14 Mar. 2018 A sprig from a creosote bush infuses the steam in our shower stall with notes of the western Grand Canyon: tarry, resinous, bitter but rich. Michael Engelhard, Alaska Dispatch News, 1 July 2017

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'tarry.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Verb

Middle English tarien

First Known Use

Verb

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Noun

14th century, in the meaning defined above

Adjective

1552, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of tarry was in the 14th century

Dictionary Entries Near tarry

Cite this Entry

“Tarry.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/tarry. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

tarry

1 of 2 verb
tar·​ry ˈtar-ē How to pronounce tarry (audio)
tarried; tarrying
1
: to be slow in coming or going
2
: to stay in or at a place

tarry

2 of 2 adjective
tar·​ry
ˈtär-ē
: of, resembling, or covered with tar

More from Merriam-Webster on tarry

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