tar

1 of 3

noun

ˈtär 

1

a

: a dark brown or black bituminous usually odorous viscous liquid obtained by destructive distillation of organic material (such as wood, coal, or peat)

b

: a substance in some respects resembling tar

especially : a condensable residue present in smoke from burning tobacco that contains combustion by-products (such as resins, acids, phenols, and essential oils)

2

[short for tarpaulin] : sailor

tar

2 of 3

verb (1)

tarred; tarring

transitive verb

1

: to cover with tar

2

: to defile as if with tar

least tarred by the scandal

—Newsweek

tar

3 of 3

verb (2)

ˈtär 

variants or tarre

tarred; tarring; tars or tarres

transitive verb

: to urge to action

—usually used with on

Phrases

tar and feather

: to smear (a person) with tar and cover with feathers as a punishment or indignity

tar with the same brush

: to mark or stain with the same fault or characteristic

Synonyms

Noun

• gob
• hearty
• jack
• jack-tar
• mariner
• navigator
• sailor
• salt
• sea dog
• seafarer
• seaman
• shipman
• swab
• swabbie [slang]
• swabby

Examples of tar in a Sentence

Noun

a book about the adventurous lives of tars, skippers, and pirates of the 18th century

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Racy aromas of cedar, bay leaves, sesame, smoke, tar and salty black licorice. —Tom Mullen, Forbes, 23 Feb. 2025

The former officials all shared their memories of environmental conditions before the EPA and landmark laws protecting clean air and water came about, when air was often hazardous to breathe in many cities and tar balls routinely stained the feet of beachgoers. —Mark Davis, Newsweek, 14 Mar. 2025

Verb

In the meantime, party moderates are being tarred with progressive brushes, and Democratic leadership is unwilling or unable to do anything about it. —Chris Roemer, Baltimore Sun, 13 Mar. 2025

The debates, the great solutions, DeFi itself, everything gets tarred with the unsafe brush. —Vipin Bharathan, Forbes, 6 Mar. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English terr, tarr, from Old English teoru; akin to Old English trēow tree — more at tree entry 1

Verb (2)

Middle English terren, tarren, from Old English tyrwan

First Known Use

Noun

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Verb (1)

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb (2)

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing tar

• coal tar
• jack-tar
• juniper tar
• pine tar
• tar and feather
• tar baby
• tar paper
• tar pit
• tar sand
• tar with the same brush

Rhymes for tar

• ar
• are
• bar
• barr
• car
• carr
• char
• charr
• czar
• far
• farre
• haar

Kids Definition

tar

1 of 2 noun

ˈtär 

1

a

: a dark usually thick sticky liquid obtained by distilling wood, coal, or peat

b

: a substance that resembles tar

especially : a sticky substance that is formed by burning tobacco

2

: sailor

tarlike

-ˌlīk

adjective

tar

2 of 2 verb

tarred; tarring

: to smear with or as if with tar

Medical Definition

tar

noun

ˈtär 

1

: any of various dark brown or black bituminous usually odorous viscous liquids obtained by destructive distillation of organic material (as wood, coal, or peat)

especially : one used medicinally (as to treat skin diseases) see coal tar, juniper tar, pine tar

2

: a substance in some respects resembling tar

especially : a condensable residue present in smoke from burning tobacco that contains combustion by-products (as resins, acids, phenols, and essential oils)

Geographical Definition

Tar

geographical name

ˈtär 

river 215 miles (346 kilometers) long in northeastern North Carolina see pamlico