Merriam-Webster Logo
SINCE 1828
Menu
dictionary thesaurus

Thesaurus

tarry

noun

Synonyms and Antonyms of tarry

a temporary residing as another's guest

  • a fable about the tarry of two Americans in a Scottish village that every century magically comes into existence for a day
Synonyms of tarry

sojourn, stay, visit
Words Related to tarry

field trip, homestay, sleepover

layover, stop, stopover

tarry

verb

Synonyms and Antonyms of tarry

1 to continue to be in a place for a significant amount of time

  • upon seeing the sun beginning to sink in the sky, we realized we had tarried too long on the summit of the mountain
Synonyms of tarry

abide, dwell, hang around, remain, stay, stick around
Words Related to tarry

await, hang on, hold on, wait

dally, dawdle, linger, loiter

outstay, overstay
Near Antonyms of tarry

abscond, book [slang], decamp, escape, evacuate, flee, fly, get out, run away, scat, scram, skip

abandon, desert, forsake, vacate
Antonyms of tarry

bail, bail out, bug out, buzz (off), clear off [chiefly British], clear out, cut out, depart, exit, get off, go, go off, leave, move, pack (up or off), peel off, pike (out or off), pull out, push off, push on, quit, shove (off), take off, vamoose, walk out

2 to move or act slowly

  • the dean tarried in making his decision, still not sure if he should suspend the student or not
Synonyms of tarry

crawl, creep, dally, dawdle, delay, diddle, dillydally, drag, lag, linger, loiter, lollygag (also lallygag), mope, poke, shilly-shally
Words Related to tarry

fiddle (around), fool around, mess around, monkey (around), play, potter (around), putter (around), trifle

hang (around or out), idle, loaf, loll, lounge

amble, ease, inch, lumber, plod, saunter, shuffle, stagger, stroll

decelerate, slow (down or up)

filibuster, procrastinate, stall, temporize
Phrases Synonymous with tarry

drag one's feet (also drag one's heels), drop behind, fall behind, hang fire, mark time, take one's time
Near Antonyms of tarry

bowl, breeze, dart, hump, hurtle, hustle, scramble, stampede

gallop, jog, run, sprint, trot

accelerate, quicken, speed (up)

catch up, fast-forward, outpace, outrun, outstrip, overtake
Antonyms of tarry

barrel, bolt, career, course, dash, fly, hasten, hotfoot (it), hurry, race, rip, rocket, run, rush, scoot, scud, scurry, speed, tear, whirl, whisk, whiz (or whizz), zip

3 to reside as a temporary guest

  • he tarried with us all summer, sleeping on the screened-in porch most nights
Synonyms of tarry

crash [slang], sojourn, stay, visit
Words Related to tarry

come by, come over, drop by, drop in, run in, step in, stop (by)

frequent, hang (around or out), haunt

inhabit, occupy
Near Antonyms of tarry

abide, dwell, live, reside

Learn More about tarry

  1. See words that rhyme with tarry Dictionary: Definition of tarry Spanish Central: Translation of tarry Nglish: Translation of tarry for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of tarry for Arabic speakers

Seen and Heard

What made you want to look up tarry? Please tell us where you read or heard it (including the quote, if possible).

show comments hide comments

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

WORD OF THE DAY

nidus

a nest or breeding place

Get Word of the Day daily email!

TRENDING NOW

  1. nebulous Lip reading, Brexit, and semantic uncertainty

  2. synergy Mueller files Cohen details.

  3. slumgullion From the broadcast of 'It Happened on Fifth Avenue'

SEE ALL

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Words at Play

Ask the Editors

Word Games