tan

¹ American  

[tan] / tæn /

verb (used with object)

tanned, tanning

1. to convert (a hide) into leather, especially by soaking or steeping in a bath prepared from tanbark or synthetically.

2. to make brown by exposure to ultraviolet rays, as of the sun.

3. Informal. to thrash; spank.

---

verb (used without object)

tanned, tanning

1. to become tanned.

noun

1. the brown color imparted to the skin by exposure to the sun or open air.

2. yellowish brown; light brown.

3. tanbark.

adjective

tanner, tannest

1. of the color of tan; yellowish-brown.

2. used in or relating to tanning processes, materials, etc.

idioms

1. tan someone's hide, to beat someone soundly.

   She threatened to tan our hides if she found us on her property again.

tan ² American  

[tan] / tæn /

noun

1. tangent.

---

Tan ³ American  

[tan] / tæn /

noun

1. Amy, born 1952, U.S. novelist.

---

TAN ⁴ American  

[tan] / tæn /

noun

1. tax-anticipation note.

---

tan ¹ British  

/ tæn /

abbreviation

1. tangent (sense 2)

---

tan ² British  

/ tæn /

noun

1. the brown colour produced by the skin after intensive exposure to ultraviolet rays, esp those of the sun

2. a light or moderate yellowish-brown colour

3. short for tanbark

---

verb

1. to go brown or cause to go brown after exposure to ultraviolet rays

   she tans easily

2. to convert (a skin or hide) into leather by treating it with a tanning agent, such as vegetable tannins, chromium salts, fish oils, or formaldehyde

3. slang (tr) to beat or flog

adjective

1. of the colour tan

   tan gloves

2. used in or relating to tanning

tan Scientific  

1. Abbreviation of tangent

---

Other Word Forms

• tannable adjective
• tannish adjective
• untanned adjective
• well-tanned adjective

Etymology

Origin of tan¹

First recorded before 1000; 1920–25 tan ¹ for def. 2; Middle English tannen “to make hide into leather,” late Old English tannian (only in past participle getanned ), from Medieval Latin tannāre, derivative of tannum “oak bark, tanbark,” from Germanic; compare Old High German tanna “oak, fir,” akin to Dutch den “fir”

Origin of tan²

By shortening

Example Sentences

His hair was thick and black, and the rolled-back cuffs of his shirt showed his forearms, muscular and tanned.

From Literature

Theo finishes crossing the tan marble floors and holds up the tin jar labeled Monogram, presenting it as if he were a fancy butler.

From Literature

I follow Dad up to the townhouse, which looks just like his except that his is tan on the outside and this one is gray-blue.

From Literature

He was a big man, dark, his face tanned, his beard ragged.

From Literature

Residents and tourists who were out shopping or tanning on the beach of this gleaming business hub of the United Arab Emirates watched with curiosity as missiles were intercepted above them like loud, daytime fireworks.

From The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• beige
• brownish
• drab
• khaki