tar
1 Americannoun
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any of various dark-colored viscid products obtained by the destructive distillation of certain organic substances, as coal or wood.
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coal-tar pitch.
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smoke solids or components.
cigarette tar.
verb (used with object)
adjective
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of or characteristic of tar.
-
covered or smeared with tar; tarred.
idioms
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beat / knock / whale the tar out of, to beat mercilessly.
The thief had knocked the tar out of the old man and left him for dead.
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tar and feather,
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to coat (a person) with tar and feathers as a punishment or humiliation.
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to punish severely.
She should be tarred and feathered for what she has done.
-
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tarred with the same brush, possessing the same shortcomings or guilty of the same misdeeds.
The whole family is tarred with the same brush.
noun
noun
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any of various dark viscid substances obtained by the destructive distillation of organic matter such as coal, wood, or peat
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another name for coal tar
verb
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to coat with tar
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to punish by smearing tar and feathers over (someone)
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regarded as having the same faults
noun
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A dark, oily, viscous material, consisting mainly of hydrocarbons, produced by the destructive distillation of organic substances such as wood, coal, or peat.
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See coal tar
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A solid, sticky substance that remains when tobacco is burned. It accumulates in the lungs of smokers and is considered carcinogenic.
Synonym Usage
See sailor.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Conjugated Forms
Present
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has tarredperfect 3rd person singular
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have tarredperfect
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am tarringprogressive 1st person singular
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have been tarringperfect progressive
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has been tarringperfect progressive 3rd person singular
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are tarringprogressive
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tarssingular 3rd person
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tarringparticiple
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is tarringprogressive 3rd person singular
Past
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had tarredperfect
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had been tarringperfect progressive
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tarredparticiple
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tarredsimple
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were tarringprogressive plural
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was tarringprogressive singular
Future
Etymology
Origin of tar1
First recorded before 900; Middle English noun ter, terr(e), Old English teru, teoru, taru; cognate with Dutch, German teer, Old Norse tjara; akin to tree; verb derivative of the noun
Origin of tar2
First recorded in 1670–80; perhaps short for tarpaulin
Explanation
Tar is a very thick liquid that's used to cover road surfaces. You can't walk on fresh, hot tar—you have to wait until it's completely dry. Besides coating streets and parking lots, tar is also used to waterproof things like roofing shingles and wooden boats. Because it has disinfecting properties, you can sometimes find tar in soap, medicinal shampoos, and even as flavoring in candy and alcohol. When you tar something, you spread tar on it. Long ago, to tar and feather someone was to apply painfully hot, burning tar and feathers to their skin, as a brutal kind of vigilante punishment.
Vocabulary lists containing tar
Black and Gray
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3-letter words, List 2
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
On July 6, the La Brea Tar Pits will close its doors for a massive renovation.
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 6, 2026
On campus, she wrote for the Daily Tar Heel’s city and state desks.
From Los Angeles Times • May 26, 2026
Northwestern, which has its own scoring sensation, Madison Taylor, and is playing on its home turf, is the only school to have beaten the Tar Heels during Humphrey’s young career.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 21, 2026
Shell already owns resources in Canada but had previously sold off some of its Canadian assets, including holdings in Canada’s Tar Sands in 2017.
From Barron's • Apr. 27, 2026
The bull-man, Mr. Tar, at the edge of the hole, could not stop, and stumbled, surprised, into the darkness.
From "The Graveyard Book" by Neil Gaiman
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
