tar
1 Americannoun
-
any of various dark-colored viscid products obtained by the destructive distillation of certain organic substances, as coal or wood.
-
coal-tar pitch.
-
smoke solids or components.
cigarette tar.
verb (used with object)
-
tars,
present (3rd person singular)
-
tarred,
past participle, past
-
tarring
present participle
adjective
-
of or characteristic of tar.
-
covered or smeared with tar; tarred.
idioms
-
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.
-
tar and feather,
-
to coat (a person) with tar and feathers as a punishment or humiliation.
-
to punish severely.
She should be tarred and feathered for what she has done.
-
-
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
noun
-
any of various dark viscid substances obtained by the destructive distillation of organic matter such as coal, wood, or peat
-
another name for coal tar
verb
-
to coat with tar
-
to punish by smearing tar and feathers over (someone)
-
regarded as having the same faults
-
A dark, oily, viscous material, consisting mainly of hydrocarbons, produced by the destructive distillation of organic substances such as wood, coal, or peat.
-
See coal tar
-
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
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
tarsimple
-
tarssimple
-
have tarredperfect
-
has tarredperfect
-
am tarringprogressive
-
are tarringprogressive
-
is tarringprogressive
-
have been tarringperfect progressive
-
has been tarringperfect progressive
Past
-
tarredsimple
-
had tarredperfect
-
was tarringprogressive
-
were tarringprogressive
-
had been tarringperfect progressive
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.
See Examples For:
Sohm’s vision, per “American Mosaic,” is pure, black tar positivity: bald eagles soaring over magnificent vistas, gleaming farmland, small town cheerleaders on parade, tall ships sailing past the Statue of Liberty.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 3, 2026
In the old “Uncle Remus” stories the “tar baby” was a decoy, a doll made from a mixture of tar and turpentine by the crafty Br’er Fox to catch the elusive Br’er Rabbit.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 29, 2026
However, scientists are increasingly exploring whether birch tar played a broader role in prehistoric life.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 11, 2026
Birch tar is a thick, sticky substance obtained by heating birch bark.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 11, 2026
Those twisted dendritic legs get stuck in the pitch, and the stuff begins to pull me down like I’m a dinosaur in tar.
From "Challenger Deep" by Neal Shusterman
It tars everyone with the same brush, regardless of the facts.
From BBC ● Sep. 3, 2026
One wonders what those early salt- and sun-battered tars would have thought of the drink’s most recent incarnation, the milkshake IPA.
From Seattle Times ● Feb. 8, 2023
In a 2,600-year-old embalming workshop, scientists have discovered the ingredients for making a mummy: the tars, fats, tree resins and oils ancient Egyptians used to preserve bodies and prepare them for the afterlife.
From Washington Post ● Feb. 1, 2023
The Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act of 1938 included new regulations around color, specifically those derived from coal tars.
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 26, 2018
"Pull, gents! Be good lads! It's me own fault, not leadin' you around this bog. Me eyesight ain't what it was, is it, old tars?"
From "The Whipping Boy" by Sid Fleischman
Although they premiered more than 20 years apart, the television shows “Bluey” and “South Park” have been tarred with the “millennial” brush.
From Salon ● Aug. 30, 2026
She feels that responsible carriers often get "tarred with the same brush" as unauthorised companies, even though she is paying out for licences, insurances and tip fees.
From BBC ● Aug. 9, 2026
Some controlled by James Dolan, including AMC Networks, have long been tarred with a “Dolan discount” for that reason.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 6, 2026
In suing Carroll, Trump said she tarred his reputation by maintaining in comments on CNN following the jury verdict that he had raped her.
From Reuters ● Aug. 10, 2023
While she was showing me her different makeup applicators, the woman, who had stiff platinum hair and eyelashes tarred in mascara, told me I must be earning a truckload in commissions.
From "The Glass Castle" by Jeannette Walls
It attempted to justify his deportation by tarring him as a gang member, an accusation that was based on comically flimsy evidence and which the government never tried to escalate to proving in court.
From Slate ● Aug. 27, 2025
A producer of the 2014 TV show Benefits Street has said he regrets tarring the reputation of the road it focussed on.
From BBC ● Feb. 29, 2024
School officials have tried to reserve tarring for times when students aren’t in classrooms — like after school or over the weekends, Baxter said.
From Washington Post ● Mar. 17, 2023
His opponents tried to slow him down by tarring him as an out-of-touch tycoon.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 8, 2022
Closer to home I would notice the shirdess construction workers, the roofers, the sweating men tarring the street in front of the house.
From "Hunger of Memory" by Richard Rodriguez
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