- present participle of tan.
tanning
Americannoun
-
the process or art of converting hides or skins into leather.
-
a browning or darkening of the skin, as by exposure to the sun.
-
Informal. a thrashing; whipping.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of tanning
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.
I found Sedona Quantum Consciousness online, via an advertisement for its Cell-Well Medbed, which appeared in photos to be a souped-up tanning bed.
From Slate ● Sep. 22, 2026
A CeraVe sunscreen campaign woos Gen Z tanmaxxers with a social-media video series that kicks off with the dramatic destruction of a tanning bed.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 12, 2026
Who needs umbrellas when you’ve got a tanning bed, a chin-up bar, beef-tallow stockpiles, and a gallon of only-sometimes-poisonous raw milk?
From Slate ● Jul. 22, 2026
They also proposed displaying cigarette-style images at sunbed shops and tanning salons to dissuade people from using them.
From BBC ● May 13, 2026
Hilly was tanning in the sun, I was fanning in the murky shade.
From "The Help" by Kathryn Stockett
Random Word
Spin the wheel and learn a new word!
Get a wordDefinitions 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.
