- 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.
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
WSJ | Buy Side: Get a summertime glow, no matter the season, with these expert-recommended tanning mousses, sprays and drops.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 30, 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
He did, however, quickly stop using MT-II, the tanning peptide that years ago was dubbed the “Barbie peptide.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 11, 2026
Gasoline was rationed, and the lines of automobiles could last two days and a night, constricting the city like a gigantic motionless boa tanning itself in the sun.
From "The House of the Spirits: A Novel" by Isabel Allende
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.
