Showing Results for "tar pit"

See Also:

• a variation of tarpit.

tar pit

American  

[tahr pit] / ˈtɑr ˌpɪt /

noun

tar pits plural

1. an accumulation of natural tar or asphalt that has seeped upward to the earth's surface, especially one that has acted as a natural trap into which animals have fallen, sunk, and had their bones preserved.

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tar pit Scientific  

1. An accumulation of natural tar or asphalt at the Earth's surface, especially one that traps animals and preserves their hard parts. Tar pits form when petroleum in subterranean petroleum-bearing rocks oozes up to the surface. As it rises, the petroleum loses its volatile components, forming a thick tar or asphalt deposit.

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Other Word Forms

Inflected Forms

noun

• tar pits
  plural

Example Sentences

Today, Nike’s China business is flailing—a cautionary tale of an American giant caught in the tar pit of China’s hypercompetitive and increasingly nationalistic consumer market.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 12, 2026

But the asphalt of a tar pit is rich in very old carbon, which is largely devoid of carbon-14.

From Science Magazine • Aug. 16, 2023

Bettison-Varga says the reimagining will “reframe” how the community experiences the museum, all the way down to the depiction of an Ice Age tar pit.

From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 26, 2023

But thanks to the federal and local governments, an administrative tar pit made it extremely difficult for the private investors to build their energy plants.

From Slate • Jan. 27, 2021

And finally, Lord Fredrick’s father, Edward Ashton, said to have drowned in a tar pit but whose body had never been found.

From "The Interrupted Tale" by Maryrose Wood