adjective, tart·er, tart·est. sharp to the taste; sour or acid: Tart apples are best for pie.
sharp in character, spirit, or expression; cutting; biting: a tart remark.
Origin of tart 1 before 1000; Middle English; Old English teart sharp, rough; akin to Dutch tarten to defy, Middle High German traz defiance
Related forms tart·ish , adjective tart·ish·ly , adverb tart·ly , adverb tart·ness , noun noun a small pie filled with cooked fruit or other sweetened preparation, usually having no top crust.
a covered pie containing fruit or the like.
Slang a prostitute or promiscuous woman.
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Verb Phrases tart up , Slang to adorn, dress, or decorate, especially in a flamboyant manner: The old restaurant was tarted up to look like a Viennese café.
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Origin of tart 2 1350–1400; 1905–10 for def 3 ; Middle English tarte < Middle French; compare Medieval Latin tarta
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019
Related Words for tart dry ,
short ,
astringent ,
cutting ,
caustic ,
sharp ,
acid ,
wounding ,
bun ,
roll ,
Danish ,
pie ,
eclair ,
popover ,
turnover ,
acerbic ,
acidulous ,
acrimonious ,
barbed ,
biting Examples from the Web for tart Contemporary Examples of tart She is routinely dismissed by Madrid wits as “a Danish tart .”
It was a candy-colored teen comedy that cut the usual sugar-sweetness with tart dialogue and sharp writing.
They taste of red and black berries, currants, cranberries, strawberries, mulberries and cherries, tart and sweet.
Bake for 15 minutes, remove the tart shell, and reduce the oven temperature to 325°F (163°C).
But why do they have to tart up what used to be classy red carpet events or football extravaganzas?
Historical Examples of tart Some tart messages and answers were exchanged on this occasion.
To be sent up with the cheese, or, if you like, with the tart .
And should we bid him bring us yet another course, I trow his answer will be tart !
He changed his meat plate now, and helped him lavishly to tart .
As for her tart retorts, terrifying to bores and toadies, they only amused him.
British Dictionary definitions for tart noun a pastry case often having no top crust, with a sweet or savoury filling
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Word Origin for tart C14: from Old French tarte, of uncertain origin; compare Medieval Latin tarte
adjective (of a flavour, food, etc) sour, acid, or astringent
cutting, sharp, or caustic a tart remark
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Derived Forms tartish , adjective tartishly , adverb tartly , adverb tartness , noun Word Origin for tart Old English teart rough; related to Dutch tarten to defy, Middle High German traz defiance
noun informal a promiscuous woman, esp a prostitute: often a term of abuse See also tart up Show More
Derived Forms tarty , adjective Word Origin for tart C19: shortened from sweetheart
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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Word Origin and History for tart adj. "having a sharp taste," late 14c., perhaps from Old English teart "painful, sharp, severe" (in reference to punishment, pain, suffering), of unknown origin; possibly related to the root of teran "to tear." Figurative use, with reference to words, speech, etc., is attested from c.1600.
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n.1 "small pie," c.1400, from Old French tarte "flat, open-topped pastry" (13c.), possibly an alteration of torte, from Late Latin torta "round loaf of bread" (in Medieval Latin "a cake, tart"), infl. in Middle English by tart (adj.).
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n.2 "prostitute," 1887, from earlier use as a term of endearment to a girl or woman (1864), sometimes said to be a shortening of sweetheart . But another theory traces it to jam-tart (see tart (n.1)), which was British slang early 19c. for "attractive woman." To tart (something) up is from 1938.
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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
