tartan
Americannoun
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tartans
plural
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a woolen or worsted cloth woven with stripes of different colors and widths crossing at right angles, worn chiefly by the Scottish Highlanders, each clan having its own distinctive plaid.
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a design of such a plaid known by the name of the clan wearing it.
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any plaid.
adjective
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of, relating to, or resembling tartan.
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made of tartan.
noun
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a design of straight lines, crossing at right angles to give a chequered appearance, esp the distinctive design or designs associated with each Scottish clan
the Buchanan tartan
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( as modifier )
a tartan kilt
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a woollen fabric or garment with this design
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Highland dress
noun
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of tartan
1490–1500; variant of tertane < Middle French tertaine ( Old French tiretaine ) linsey-woolsey
Explanation
Tartan is a plaid pattern that's often woven from wool into cloth. Scottish bagpipers often wear knee socks and tartan kilts. A true tartan is a specific pattern that represents a certain Scottish clan or family. In 1746, the Scottish government tried to keep the clans peaceful and under control by banning tartan. While the words tartan and plaid are basically interchangeable in the U.S., in Scotland a plaid is a large tartan cloth or blanket. Experts believe that the word tartan is rooted in the Medieval Latin tyrius, "cloth from Tyre."
Vocabulary lists containing tartan
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Black Brother, Black Brother
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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:
Athletes shivered their way through their media interviews and high jump champion Eleanor Patterson of Australia was wearing a tartan scarf while officials struggled to clear water from the runway.
From BBC ● Jul. 28, 2026
We took into account everything from expected goals to local weather conditions to gigantic parades of sweaty supporters in tartan kilts.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 26, 2026
At a Sacramento stop Friday, he bounded around chatting with about four dozen mostly union supporters, wearing trademark Nikes, this time a vintage pair with a tartan plaid swoop.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 30, 2026
Grooms have shown Boston-based wedding planner Keri Ketterer Walter a specific tartan, a herringbone fabric swatch and “wallpaper that kind of looked like the scales of a trout” for decor inspiration, she said.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 19, 2026
She had her two little granddaughters on either side of her, in pleated tartan skirts, stockings and identical fringes.
From "The God of Small Things" by Arundhati Roy
There’s plenty to love about “Blood of My Blood,” especially a return to the 18th century Highlands, with tartans, castles and craggy tors aplenty.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 8, 2025
The new tartan has been registered with the Scottish register of tartans, which is administered by the National Records of Scotland.
From BBC ● Sep. 2, 2023
She goes with kilts and skirts in tartans and plaids as her country style.
From Seattle Times ● May 26, 2022
There’s a similar blend of heritage and fashion in the Highlands, where tweed acts as a foil to the more ceremonial tartans.
From National Geographic ● Jan. 14, 2021
They were like the devices that held our tartans together, unremarkable, dull, but necessary in their way.
From "Middlesex: A Novel" by Jeffrey Eugenides
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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.
