TARPAULIN

tarpaulin, tarp

(noun) waterproofed canvas

Source: WordNet® 3.1


Etymology

Noun

tarpaulin (countable and uncountable, plural tarpaulins)

(countable) A tarp, a heavy, waterproof sheet of material, often cloth, used as a cover or blanket.

(countable, slang, archaic) A sailor (often abbreviated to tar)

(uncountable, obsolete) Any heavy, waterproof material used as a cover.

(uncountable, nautical, obsolete) Canvas waterproofed with tar, used as a cover.

A hat made of, or covered with, painted or tarred cloth, worn by sailors and others.

Usage notes

• In the US, tarp has been more common than tarpaulin in print since about 1990. In speech since at least 1970.

Anagrams

• unpartial

Source: Wiktionary


Tar*pau"lin, n. Etym: [Tar + palling a covering, pall to cover. See Pall a covering.]

1. A piece of canvas covered with tar or a waterproof composition, used for covering the hatches of a ship, hammocks, boats, etc.

2. A hat made of, or covered with, painted or tarred cloth, worn by sailors and others.

3. Hence, a sailor; a seaman; a tar. To a landsman, these tarpaulins, as they were called, seemed a strange and half-savage race. Macaulay.

Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition



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Word of the Day

2 May 2025

MINESHAFT

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