Definify.com

Webster 1913 Edition

Tan

Tan

(tăn)
,
Noun.
[Chin.]
See
Picul
.

Tan

,
Noun.
[F.
tan
, perhaps fr. Armor.
tann
an oak, oak bar; or of Teutonic origin; cf. G.
tanne
a fir, OHG.
tanna
a fir, oak, MHG.
tan
a forest. Cf.
Tawny
.]
1.
The bark of the oak, and some other trees, bruised and broken by a mill, for tanning hides; – so called both before and after it has been used. Called also
tan bark
.
2.
A yellowish-brown color, like that of tan.
3.
A brown color imparted to the skin by exposure to the sun;
as, hands covered with
tan
.
Tan bed
(Hort.)
,
a bed made of tan; a bark bed.
–
Tan pickle
,
the liquor used in tanning leather.
–
Tan spud
,
a spud used in stripping bark for tan from trees.
–
Tan stove
.
See
Bark stove
, under
Bark
.
–
Tan vat
,
a vat in which hides are steeped in liquor with tan.

Tan

,
Adj.
Of the color of tan; yellowish-brown.
Black and tan
.
See under
Black
,
Adj.

Tan

,
Verb.
T.
[
imp. & p. p.
Tanned
(tănd)
;
p. pr. & vb. n.
Tanning
.]
[F.
tanner
, LL.
tannare
. See
Tan
,
Noun.
]
1.
To convert (the skin of an animal) into leather, as by the usual process of steeping it in an infusion of oak or some other bark, whereby it is impregnated with tannin, or tannic acid (which exists in several species of bark), and is thus rendered firm, durable, and in some degree impervious to water.
☞ The essential result in tanning is due to the fact that the tannins form, with gelatins and albuminoids, a series of insoluble compounds which constitute leather. Similar results may be produced by the use of other reagents in place of tannin, as alum, and some acids or chlorides, which are employed in certain processes of tanning.
2.
To make brown; to imbrown, as by exposure to the rays of the sun;
as, to
tan
the skin
.

Tan

,
Verb.
I.
To get or become tanned.

Webster 1828 Edition

Tan

TAN

,
Verb.
T.
1.
In the arts, to convert animal skins into leather by steeping them in an infusion of oak or some other bark, by which they are impregnated with tannin, an astringent substance which exists in several species of bark, and thus rendered firm, durable, and in some degree, impervious to water.
2.
To make brown; to imbrown by exposure to the rays of the sun; as, to tan the skin.
His face all tann'd with scorching sunny rays.

TAN

,
Noun.
The bark of the oak, &c. bruised and broken by a mill for tanning hides. It bears this name before and after it has been used. Tan, after being used in tanning, is used in gardening for making hotbeds; and it is also made into cakes and used as fuel.

Definition 2024

Tan

Tan

See also: Appendix:Variations of "tan"

English

Proper noun

Tan

  1. An English surname derived from the transliteration of various Asian surnames, particularly originating from China and Vietnam.

Anagrams

Tagalog

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /tan/

Etymology

Min Nan Hokkien 陳 ‎(Tân).

Proper noun

Tan

  1. A surname​ of Chinese origin.

See also

Turkish

Proper noun

Tan

  1. A female given name
  2. A male given name which means "dawn, daybreak".

See also

tan

tan

See also: Appendix:Variations of "tan"

Translingual

Symbol

tan

  1. (trigonometry) A symbol of the trigonometric function tangent.

Synonyms

English

Noun

tan ‎(plural tans)

  1. A yellowish-brown colour.
    tan colour:    
  2. A darkening of the skin resulting from exposure to sunlight or similar light sources.
    She still has a tan from her vacation in Mexico.
  3. The bark of an oak or other tree from which tannic acid is obtained.
    • 1848, John Hannett, Bibliopegia, or, The Art of Bookbinding in all its branches, page 65:
      In two pints of water boil one ounce of tan, and a like portion of nutgall till reduced to a pint.
Derived terms
Translations

Adjective

tan ‎(comparative tanner, superlative tannest)

  1. Of a yellowish-brown.
    Mine is the white car parked next to the tan pickup truck.
  2. Having dark skin as a result of exposure to the sun.
    You’re looking very tan this week.
Translations

Etymology 2

As a verb, from Middle English tannen, from late Old English tannian ‎(“to tan a hide”), from Latin tannare.

Verb

tan ‎(third-person singular simple present tans, present participle tanning, simple past and past participle tanned)

  1. (intransitive) To change to a tan colour due to exposure to the sun.
    No matter how long I stay out in the sun, I never tan. though I do burn.
  2. (transitive) To change an animal hide into leather by soaking it in tannic acid.[1] To work as a tanner.
  3. (transitive, informal) To spank or beat.
    • 1876, Mark Twain, The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, ch. 3:
      "Well, go 'long and play; but mind you get back some time in a week, or I'll tan you."
Translations
Derived terms
Related terms
See also
  • Appendix:Colors

Etymology 3

From a Brythonic language; influenced in form by yan ‎(“one”) in the same series.

Numeral

tan

  1. (dialect, rare) The second cardinal number two, formerly used in Celtic areas, especially Cumbria and parts of Yorkshire, for counting sheep, and stitches in knitting.[2]

Etymology 4

Borrowing from Armenian թան ‎(tʿan).

Noun

tan

  1. An Armenian drink made of yoghurt and water similar to airan and doogh

Translations

Etymology 5

From the Cantonese pronunciation of 擔

Noun

tan ‎(usually uncountable, plural tans)

  1. Synonym of picul, particularly in Cantonese contexts.

Etymology 6

From Old English tān ‎(“twig, switch”), from Proto-Germanic *tainaz ‎(“rod, twig, straw, lot”).

Noun

tan ‎(plural tans)

  1. (dialectal) A twig or small switch.
Related terms

References

  1. ↑ See Wikipedia article on Tanning.
  2. ↑ See Wikipedia article on Yan Tan Tethera

Anagrams

Breton

Etymology

From Proto-Celtic *teɸnets ‎(“fire”) (compare Old Irish teine, Welsh tân).

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ˈtɑ̃ːn/

Noun

tan m ‎(plural tanioù)

  1. fire

Catalan

Pronunciation

  • Rhymes: -an

Adverb

tan

  1. so, such
  2. (in comparisons, tan ... com) as ... as

Related terms

  • tant ‎(“so much, so many”)

Chuukese

Noun

tan

  1. dream

Cornish

Etymology

From Proto-Celtic *teɸnets ‎(“fire”) (compare Old Irish teine, Welsh tân).

Noun

tan m ‎(plural tanow)

  1. fire

Mutation

French

Etymology

Probably from Gaulish *tanno- ‎(“oak”), from Latin tannum ‎(“oak bark”).

Pronunciation

Noun

tan m ‎(plural tans)

  1. pulped oak bark used in the tanning process (i.e. of tanning leather)

Galician

Adverb

tan

  1. so, as (in comparisons)

Usage notes

  • Usually paired with como, as tan […] como

Haitian Creole

Etymology

From French temps ‎(“time, weather”).

Noun

tan

  1. time
  2. weather

Hungarian

Etymology

Back-formation from tanít, tanul, etc. Created during the Hungarian language reform which took place in the 18th–19th centuries.

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): [ˈtɒn]
  • Hyphenation: tan

Noun

tan ‎(plural tanok)

  1. doctrine
  2. science of, theory, branch of instruction
  3. -logy, -graphy (in compound words)
  4. Something education-related (in compounds)

Declension

Inflection (stem in -o-, back harmony)
singular plural
nominative tan tanok
accusative tant tanokat
dative tannak tanoknak
instrumental tannal tanokkal
causal-final tanért tanokért
translative tanná tanokká
terminative tanig tanokig
essive-formal tanként tanokként
essive-modal — —
inessive tanban tanokban
superessive tanon tanokon
adessive tannál tanoknál
illative tanba tanokba
sublative tanra tanokra
allative tanhoz tanokhoz
elative tanból tanokból
delative tanról tanokról
ablative tantól tanoktól
Possessive forms of tan
possessor single possession multiple possessions
1st person sing. tanom tanaim
2nd person sing. tanod tanaid
3rd person sing. tana tanai
1st person plural tanunk tanaink
2nd person plural tanotok tanaitok
3rd person plural tanuk tanaik

Derived terms

Japanese

Romanization

tan

  1. rōmaji reading of たん

Lojban

Rafsi

tan

  1. rafsi of tsani.

Mandarin

Romanization

tan

  1. Nonstandard spelling of tān.
  2. Nonstandard spelling of tán.
  3. Nonstandard spelling of tǎn.
  4. Nonstandard spelling of tàn.

Usage notes

  • English transcriptions of Mandarin speech often fail to distinguish between the critical tonal differences employed in the Mandarin language, using words such as this one without the appropriate indication of tone.

Old French

Noun

tan m ‎(oblique plural tans, nominative singular tans, nominative plural tan)

  1. pulped oak bark used in the tanning process (i.e. of tanning leather)

Old Provençal

Alternative forms

Etymology

Latin tantus.

Adverb

tan

  1. such; so much; to such and extent

Adjective

tan

  1. such; so much

References

Old Swedish

Etymology

From Old Norse tǫnn, from Proto-Germanic *tanþs.

Noun

tan f

  1. tooth

Declension

Descendants

Somali

Determiner

tan

  1. this (feminine)

Spanish

Etymology

From Latin tam.

Pronunciation

  • Rhymes: -an

Adverb

tan

  1. so, as
    Eres tan rico como te sientes. - "You are as rich as you feel."

Usage notes

Usually paired with como: tan […] como - "as […] as"

Turkish

Etymology

From Old Turkic taŋ ‎(“sky, sunrise, daylight”).

Noun

tan ‎(definite accusative tanı, plural tanlar)

  1. dawn, twilight, sunrise, daylight
    O gece tan yeri ağırana kadar selâmettir.‎ ― On that night, there is peace till twilight.

Declension

Vietnamese

Pronunciation

Verb

tan ‎(散, 珊, 潵, 㪚)

  1. to melt
  2. to dissolve, dissipate

References

Welsh

Etymology

From Proto-Brythonic *tan, from Proto-Celtic *tanos.

Preposition

tan

  1. until
  2. under
  3. while

Usage notes

Mutation

Welsh mutation
radical soft nasal aspirate
tan dan nhan than
Note: Some of these forms may be hypothetical. Not every
possible mutated form of every word actually occurs.

Zay

Etymology

Cognate to Silt'e [script needed] ‎(tan).

Noun

tan

  1. smoke (from a fire)

References

  • Initial SLLE Survey of the Zway Area by Klaus Wedekind and Charlotte Wedekind

Etymology

Borrowing from French tan ‎(“tanbark”), from Gaulish tanno- ‎(“green oak”) (compare Breton tann ‎(“red oak”), Old Cornish tannen), from Proto-Celtic *tannos ‎(“green oak”), from Proto-Indo-European *dʰonu ‎(“fir”). Related to Hittite [script needed] ‎(tanau, “fir”)[script needed], Latin femur, genitive feminis ‎(“thigh”), German Tann ‎(“woods”), Tanne ‎(“fir”), Albanian thanë ‎(“cranberry bush”), Ancient Greek θάμνος ‎(thámnos, “thicket”), Avestan [script needed] ‎(θanwarə), Sanskrit धनु ‎(dhánu)).

Pronunciation

  • (US) IPA(key): /tæn/

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