tanbark

[ tan-bahrk ]

  1. the bark of the oak, hemlock, etc., bruised and broken by a mill and used especially in tanning hides.

  2. a surface covered with pieces of tanbark, especially a circus ring.

Origin of tanbark

1
First recorded in 1790–1800; tan1 + bark2

Words Nearby tanbark

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use tanbark in a sentence

  • He said he was a good horseback rider, and there was pieces of tanbark hanging on his clothes yet from his riding school.

    Sixes and Sevens | O. Henry
  • The dismantled church was transformed into a riding-ring, with tanbark on the floor, and a leaping-bar.

    The Siege of Boston | Allen French
  • tanbark and sawdust are the agents used to build a special walking track, and the latter is far the most common.

  • Before them a wide sweep of lawn led up to a formal dark faade; a tanbark path was washed, the grass ragged and uncut.

    The Happy End | Joseph Hergesheimer
  • But they must have smelt fodder over there somewhere, and they broke for it like the devil beatin' tanbark.

British Dictionary definitions for tanbark

tanbark

/ (ˈtænˌbɑːk) /


noun
  1. the bark of certain trees, esp the oak and hemlock, used as a source of tannin: Often shortened to: tan

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012