tarmac en · NOUN
Pronunciation
- (Southern-England) audio
- /ˈtɑː(ɹ)mæk/
Etymology
Clipping of tarmacadam, which is from tar + macadam (“crushed stones”). Originally a trademark owned by its inventor, Edgar Hooley.
Meanings
- (countable, uncountable) Tarmacadam.
-
(Canada, Ireland, UK, broadly, countable, uncountable) Any bituminous road surfacing material.
How meek and shrunken did that haughty Tarmac become as it slunk by the wide circle of asphalt of the yellow sort, that was loosely strewn before the great iron gates of Lady Hall as a forerunner of the consideration that awaited the guests of Rupert, Earl of Kare, […].
1922, Michael Arlen, “3/1/1”, in “Piracy”: A Romantic Chronicle of These Days:
- (Canada, Ireland, UK, countable, uncountable) The driveable surface of a road.
-
(countable, informal, uncountable) The area of an airport, other than the runway, where planes park or maneuver.
As he walked across the tarmac in the bitter January wind he saw his own name going over the network: BOND, JAMES. BRITISH DIPLOMATIC PASSPORT 0094567, the short wait and the replies coming back on the different machines: NEGATIVE, NEGATIVE, NEGATIVE. And then, from the FBI: POSITIVE AWAIT CHECK.
1954, Ian Fleming, “The Red Carpet”, in Live and Let Die, London: Pan Books, published 1957, page 1:
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| tarmacs | Number=Plur | lexicographic |
Coordinates
Descendants
Relateds
Synonyms
Translations (47)
sv asfalt (bituminous road surface) · ru гудрони́рованное шоссе́ (bituminous road surface) · cmn 瀝青路 /沥青路 (bituminous road surface) · ca asfalt (bituminous road surface) · pl betonka (area of an airport, where planes park or maneuver) · it asfalto (bituminous road surface) · da forplads (area of an airport, where planes park or maneuver) · ga tarmac (bituminous road surface) · de Teermakadam (bituminous road surface) · de Asphalt (bituminous road surface) · es asfalto (bituminous road surface) · ja アスファルト舗装路 (bituminous road surface) · pt macadame (bituminous road surface) · tr asfalt (bituminous road surface) · nl asfalt (bituminous road surface) · yue 停機坪 /停机坪 (area of an airport, where planes park or maneuver) · fi platta (area of an airport, where planes park or maneuver) · fi bitumisora (bituminous road surface) · hu aszfaltpálya (bituminous road surface) · cy tarmacadam (bituminous road surface) · is asfalt (bituminous road surface) · ga tarmac (area of an airport, where planes park or maneuver) · ru асфа́льт (bituminous road surface) · fi asemataso (area of an airport, where planes park or maneuver) · cmn 柏油路 (bituminous road surface) · bg писта (area of an airport, where planes park or maneuver) · ko 타맥 (bituminous road surface) · bg макадам (bituminous road surface) · fi rullaustie (taxiway) (area of an airport, where planes park or maneuver) · nl bitumen (bituminous road surface) · fi öljysora (bituminous road surface) · de Rollfeld (area of an airport, where planes park or maneuver) · fr tarmac (bituminous road surface) · ga tarramhacadam (bituminous road surface) · mi papatau (bituminous road surface) · ja ターマック (bituminous road surface) · hu aszfaltburkolat (bituminous road surface) · hu aszfaltút (bituminous road surface) · pt asfalto (bituminous road surface) · fi asfaltti (bituminous road surface) · cmn 停机坪 (area of an airport, where planes park or maneuver) · sw lami (bituminous road surface) · cy tarmac (area of an airport, where planes park or maneuver) · fr tarmac (area of an airport, where planes park or maneuver) · da asfalt (bituminous road surface) · is malbik (bituminous road surface) · cy tarmac (bituminous road surface)