From Middle English tarien, terien (“to vex, harass, cause to hesitate, delay”), from Old English tirian, tirġan, terġan (“to worry, exasperate, pain, provoke, excite”), from Proto-Germanic *terganą, *targijaną (“to pull, tease, irritate”), from Proto-Indo-European *derHgʰ- (“to pull, tug, irritate”). Cognate with Dutch tergen (“to provoke”), German zergen (“to vex, irritate, provoke”), Norwegian Bokmål terge (“to irritate, provoke”), Russian дёргать (djórgatʹ, “to pull, yank, jerk, pester”). Compare also Walloon tårdjî (“to be late, to be slow, to wait”).
Compare typologically Czech meškat, Russian ме́шкать (méškatʹ) (akin to меша́ть (mešátʹ)), копа́ться (kopátʹsja) (akin to копа́ть (kopátʹ)).
Meanings
(dated, intransitive) To delay; to be late or tardy in beginning or doing anything.
For the vision is yet for an appointed time, but at the end it shall speak, and not lie: though it tarry, wait for it; because it will surely come, it will not tarry. 1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Habakkuk 2:3:
I believe with perfect faith in the coming of the Messiah; and even though he may tarry, nonetheless, I wait every day for his coming. c. 1170, Maimonides, “Thirteen principles of faith”, in Mishneh Torah:
But so was Face, crouched before the fire in her banana skins, and so was Mug, smoking a cigarette and saying as he flicked the ash: “Why doth the bridegroom tarry?” 1918 August, Katherine Mansfield [pseudonym; Kathleen Mansfield Murry], “Bliss”, in Bliss and Other Stories, London: Constable & Company, published 1920, →OCLC, page 126:
(dated, intransitive) To linger in expectation of something or until something is done or happens.
And, thinking of to-morrow, when the church would rise up, singing, under the booming Sunday light, he thought of the light for which they tarried, which, in an instant, filled the soul, causing […] the new-born in Christ to testify: Once I was blind and now I see. 1953, James Baldwin, “Florence's Prayer”, in Go Tell It on the Mountain (Penguin Classics), London: Penguin Books, published 2001, →ISBN:
(dated, intransitive) To abide, stay or wait somewhere, especially if longer than planned.
[...] I have Thoughts to tarry a ſmall Matter in Town, to learn ſomewhat of your Lingo firſt, before I croſs the Seas. 1700, [William] Congreve, The Way of the World, a Comedy. […], London: […] Jacob Tonson, […], →OCLC, Act III, scene xv, page 47:
(dated, intransitive) To stay somewhere temporarily.
In this by-place of nature, there abode, in a remote period of American history, that is to say, some thirty years since, a worthy wight of the name of Ichabod Crane; who sojourned, or, as he expressed it, "tarried," in Sleepy Hollow[…]. 1820, Washington Irving, The Legend of Sleepy Hollow, published 1864:
(dated, transitive) To wait for; to stay or stop for; to allow to linger.
"If I had heard otherwise," said the old man, looking up with a stern and menacing countenance, "you should have heard of it too." And he plodded on his way, tarrying no farther question. 1815, Walter Scott, chapter 8, in Guy Mannering, volume 1:
Fly, fly, my lord. There is no tarrying here. 1599 (first performance), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Iulius Cæsar”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act V, scene v]:
He that will have a cake out of the wheat must needs tarry the grinding. c. 1602 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Troylus and Cressida”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act I, scene i]:
et peatuma (to stay or wait somewhere) · de zögern (to delay or be tardy) · fr tarder (to delay or be tardy) · sv dröja (to delay or be tardy) · et viivitama (to delay or be tardy) · bg ба́вя се (to delay or be tardy) · oc demorar (to delay or be tardy) · bg изча́квам (to linger in expectation of) · fr s'attarder (to linger in expectation of) · cs zdržovat se (to stay somewhere temporarily) · hu habozik (to delay or be tardy) · fi olla myöhässä (to delay or be tardy) · oc demorar (to stay somewhere temporarily) · fi viipyä (to stay or wait somewhere) · et viivitama (to linger in expectation of) · de zaudern (to delay or be tardy) · grc μένω (to stay or wait somewhere) · fi viipyä (to stay somewhere temporarily) · gl delongar (to delay or be tardy) · ca trigar (to delay or be tardy) · bg стоя́ (to stay or wait somewhere) · fi viivästyä (to delay or be tardy) · oc s'atardar (to delay or be tardy) · de sich aufhalten (to stay somewhere temporarily) · oc trigar (to delay or be tardy) · de verharren (to stay somewhere temporarily) · bg доча́квам (to stay or stop for) · de bleiben (to stay or wait somewhere) · hu időzik (to stay somewhere temporarily) · de weilen (to stay or wait somewhere) · fr s'attarder (to stay or wait somewhere) · da opholde sig (to stay somewhere temporarily) · et viibima (to stay somewhere temporarily) · hu rostokol (to stay or wait somewhere) · ru ме́шкать (to delay or be tardy) · da drøje (to delay or be tardy) · oc atardar (to delay or be tardy) · fr rester (to stay or wait somewhere) · oc èsser tardiu (to delay or be tardy) · ar تَلَكَع (to delay or be tardy) · fi pysähtyä (to stay somewhere temporarily) · fi odottaa (to stay or stop for) · ca estar-s'hi (to stay somewhere temporarily) · fi oleskella (to stay somewhere temporarily) · cs zůstávat (to stay somewhere temporarily) · cs prodlévat (to stay somewhere temporarily) · de sich aufhalten (to linger in expectation of) · fr demeurer (to stay or wait somewhere) · gl demorar (to delay or be tardy) · nb oppholde seg (to stay somewhere temporarily) · de verharren (to linger in expectation of) · ar تَوَانَى (to delay or be tardy) · nl wachten (to stay or wait somewhere) · cs čekat (to stay or wait somewhere) · grc χρονίζω (to delay or be tardy) · la sedeō (to stay or wait somewhere) · la cunctor (to delay or be tardy) · sq vono (to delay or be tardy) · da holde tilbage (to stay or stop for) · la sedeō (to stay somewhere temporarily) · arz اتلكع (to delay or be tardy) · oc atardivar (to delay or be tardy) · de abwarten (to linger in expectation of) · et ootama (to stay or wait somewhere) · es demorar (to delay or be tardy) · ar تَلَكَأ (to delay or be tardy) · sq rri (to stay or wait somewhere) · de verweilen (to linger in expectation of) · oc trigar (to linger in expectation of) · ca restar (to stay or wait somewhere) · nl blijven (to stay or wait somewhere) · de verbleiben (to linger in expectation of) · nl treuzelen (to delay or be tardy) · hu késlekedik (to delay or be tardy) · cs meškat (to stay or wait somewhere) · ca demorar-se (to linger in expectation of) · fr tarder (to linger in expectation of) · bg оста́вам (to stay or wait somewhere) · oc demorar (to stay or wait somewhere) · acw اَتْلَكَّع (to delay or be tardy) · wa tårdjî (to delay or be tardy) · nl verblijven (to stay somewhere temporarily) · el ξεροσταλιάζω (to linger in expectation of) · fi viivytellä (to linger in expectation of) · cs meškat (to delay or be tardy) · de hinauszögern (to delay or be tardy) · nb avvente (to linger in expectation of) · de verweilen (to stay or wait somewhere) · nb drøye (to delay or be tardy) · fr s'attarder (to delay or be tardy) · fi viipyä (to linger in expectation of) · nl afwachten (to linger in expectation of) · de weilen (to stay somewhere temporarily) · de sich verzögern (to delay or be tardy) · bg ма́я се (to delay or be tardy) · da afvente (to linger in expectation of) · de sich verspäten (to delay or be tardy) · fr séjourner (to stay somewhere temporarily) · fr demeurer (to stay somewhere temporarily) · fi odotella (to linger in expectation of) · de verweilen (to stay somewhere temporarily) · bg пребива́вам (to stay somewhere temporarily) · nl talmen (to delay or be tardy) · de verzögern (to delay or be tardy) · de verbleiben (to stay or wait somewhere) · ru остана́вливаться (to stay somewhere temporarily)
From Middle English terrie, equivalent to tar + -y.
Meanings
(dated) Resembling tar.
And he led the way from the station, stopping once to gloat over the sunset across Trafalgar Square, and again to inhale the tarry scent of the warm wood-paving, which was perfume to his nostrils as the din of its traffic was music to his ears, before we came to one of those political palaces which permit themselves to be included in the list of ordinary clubs. 1909, E[rnest] W[illiam] Hornung, “An Inaugural Banquet”, in Mr. Justice Raffles, 1st American edition, New York, N.Y.: Charles Scribner’s Sons, →OCLC, page 2: