tart Hear it!

tart1 definition

tart (tärt)

adjective

  1. sharp in taste; sour; acid; acidulous
  2. sharp in meaning or implication; cutting a tart answer

Etymology: ME < OE teart < PGmc *trat- < IE base *der- > tear

Related Forms:

tart2 definition

tart (tärt)

noun

  1. a small shell of pastry filled with jam, jelly, etc.
  2. in England, a small pie filled with fruit or jam and often having a top crust

Etymology: ME tarte < OFr, prob. var. of tourte < LL(Ec) torta, twisted loaf < L tortus: see tort

tart3 definition

tart (tärt)

noun

Informal a prostitute or any promiscuous woman

Etymology: < tart, orig., slang term of endearment

Related Forms:

tart Idioms

tart up

Brit., Slang to clothe, furnish, or decorate in a showy and, often, vulgar way

Webster's New World College Dictionary Copyright © 2005 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

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