Tarbaby definition

A difficult or "sticky" situation, especially one where peoples' attempts to make it better only make it worse.
noun
1
0
(pejorative, ethnic slur) A black person.
noun
0
2
Advertisement

Other Word Forms

Noun

Singular:
tarbaby
Plural:
tarbabies

Origin of tarbaby

  • tar +‎ baby, from African American folklore, popularized by the tale of Br'er Rabbit in the Uncle Remus stories (1881) of Joel Chandler Harris, originally from Cherokee folklore (a tar baby story was published in the Cherokee Advocate, 1845).

    From Wiktionary