tarmac

1 of 2

noun

tar·​mac ˈtär-ˌmak How to pronounce tarmac (audio)
: a tarmacadam road, apron, or runway

Tarmac

2 of 2

trademark

used for a bituminous binder for roads

Examples of tarmac in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Noun
Images show a group of men wearing gray sweatsuit outfits lined up on a tarmac waiting to board a plane. Louis Casiano, Fox News, 21 Feb. 2025 Carlson and another man assisted a mother and her son out of the plane, then Carlson dropped onto the snowy tarmac. John Wawrow, Chicago Tribune, 18 Feb. 2025 The airport was dealing with high winds of 40 miles an hour at the time of the landing and a snowy tarmac. Ben Kesslen, Quartz, 18 Feb. 2025 Video from the scene showed the plane upside down on the snowy tarmac as emergency workers hose it down. Gqlshare, San Diego Union-Tribune, 17 Feb. 2025 See All Example Sentences for tarmac

Word History

Etymology

Noun

from Tarmac, a trademark

First Known Use

Noun

1919, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of tarmac was in 1919

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Tarmac.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/tarmac. Accessed 4 Mar. 2025.

Kids Definition

tarmac

noun
tar·​mac ˈtär-ˌmak How to pronounce tarmac (audio)
: a road, apron, or runway paved with layers of crushed stone covered with tar

More from Merriam-Webster on tarmac

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