tarp

noun

ˈtärp 

plural tarps

: a piece of material (such as durable plastic or waterproofed canvas) used especially for protecting exposed objects or areas : tarpaulin

The crewmen competed for a place to stand beneath the small tarp that covered part of the narrow deck.

—Matt Potts

This house, half of it's all burned up. They live there, the burned part's covered with a tarp, with their dogs, and they must have at least ten.

—Katya Reno

Examples of tarp in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Scoop the debris into a bucket or onto a tarp below — whichever setup feels easiest for you. —Lauren Jarvis-Gibson, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 31 Mar. 2026

Under a mid-morning sun, huddled beneath tents and silver tarps, doctors and nurses handed patients at a homeless outreach clinic water bottles, hats, sunglasses and cooling towels to drape around their necks — all to stave off the worst effects of a premature triple-digit heat wave. —Sarah Henry, AZCentral.com, 21 Mar. 2026

Under the tarp was the body of a man who died recently. —Liz Teitz, San Antonio Express-News, 19 Mar. 2026

As of Wednesday, the park name had been covered with a tarp. —Brian Sherrod, CBS News, 19 Mar. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1906, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for tarp

• carp
• harp
• scarp
• endocarp
• pericarp

Kids Definition

tarp

noun

ˈtärp 

: tarpaulin