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tar and pitch
tar and pitch viscous, dark-brown to black substances obtained by the destructive distillation of coal, wood, petroleum, peat, and certain other organic materials. The heating or partial burning of wood to make charcoal yields tar as a byproduct and is an ancient method for the production of both tar and pitch. Coal tar is a residue in the manufacture of coal gas and coke. By the application of heat, tar is separated into several materials, one of which is pitch. The terms tar and pitch are loosely applied to the many varieties of the two substances, sometimes interchangeably. For example, asphalt, which is naturally occurring pitch, is called mineral tar and mineral pitch. Tar is more or less fluid, depending upon its origin and the temperature to which it is exposed. Pitch tends to be more solid. When ships were made of wood, tar had numerous uses, and an available supply of tar was an important factor in maritime growth. Tar made vessels watertight and protected their ropes from deterioration. All but small quantities of the tar now produced is fractionally distilled to yield naphtha, creosote, carbolic oil, and other equally important crude products. Among the substances produced by refining the various crude materials are benzene, toluene, cresol, and phenol. Tar from pine wood is used in making soap and medicinal preparations. Pitch is used in the manufacture of roofing paper, in varnishes, as a lubricant, and as a binder for coal dust in the making of briquettes used as fuel. Coal-tar derivatives are used in the manufacture of dyes, cosmetics, and synthetic flavoring extracts. |
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"tar and pitch." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2008. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "tar and pitch." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2008. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-tarNpitc.html "tar and pitch." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2008. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-tarNpitc.html |
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Tar
TARTAR. In the American colonies, tar was a by-product of land clearing and was both exported and supplied to local shipyards. In 1705 Parliament established bounties on naval stores, including tar, imported from the colonies. Following the passage of this law and subsequent acts, annual shipments of pitch and tar from the colonies to Great Britain increased from less than one thousand barrels to more than eighty-two thousand barrels. During the era of wooden ships, tar retained an important place in manufacturing and trade statistics, especially in North Carolina. In the twentieth century most of the tar produced was distilled to yield carbolic oil, naphtha, and other crude products, while pine wood tar was used in medicines and soap. BIBLIOGRAPHYKilmarx, Robert A., ed. America's Maritime Legacy: A History of the U.S. Merchant Marine and Shipbuilding Industry since Colonial Times. Boulder, Colo.: Westview Press, 1979. Shephard, James F., and Walton, Gary M. Shipping, Maritime Trade, and the Economic Development of Colonial North America. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1972. Victor S.Clark/h. s. See alsoNorth Carolina ; Shipbuilding . |
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"Tar." Dictionary of American History. 2003. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "Tar." Dictionary of American History. 2003. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1G2-3401804126.html "Tar." Dictionary of American History. 2003. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1G2-3401804126.html |
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tar
tar1 / tär/ • n. a dark, thick, flammable liquid distilled from wood or coal, consisting of a mixture of hydrocarbons, resins, alcohols, and other compounds. It is used in roadmaking and for coating and preserving timber. ∎ a similar substance formed by burning tobacco or other material: [in comb.] low-tar cigarettes. • v. (tarred , tar·ring ) [tr.] [usu. as adj.] (tarred) cover (something) with tar: a newly tarred road. PHRASES: beat (or whale) the tar out of inf. beat or thrash severely. tar and feather smear with tar and then cover with feathers as a punishment. tar people with the same brush consider specified people to have the same faults. tar2 • n. inf., dated a sailor. |
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"tar." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "tar." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O999-tar.html "tar." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O999-tar.html |
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tar
tar tar and feather smear with tar and then cover with feathers as a punishment, a practice originally imposed by an ordinance of Richard I in 1189 as a punishment in the navy for theft. In 18th-century America in particular, the punishment was sometimes inflicted by the mob on an unpopular or scandalous character.
tar baby a difficult problem which is only aggravated by attempts to solve it, with allusion to the doll smeared with tar as a trap for Brer Rabbit, in J. C. Harris's Uncle Remus (1880). Tar Heel State informal name for North Carolina, with allusion to tar as a principal product of that state. See also do not spoil the ship for a ha'porth of tar. |
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ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "tar." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "tar." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O214-tar.html ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "tar." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O214-tar.html |
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tar
tar Black or dark brown, complex liquid mixture of hydrocarbon compounds, derived from wood, coal, and other organic materials. Tar, from petroleum oil, is a major source of hydrocarbons for the synthesis of pharmaceuticals, pesticides, and plastics; cruder tar compounds, such as pitch, are used for road surfacing and protecting timber against rot and pests. Wood tar yields creosote and paraffin.
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"tar." World Encyclopedia. 2005. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "tar." World Encyclopedia. 2005. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O142-tar.html "tar." World Encyclopedia. 2005. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O142-tar.html |
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tar
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T. F. HOAD. "tar." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. T. F. HOAD. "tar." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O27-tar.html T. F. HOAD. "tar." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O27-tar.html |
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tar
tar (tar) n. a blackish viscous liquid produced by the destructive distillation of pine wood (pine t.) or coal (coal t.), used in skin preparations to treat eczema and psoriasis. As a constituent of cigarettes, tar is known to have carcinogenic properties.
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"tar." A Dictionary of Nursing. 2008. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "tar." A Dictionary of Nursing. 2008. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O62-tar.html "tar." A Dictionary of Nursing. 2008. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O62-tar.html |
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tar
tar, the residue after distillation of the gum extracted from pine trees and used during the days of sail, among many other purposes, for the preservation of the standing rigging and rope such as hemp and sisal. See also jack tar; sailors' dress.
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"tar." The Oxford Companion to Ships and the Sea. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "tar." The Oxford Companion to Ships and the Sea. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O225-tar.html "tar." The Oxford Companion to Ships and the Sea. 2006. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O225-tar.html |
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tar
tar A contraction of tape archive. A UNIX command that can make a number of files into a single archive file (with the extension “.tar”) or can extract files from an archive of this type. The data in a tar file is not compressed.
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JOHN DAINTITH. "tar." A Dictionary of Computing. 2004. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. JOHN DAINTITH. "tar." A Dictionary of Computing. 2004. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O11-tar.html JOHN DAINTITH. "tar." A Dictionary of Computing. 2004. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O11-tar.html |
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tar
tar n. informal, dated a sailor.
mid 17th cent.: perhaps an abbreviation of tarpaulin, also used as a nickname for a sailor at this time. |
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"tar." The Oxford Essential Dictionary of the U.S. Military. 2001. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "tar." The Oxford Essential Dictionary of the U.S. Military. 2001. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O63-tar.html "tar." The Oxford Essential Dictionary of the U.S. Military. 2001. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O63-tar.html |
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tar
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DARREL INCE. "tar." A Dictionary of the Internet. 2001. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. DARREL INCE. "tar." A Dictionary of the Internet. 2001. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O12-tar.html DARREL INCE. "tar." A Dictionary of the Internet. 2001. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O12-tar.html |
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tar
tar2 (colloq.) sailor. XVII (also Jack Tar XVIII). Short for TARPAULIN.
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Cite this article
T. F. HOAD. "tar." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. T. F. HOAD. "tar." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O27-tar1.html T. F. HOAD. "tar." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O27-tar1.html |
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tar
tar see tar and pitch . |
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Cite this article
"tar." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2008. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "tar." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2008. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-X-tar.html "tar." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2008. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-X-tar.html |
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tar
tar
•aargh, Accra, afar, ah, aha, aide-mémoire, ajar, Alcazar, are, Armagh, armoire, Artois, au revoir, baa, bah, bar, barre, bazaar, beaux-arts, Bekaa, bête noire, Bihar, bizarre, blah, Bogotá, Bonnard, bra, cafard, café noir, Calabar, car, Carr, Castlebar, catarrh, Changsha, char, charr, cigar, comme ci comme ça, commissar, coup d'état, de haut en bas, devoir, Dhofar, Directoire, Du Bois, Dumas, Dunbar, éclat, embarras de choix, escritoire, fah, famille noire, far, feu de joie, film noir, foie gras, Fra, galah, gar, guar, guitar, ha, hah, ha-ha, Halacha, hurrah, hussar, huzza, insofar, Invar, jar, je ne sais quoi, ka, kala-azar, Kandahar, Khorramshahr, knar, Krasnodar, Kwa, la-di-da, lah, Lehár, Loire, ma, mama, mamma, mar, Mardi Gras, ménage à trois, mirepoix, moire, Navarre, noir, objet d'art, pa, pah, Panama, papa, par, Pará, Paraná, pas, pâté de foie gras, peau-de-soie, pietà, Pinot Noir, pooh-bah, poult-de-soie, pya, rah, registrar, Saar, Salazar, Sana'a, sang-froid, scar, schwa, Seychellois, shah, Shangri-La, shikar, ska, sol-fa, spa, spar, star, Starr, Stranraer, ta, tahr, tar, tartare, tata, tra-la, tsar, Twa, Villa, voilà, waratah, yah
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"tar." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "tar." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O233-tar.html "tar." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O233-tar.html |
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pitch
pitch •bewitch, bitch, ditch, enrich, fitch, flitch, glitch, hitch, itch, kitsch, Mitch, pitch, quitch, rich, snitch, stitch, switch, titch, twitch, which, witch
•Redditch • Greenwich • eldritch
•ostrich • backstitch • hemstitch
•topstitch • Shostakovich • tsarevich
•Sandwich
•dipswitch, Ipswich
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Cite this article
"pitch." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "pitch." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O233-pitch.html "pitch." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O233-pitch.html |
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