Tapir noun [ Braz. tapy'ra : confer French tapir .] (Zoology) Any one of several species of large odd-toed ungulates belonging to Tapirus , Elasmognathus , and allied genera. They have a long prehensile upper lip, short ears, short and stout legs, a short, thick tail, and short, close hair. They have three toes on the hind feet, and four toes on the fore feet, but the outermost toe is of little use.

» The best-known species are the Indian tapir ( Tapirus Indicus ), native of the East Indies and Malacca, which is black with a broad band of white around the middle, and the common American tapir ( T. Americanus ), which, when adult, is dull brown. Several others species inhabit the Andes and Central America.

Tapir tiger (Zoology) , the wallah.

Tapiroid adjective [ Tapir + - oid .] (Zoology) Allied to the tapir, or the Tapir family.

Tapis noun [ French See Tapestry .] Tapestry; formerly, the cover of a council table.

On , or Upon , the tapis , on the table, or under consideration; as, to lay a motion in Parliament on the tapis .

Tapis transitive verb To cover or work with figures like tapestry. [ R.] Holland.

Tapiser noun [ French tapissier .] A maker of tapestry; an upholsterer. [ R.] Chaucer.

Tapish intransitive verb [ French se tapir to squat.] To lie close to the ground, so as to be concealed; to squat; to crouch; hence, to hide one's self. [ Written also tappis , tappish , tappice .] [ Obsolete or Prov. Eng.]

As a hound that, having roused a hart,
Although he tappish ne'er so soft.

Chapman.

Taplash noun Bad small beer; also, the refuse or dregs of liquor. [ Obsolete or Prov. Eng.]

The taplash of strong ale and wine.

Taylor (1630).

Taplings noun plural The strong double leathers by which the two parts of a flail are united. Halliwell.

Tapoa tafa (Zoology) A small carnivorous marsupial ( Phascogale penicillata ) having long, soft fur, and a very long tail with a tuft of long hairs at the end; -- called also brush-tailed phascogale .

Tappen noun An obstruction, or indigestible mass, found in the intestine of bears and other animals during hibernation.

Tapper noun (Zoology) The lesser spotted woodpecker ( Dendrocopus minor ); -- called also tapperer , tabberer , little wood pie , barred woodpecker , wood tapper , hickwall , and pump borer . [ Prov. Eng.]

Tappester noun [ See Tapster .] A female tapster. [ Obsolete] Chaucer.

Tappet noun (Machinery) A lever or projection moved by some other piece, as a cam, or intended to tap or touch something else, with a view to produce change or regulate motion. G. Francis.

Tappet motion , a valve motion worked by tappets from a reciprocating part, without an eccentric or cam, -- used in steam pumps, etc.

Tappet rod (Mech.) A rod carrying a tappet or tappets, as one for closing the valves in a Cornish pumping engine.

Tappice, Tappis intransitive verb See Tapish .

Tappit hen
1. A hen having a tuft of feathers on her head. [ Scot.] Jamieson.

2. A measuring pot holding one quart (according to some, three quarts); -- so called from a knob on the lid, thought to resemble a crested hen. [ Scot.] Jamieson.

Tappoon noun [ Spanish tampón a stopper.] (Irrigation) A piece of wood or sheet metal fitted into a ditch to dam up the water so as to overflow a field. [ U. S.]

Taproom noun A room where liquors are kept on tap; a barroom.

The ambassador was put one night into a miserable taproom , full of soldiers smoking.

Macaulay.

Taproot noun (Botany) The root of a plant which penetrates the earth directly downward to a considerable depth without dividing.

Tapster noun [ Anglo-Saxon tæppestre a female tapster. See Tap a plug, pipe, and -ster .] One whose business is to tap or draw ale or other liquor.

Taqua-nut noun (Botany) A Central American name for the ivory nut.

Tar noun [ Abbrev. from tarpaulin .] A sailor; a seaman. [ Colloq.] Swift.

Tar noun [ Middle English terre , tarre , Anglo-Saxon teru , teoru ; akin to Dutch teer , German teer , theer , Icelandic tjara , Swedish tjära , Danish tiære , and to English tree . √63. See Tree .] A thick, black, viscous liquid obtained by the distillation of wood, coal, etc., and having a varied composition according to the temperature and material employed in obtaining it.

Coal tar . See in the Vocabulary. -- Mineral tar (Min.) , a kind of soft native bitumen. -- Tar board , a strong quality of millboard made from junk and old tarred rope. Knight. -- Tar water . (a) A cold infusion of tar in water, used as a medicine. (b) The ammoniacal water of gas works. -- Wood tar , tar obtained from wood. It is usually obtained by the distillation of the wood of the pine, spruce, or fir, and is used in varnishes, cements, and to render ropes, oakum, etc., impervious to water.

Tar transitive verb [ imperfect & past participle Tarred ; present participle & verbal noun Tarring .] To smear with tar, or as with tar; as, to tar ropes; to tar cloth.

To tar and feather a person . See under Feather , transitive verb

Taranis noun [ Latin taranis , from the Celtic; confer W. & Corn. taran thunder.] (Myth.) A Celtic divinity, regarded as the evil principle, but confounded by the Romans with Jupiter.

Tarantass noun [ Russian tarantas' .] A low four-wheeled carriage used in Russia. The carriage box rests on two long, springy poles which run from the fore to the hind axletree. When snow falls, the wheels are taken off, and the body is mounted on a sledge.

Tarantella noun [ Italian ] (Mus.) (a) A rapid and delirious sort of Neapolitan dance in 6-8 time, which moves in whirling triplets; -- so called from a popular notion of its being a remedy against the poisonous bite of the tarantula . Some derive its name from Taranto in Apulia. (b) Music suited to such a dance.

Tarantism noun [ Italian tarantismo : confer French tarentisme . See Tarantula .] (Medicine) A nervous affection producing melancholy, stupor, and an uncontrollable desire to dance. It was supposed to be produced by the bite of the tarantula, and considered to be incapable of cure except by protracted dancing to appropriate music. [ Written also tarentism .]

Tarantula noun ; plural English Tarantulas , Latin Tarantulæ . [ New Latin , from Italian tarantola , from Latin Tarentum , now Taranto , in the south of Italy.] (Zoology) Any one of several species of large spiders, popularly supposed to be very venomous, especially the European species ( Tarantula apuliæ ). The tarantulas of Texas and adjacent countries are large species of Mygale. [ Written also tarentula .]

Tarantula killer , a very large wasp ( Pompilus formosus ), which captures the Texan tarantula ( Mygale Hentzii ) and places it in its nest as food for its young, after paralyzing it by a sting.

Tarantulated adjective Bitten by a tarantula; affected with tarantism.

Tarbogan noun & v. See Toboggan .

Tarboosh noun [ Arabic tarb...sh ; perhaps from Persian sar-posh headdress: confer French tarbouch .] A red cap worn by Turks and other Eastern nations, sometimes alone and sometimes swathed with linen or other stuff to make a turban. See Fez .

Tardation noun [ Latin tardatio , from tardare , tardatum , to retard, delay, from tardus slow.] The act of retarding, or delaying; retardation. [ Obsolete]

Tardigrada noun plural [ New Latin See Tardigrade , adjective ]
1. (Zoology) A tribe of edentates comprising the sloths. They are noted for the slowness of their movements when on the ground. See Sloth , 3.

2. (Zoology) An order of minute aquatic arachnids; -- called also bear animalcules , sloth animalcules , and water bears .

Tardigrade adjective [ Latin tardigradus ; tardus slow + gradi to step: confer French tardigrade .]
1. Moving or stepping slowly; slow-paced. [ R.] G. Eliot.

2. (Zoology) Of or pertaining to the Tardigrada.

Tardigrade noun (Zoology) One of the Tardigrada.

Tardigradous adjective Moving slowly; slow-paced. [ Obsolete] Sir T. Browne.

Tardily adverb In a tardy manner; slowly.

Tardiness noun The quality or state of being tardy.

Tarditation noun Tardiness. [ Obsolete]

To instruct them to avoid all snares of tarditation , in the Lord's affairs.

Herrick.

Tardity noun [ Latin tarditas .] Slowness; tardiness. [ R.] Sir K. Digby.

Tardo adjective [ Italian ] (Mus.) Slow; -- a direction to perform a passage slowly.

Tardo noun [ Spanish , slow, Latin tardus .] (Zoology) A sloth.

Tardy adjective [ Compar. Tardier ; superl. Tardiest .] [ French tardif , from (assumed) Late Latin tardivus , from Latin tardus slow.]
1. Moving with a slow pace or motion; slow; not swift.

And check the tardy flight of time.

Sandys.

Tardy to vengeance, and with mercy brave.

Prior.

2. Not being inseason; late; dilatory; -- opposed to prompt ; as, to be tardy in one's payments. Arbuthnot.

The tardy plants in our cold orchards placed.

Waller.

3. Unwary; unready. [ Obsolete] Hudibras.

4. Criminal; guilty. [ Obsolete] Collier.

Syn. -- Slow; dilatory; tedious; reluctant. See Slow .

Tardy transitive verb To make tardy. [ Obsolete] Shak.

Tare obsolete imperfect of Tear . Tore.

Tare noun [ Confer Prov. English tare brisk, eager, Middle English tarefitch the wild vetch.]
1. A weed that grows among wheat and other grain; -- alleged by modern naturalists to be the Lolium temulentum , or darnel.

Didst not thou sow good seed in thy field? From whence then hath it tares ?

Matt. xiii. 27.

The "darnel" is said to be the tares of Scripture, and is the only deleterious species belonging to the whole order.

Baird.

2. (Botany) A name of several climbing or diffuse leguminous herbs of the genus Vicia ; especially, the V. sativa , sometimes grown for fodder.

Tare noun [ French tare ; confer Pr., Spanish , Portuguese , & Italian tara ; all from Arabic tarah thrown away, removed, from taraha to reject, remove.] (Com.) Deficientcy in the weight or quantity of goods by reason of the weight of the cask, bag, or whatever contains the commodity, and is weighed with it; hence, the allowance or abatement of a certain weight or quantity which the seller makes to the buyer on account of the weight of such cask, bag, etc.

Tare transitive verb [ imperfect & past participle Tared ; present participle & verbal noun Taring .] To ascertain or mark the tare of (goods).

Tared adjective (Chemistry) Weighed; determined; reduced to equal or standard weight; as, tared filter papers, used in weighing precipitates.