Tartar

¹

[tahr-ter]

noun

1. a member of any of the various tribes, chiefly Mongolian and Turkish, who, originally under the leadership of Genghis Khan, overran Asia and much of eastern Europe in the Middle Ages.

2. a member of the descendants of this people variously intermingled with other peoples and tribes, now inhabiting parts of the European and western and central Asian Russian Federation.

3. Tatar.

4. (often lowercase),  a savage, intractable person.

5. (often lowercase),  an ill-tempered person.

adjective

1. of or relating to a Tartar or Tartars; Tartarian.

2. Tatar.

Tartar

²

[tahr-ter]

noun

Obsolete.

1. Tartarus.

tartar

³

[tahr-ter]

noun

1. Dentistry.,  calculus.

2. the deposit from wines, potassium bitartrate.

3. the intermediate product of cream of tartar, obtained from the crude form, argol.

tartar

¹

/ ˈtɑːtə /

noun

1. dentistry a hard crusty deposit on the teeth, consisting of food, cellular debris, and mineral salts

2. Also called: argol. a brownish-red substance consisting mainly of potassium hydrogen tartrate, present in grape juice and deposited during the fermentation of wine

tartar

²

/ ˈtɑːtə /

noun

1. (sometimes capital) a fearsome or formidable person

Tartar

³

/ ˈtɑːtə /

noun

1. a variant spelling of Tatar

tartar

1. A hard yellowish deposit on the teeth, consisting of organic secretions and food particles deposited in various salts, such as calcium carbonate.

2. A reddish acid compound consisting of a tartrate of potassium, found in the juice of grapes and deposited on the sides of wine casks.

Other Word Forms

• Tartarly adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of tartar¹

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English, from Medieval Latin Tartarus, perhaps variant of Tātārus (unattested), from Persian Tātār, by association with Tartarus; replacing Middle English Tartre, from Middle French, from Medieval Latin, as above

Origin of tartar²

1350–1400; Middle English < Medieval Latin tartarum < Late Greek tártaron; replacing Middle English tartre < Middle French < Medieval Latin, as above

Word History and Origins

Origin of tartar¹

C14: from Medieval Latin tartarum, from Medieval Greek tartaron

Origin of tartar²

C16: special use of _Tartar

Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

1. catch a Tartar, to deal with someone or something that proves unexpectedly troublesome or powerful. Also catch a tartar.

Example Sentences

She advises breading and frying before dipping into a tartar sauce or marinara.

From Salon

Additionally, adding a small amount of acid, like cream of tartar or a few drops of lemon juice, directly into the sugar solution can help control crystallization.

From Salon

Add flour and mix well together, adding remainder of milk as required – also bicarbonate and cream of tartar.

From BBC

Additionally, Red Lobster tweaked its tartar sauce recipe following complaints from several fans on TikTok.

From Salon

We ordered beef tartar, and while it was amazing I wouldn’t order it since the first bite from the chef is also beef tartar.

From Salon