Speakur

Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

tarpit

Word Rarity Very rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 0.00 in modern English

Syllables
tarpit
IPA
8
Scrabble Score
6
Letters
1
Syllables
5
Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

A lake of asphalt formed when subterranean bitumen leaks to the ground surface. Such pits are important in forming fossil fuel reserves; they are also apt to trap passing animals, which become fossilized in the tar.

noun

A service that purposely delays incoming connections in order to reduce the effectiveness of spamming and similar techniques.

verb

To delay by means of a tarpit service.

Transitive verb

Example Sentences

Etymology

From tar + pit.

Usage

Subject

Wiktionary places this term in Geology.

Inflected Forms

tarpits (plural) tar pit (alternative) tarpits (present, singular) tarpitting (participle, present) tarpitted (participle, past) tarpitted (past)

Phrases

Turing tarpit tar baby

Frequently Paired Words

tar baby

Questions

What does tarpit mean?
A lake of asphalt formed when subterranean bitumen leaks to the ground surface. Such pits are important in forming fossil fuel reserves; they are also apt to trap passing animals, which become fossilized in the tar.
Where does tarpit come from?
From tar + pit.

How to pronounce tarpit

  1. Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “tarpit”.
  2. Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling () so you know which sounds to aim for.
  3. Play the audio — Click Play to hear reference audio for “tarpit”.
  4. Repeat and practice — Say “tarpit” aloud, matching stress and vowels until it feels natural.