Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

touch of the tar brush

Word Rarity Rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 3.51 in modern English

Syllables: touch of the -tar brush
IPA

34

Scrabble Score

18

Letters

2

Syllables

11

Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

Real or suspected African or Asian distant ancestry in a person of predominantly Caucasian ancestry; mixed racial heritage (e.g. Afro-Caribbean or, to a lesser extent, South Asian in background or appearance).

Informal

Example Sentences

"She was quite young—not more than about twenty-five—and sort of dark and slinky-looking, if you know what I mean. Quite nice-looking in a kind of way, but rather as though she might have what my mother used to call "a touch of the tar-brush.""

Etymology

Believed to be of British origin.

Usage

Informal

Inflected Forms

touches of the tar brush (plural)

Synonyms

lick of the tarbrush

Questions

What does touch of the tar brush mean?: Real or suspected African or Asian distant ancestry in a person of predominantly Caucasian ancestry; mixed racial heritage (e.g. Afro-Caribbean or, to a lesser extent, South Asian in background or appearance).
Where does touch of the tar brush come from?: Believed to be of British origin.

How to pronounce touch of the tar brush

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