tarmac
B2Neutral to informal; common in everyday, journalistic, and technical contexts.
Definition
Meaning
A durable, black surfacing material made from crushed stone bound with tar, used primarily for roads and airport runways.
The paved surface of a road, runway, or similar area; by metonymy, the area of an airport where aircraft are parked, loaded, and serviced (e.g., 'on the tarmac').
Linguistics
Semantic Notes
Originally a proprietary name (Tarmac, from 'Tar Macadam'), now a genericized trademark. The metonymic use for the airport apron/ramp area is common but technically imprecise in aviation.
Dialectal Variation
British vs American Usage
Differences
In the UK, 'tarmac' is the dominant, everyday term for road surfaces and pavements. In the US, 'asphalt' or 'blacktop' is more common for roads, while 'tarmac' is strongly associated with airport runways/aprons.
Connotations
UK: Generic, everyday material. US: Often evokes aviation/airports specifically.
Frequency
Higher frequency in UK English for general contexts. In US English, frequency spikes in travel/aviation contexts.
Vocabulary
Collocations
Grammar
Valency Patterns
[verb] the tarmacon the tarmacacross the tarmactarmac [noun]tarmac-coveredVocabulary
Synonyms
Strong
Neutral
Weak
Vocabulary
Antonyms
Phrases
Idioms & Phrases
- “hitting the tarmac (starting a road trip)”
- “tarmac delay (aviation)”
- “the tarmac is melting (extremely hot weather)”
Usage
Context Usage
Business
Used in construction, civil engineering, and aviation logistics contracts (e.g., 'tarmac laying services').
Academic
Rare; appears in historical or materials science texts about road construction.
Everyday
Common for describing road surfaces, driveways, or airport experiences.
Technical
Precise in civil engineering for the material; less precise but common in aviation for the aircraft parking area.
Examples
By Part of Speech
verb
British English
- The council plans to tarmac the old cobbled lane next year.
- They've just tarmacked over the front garden for parking.
American English
- The county will tarmac the final stretch of the rural road.
- The driveway was freshly tarmacked last week.
adjective
British English
- We played on the tarmac playground.
- It's a tarmac footpath, not a muddy trail.
American English
- The plane sat on the tarmac apron for hours.
- He skidded on the wet tarmac surface.
Examples
By CEFR Level
- The children rode their bikes on the tarmac.
- The road is made of tarmac.
- The new tarmac on our street is very smooth.
- Our flight was delayed, so we waited on the tarmac.
- After the scorching heat, the tarmac felt soft underfoot.
- The government pledged to tarmac hundreds of miles of rural roads.
- The relentless sun had caused the tarmac to blister and buckle.
- Journalists were confined to a cordoned-off area of the tarmac during the dignitary's arrival.
Learning
Memory Aids
Mnemonic
Think: TAR + MAC(adam). Tar is the black, sticky binder, and Macadam refers to the crushed stone layer it holds together.
Conceptual Metaphor
THE GROUND/ROAD IS A SKIN (e.g., 'cracked tarmac', 'fresh skin of tarmac').
Watch out
Common Pitfalls
Translation Traps (for Russian speakers)
- Avoid direct translation as 'асфальт' in all contexts, as Russian 'асфальт' is broader. For the airport area, 'перрон' or 'лётное поле' might be closer than 'асфальт'.
- The verb 'to tarmac' has no direct single-word equivalent; use 'асфальтировать' or 'покрывать асфальтом'.
Common Mistakes
- Using 'tarmac' to refer to concrete surfaces.
- Using 'on the tarmac' to mean 'on the runway during takeoff/landing' instead of the parking area.
- Capitalizing it as 'Tarmac' unless referring to the historical company.
Practice
Quiz
In which context is the use of 'tarmac' most characteristic of American English?
FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions
In modern usage, they are often used interchangeably, especially in the UK. Technically, tarmac (tarmacadam) uses tar as a binder, while asphalt uses bitumen. Today, 'asphalt' is the more technically precise term for the common road material.
Yes, especially in British English (e.g., 'to tarmac a road'). It means to surface an area with tarmac/asphalt.
It is very common, particularly in journalism and everyday speech, to mean the aircraft is parked on the paved area (apron/ramp). Purists in aviation note that 'tarmac' is not an official term; 'apron' or 'ramp' is more precise.
'Tarmac' refers to the material. 'Pavement' (UK) or 'sidewalk' (US) is the path for pedestrians at the side of a road. In the US, 'pavement' can also mean the hard surface of a road (the material), leading to potential confusion.