tar pit

A form of tarpit — 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.

Ask AI about this wordChatGPTClaudePerplexityGoogle AIGrok

Meanings

nountar pit (plural tar pits)

plural tar pits

  1. alternativeAlternative form of tarpit.
Cite this entry
APA

tar pit. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/tar%20pit

MLA

“tar pit.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/tar%20pit. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “tar pit,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/tar%20pit.

Source: tar pit on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.