tangerine
noun
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When tangerine was first used in the mid-19th century it was an adjective we'd borrowed from French to describe people or things from or relating to the Moroccan city of Tangier. (The French name for "Tangier" is Tanger.) Within about a hundred years the noun tangerine was being used to refer to the fruit we now know by that name. Although tangerines were at one time thought to be native to Morocco, they are now thought to be indigenous to southeast Asia. As our definition explains, tangerines are technically a kind of mandarin orange-and mandarin is another word we got from the French. The French mandarine is most likely originally from the Portuguese word mandarim, which etymologists believe is probably from the color of a Chinese mandarin's robes.
Examples of tangerine in a Sentence
Rebecca Martinson, Rolling Stone, 12 Dec. 2024
This energetic cirrus scent smells like the heart of summer, ripe juicy lemons, and tangerine offset by apple and jasmine.
—Rose Dommu, Them, 11 Dec. 2024
Even though oranges, tangerines, and nectarines are now affordable and widely accessible, the tradition remains.
—Meghan Overdeep, Southern Living, 3 Dec. 2024
This serum is packed with vitamin C that’s extracted from green tangerines, working to give the skin a radiant glow that is refreshing and stunning.
—Hannah Rice, Rolling Stone, 22 Nov. 2024
See all Example Sentences for tangerine 
Dictionary Entries Near tangerine
Cite this Entry
“Tangerine.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/tangerine. Accessed 23 Dec. 2024.
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tangerine
noun
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