1
: a plaid textile design of Scottish origin consisting of stripes of varying width and color usually patterned to designate a distinctive clan
2
a
: a twilled woolen fabric with tartan design
b
: a fabric with tartan design
3
: a garment of tartan design
Examples of tartan in a Sentence
a kilt in the clan's tartan
Recent Examples on the Web
The songwriter and singer wore Vivienne Westwood’s powder blue Sunday dress and layered it over a tartan corset.
—
Marissa Muller, WWD, 3 Feb. 2025
Between Swift’s sleek Chanel layering piece at a Midwest-cold Kansas City Chiefs game and Martha Stewart’s sophisticated tartan puffer-slash-farm coat, celebs proved that layering up doesn’t have to cramp their style.
—Alyssa Brascia, People.com, 27 Jan. 2025
Always easily discernible by its signature tartan packaging, Mackintosh’s Toffee is as hard as a brick and equally as likely to ruin your teeth.
—Arianne Jones, Saveur, 15 Jan. 2025
The moody aesthetic is complete with tartan patterns, vintage velvet bells shimmering over the glow of a fireplace, and pinecone ornaments (all easily adorned with a simple Command tool).
—Isabella Milano, Better Homes & Gardens, 20 Nov. 2024
See all Example Sentences for tartan 
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Marissa Muller, WWD, 3 Feb. 2025
Between Swift’s sleek Chanel layering piece at a Midwest-cold Kansas City Chiefs game and Martha Stewart’s sophisticated tartan puffer-slash-farm coat, celebs proved that layering up doesn’t have to cramp their style.
—Alyssa Brascia, People.com, 27 Jan. 2025
Always easily discernible by its signature tartan packaging, Mackintosh’s Toffee is as hard as a brick and equally as likely to ruin your teeth.
—Arianne Jones, Saveur, 15 Jan. 2025
The moody aesthetic is complete with tartan patterns, vintage velvet bells shimmering over the glow of a fireplace, and pinecone ornaments (all easily adorned with a simple Command tool).
—Isabella Milano, Better Homes & Gardens, 20 Nov. 2024
See all Example Sentences for tartan
Dictionary Entries Near tartan
Cite this Entry
“Tartan.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/tartan. Accessed 16 Feb. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
tartan
noun
tar·tan
ˈtärt-ᵊn 
1
: a plaid textile design of Scottish origin
2
: a fabric or garment with tartan design
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