Tara

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A term used to describe a set weight of a container or packaging that is excluded when measuring the net weight of its contents; a personal name of Gaelic origin meaning "rocky hill" or "elevated place"; a place name referring to prominent geographical features or historical sites
2. Refers to the tare weight, which is the container's weight subtracted from the total to find content weight; used as a given name with meanings associated with hills or elevation; also denotes specific locations known for natural or cultural prominence
3. Denotes the weight of packaging material deducted from gross weight to yield net weight; serves as a proper noun in Irish contexts symbolizing a hill or high ground; identifies certain landmarks or regions noted for their prominence or significance

Etymology: The word has three possible routes into English, and the commercial sense is the one with the clearest story. In trade, "tara" is the allowance deducted from a gross weight to account for the container, so the buyer pays only for the goods inside. It was borrowed from Spanish "tara", which itself came from Quechua "tara", a term used in the Andes for this kind of deduction in weighing goods. The same spelling also turns up in other places. The Māori "tara" means "tern", a seabird, and English speakers borrowed it, which makes it a separate word with no link to the weighing sense. As a personal name it is Gaelic, and one proposed source is the Irish phrase "tabhair aire", meaning "take care", though this origin is only possible rather than certain.

Synonyms: weight allowance, container weight, packaging weight