Tarpaulins

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A large piece of strong, flexible material used to cover and protect objects from moisture or dirt
2. A heavy-duty fabric often treated to be waterproof, used for outdoor protection and in various industries
3. A durable covering used to shield items from weather conditions, commonly seen in camping, transportation, and construction contexts

Etymology: The sailor's name for a seaman, "tarpaulin", came first from the clothes he wore. Old sailors wore garments of cloth coated in tar for weatherproofing, and the word for that waxed cloth, "pall" in the sense of heavy canvas, was attached to "tar" to name the material and then the man who wore it. "Tarpaulins" is simply the plural of "tarpaulin", so the word has been used for the sheets of waterproofed canvas as well as for the sailors. The sheet sense is the one most people meet today, and it grew from the same tarred cloth that gave the sailor his name.

Synonyms: tarps, canvas covers