Tartar
/ˈtɑːr.tər/noun
A hard, crusty deposit on teeth; also an older term for a member of certain Turkic and Mongolic peoples.
Did you know?The dental meaning comes from a medieval belief that the crust formed from a kind of mineral sediment, while the ethnic term was historically spelled and used in ways now recognized as archaic and often offensive.
Etymological Timeline
Ancient Greek
Greek
Tártaros
“the deepest abyss of the underworld”
Medieval Latin
Latin
Tartarus
“hell; the infernal region”
Late Latin / Medieval French
Latin / Old French
tartarum / tartre
“a crusty sediment or dregs; later the deposit on teeth”
Middle English
English
tartar
“a crust on the teeth; also a Tatar”
Modern English
English
tartar
“a hard deposit on teeth; the older ethnic term remains historical”