tanner

The word "tanner" is used most often for a person whose job is to turn animal hides into leather. This was an important trade for centuries, long before modern synthetic materials were common. A tanner treated the hides so they would not rot and could be used for shoes, belts, bags, and other goods.

In some contexts, "tanner" can also mean a person who is getting a tan or tries to get one, though this use is much less common and often depends on context. In British slang, especially in older usage, a "tanner" could also mean a sixpence coin. So the word can point to a leather worker first, and more rarely to someone in the sun or to an old coin.

The word "tanner" has a strong old-world feel to it. Its main meaning is a person who turns animal hides into leather. For much of history, this was a necessary and respected job, because leather was used for clothing, shoes, belts, saddles, and many everyday tools. The work was slow and unpleasant, and tanneries were often placed away from the center of town because of the smell. Even so, a tanner played an important role in daily life and local trade.

By extension, the word can also be used for someone who is getting a tan or who spends time trying to tan, although this meaning is less common and usually much less important than the leather-related one. You may understand it from context, especially in casual modern writing, but it is not the first meaning most readers will think of.

There is also an older British slang sense: a "tanner" was a sixpence coin. That meaning belongs mostly to historical or cultural references now, especially before decimalization in 1971.

So when you see "tanner," think first of the leather trade. In some cases it may refer to a person tanning in the sun, and in older British English it may refer to a small coin. For example: "Her grandfather worked as a tanner," or, in a historical British setting, "He pulled a tanner from his pocket."