tomato

noun

to·​ma·​to tə-ˈmā-(ˌ)tō How to pronounce tomato (audio)
chiefly in Britain, eastern New England, northeastern Virginia, and sometimes elsewhere in cultivated speech
-ˈmä- How to pronounce tomato (audio)
 chiefly in Northern US  -ˈma-
plural tomatoes
1
: the usually large, rounded, edible, pulpy berry of an herb (genus Solanum) of the nightshade family native to South America that is typically red but may be yellow, orange, green, or purplish in color and is eaten raw or cooked as a vegetable
2
: a plant that produces tomatoes
especially : any of various varieties of a tender perennial (Solanum lycopersicum synonym Lycopersicon esculentum) widely cultivated as an annual
How is tomato pronounced?: Usage Guide

The original pronunciation of this Spanish loanword was with stressed \ä\, as was also the case for potato. The older \ä\ pronunciation of potato is found in Robert Burns' poem "Holy Willie's Prayer" and persists in some Scottish dialects. Perhaps because potato has been part of English longer than tomato, its pronunciation has been anglicized in most dialects, with the stressed \ä\ vowel becoming \ā\, like the a in Plato (from Greek) and dado (from Italian). The pronunciation of tomato began the same journey of anglicization but was halted halfway between, so that British and some Eastern American dialects have the older \ä\ while the others have the newer \ā\. Tomato, being the name of a New World plant, might have entered the English language first in the Americas, where it would have had more time to undergo anglicization in American mouths. The various pronunciations of tomato are all acceptable in standard English.

Examples of tomato in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web To make it yourself, sauté garlic, onions, celery, and chopped fresh tomatoes along with Calabrian chilis or togarashi flakes. Audrey Bruno, SELF, 13 Mar. 2024 The tomato dish complements one of Owens’ other passions: seafood. Caron Golden, San Diego Union-Tribune, 13 Mar. 2024 One man glued his head to the glass protecting the famous painting, while another threw tomato soup over the first man and then glued his own hand to the wall. Catherine Nicholls, CNN, 11 Mar. 2024 Caught in a maze of loneliness, a pregnant woman finds escape in a tomato. Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 10 Mar. 2024 Its Otto burger has melty raclette cheese, thick-cut bacon, smoked tomato aioli, and red onion jam. Susan Selasky, Detroit Free Press, 7 Mar. 2024 Heat the garlic and oil for 2 to 3 minutes, then add the tomato purée to the the pan and stir. Mark Holgate, Vogue, 7 Mar. 2024 Stuffed with spinach, green tomatoes, grilled crookneck squash and ricotta, it was surrounded by a tart tomato coulis and baked to a crispy top. Benjy Egel, Sacramento Bee, 7 Mar. 2024 The special menu includes a green salad featuring arugula, baby spinach, radishes, endives, onions, poached peppers, avocado, cucumbers and grape tomatoes, matzo ball soup and braised fish with asparagus risotto and edamame puree. Roger Sands, Forbes, 2 Mar. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'tomato.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

alteration of earlier tomate, from Spanish, from Nahuatl tomatl

First Known Use

1604, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of tomato was in 1604

Dictionary Entries Near tomato

Cite this Entry

“Tomato.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/tomato. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

tomato

noun
to·​ma·​to tə-ˈmāt-ō How to pronounce tomato (audio)
also
-ˈmät- How to pronounce tomato (audio)
plural tomatoes
1
: a usually large rounded red or sometimes yellow pulpy berry that is eaten as a vegetable
2
: a widely grown South American plant of the nightshade family that produces tomatoes
Etymology

derived from Spanish tomate "tomato," from the name for this plant in the ancient language of the Aztecs

More from Merriam-Webster on tomato

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