tomato

[tuh-mey-toh, -mah-]

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noun, plural to·ma·toes.

any of several plants belonging to the genus Lycopersicon, of the nightshade family, native to Mexico and Central and South America, especially the widely cultivated species L. lycopersicum, bearing a mildly acid, pulpy, usually red fruit eaten raw or cooked as a vegetable.

the fruit itself.

Older Slang: Sometimes Offensive. a girl or woman.

Origin of tomato

1595–1605; 1915–20 for def 3; earlier tomate < Spanish < Nahuatl tomatl

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for tomato

dish, bunny, babe, angel, doll, broad, honey, chick, centerfold, peach, fox, pin-up, cupcake, sexpot, orange, cutie, cutie-pie, dollface, dreamboat

Examples from the Web for tomato

Contemporary Examples of tomato

The tomato sauce is ‘gravy’ to many Italian-Americans of a certain class.
Tales of a Jailhouse Gourmet: How I learned to Cook in Prison
Daniel Genis
June 21, 2014
The sandwich is made with thick tiles of quality bread and adorned with lettuce and tomato.
Become a Fried Seafood Believer at South Beach Market
Jane & Michael Stern
April 20, 2014
Mongolians bravely swallow a glass of pickled sheep eyeballs mixed into tomato juice to chase away their morning-after blues.
The Wildest Hangover Cures From Around the World
Nina Strochlic
November 29, 2013
Neighboring families war over who makes the best, most authentic, recipe for everything from tomato sauce to minestrone.
A Young Chef Travels to Calabria, Italy, and Learns the Old Ways of Cooking
Curtis Stone
November 28, 2013
Tommy and I would leave just after the tomato harvest to travel around Italy.
A Young Chef Travels to Calabria, Italy, and Learns the Old Ways of Cooking
Curtis Stone
November 28, 2013

Historical Examples of tomato

For to throw a tomato at the son of Lawyer Gamely was aiming very high.
Pee-wee Harris
Percy Keese Fitzhugh
If you try to get fresh with me I'll paint you blacker—blacker than a—than a tomato could—I will.
Pee-wee Harris
Percy Keese Fitzhugh
Add the vinegar and seasoning, dish in a circle, and pour the tomato over.
The Skilful Cook
Mary Harrison
Bob Strahan blushed until he was redder than any tomato that ever ripened.
Mary Rose of Mifflin
Frances R. Sterrett
A tomato whizzed past his ear and splattered against the wall.
Meeting of the Board
Alan Edward Nourse

British Dictionary definitions for tomato

tomato

noun plural -toes

a solanaceous plant, Lycopersicon (or Lycopersicum) esculentum, of South America, widely cultivated for its red fleshy many-seeded edible fruits

the fruit of this plant, which has slightly acid-tasting flesh and is eaten in salads, as a vegetable, etc

US and Canadian slang a girl or woman

Word Origin for tomato

C17 tomate, from Spanish, from Nahuatl tomatl

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for tomato

1753, earlier tomate (c.1600), from Spanish tomate (mid-16c.) from Nahuatl tomatl "a tomato," literally "the swelling fruit," from tomana "to swell." Spelling probably influenced by potato (1565).

A member of the nightshade family, all of which contain poisonous alkaloids. Introduced in Europe from the New World, by 1550 they regularly were consumed in Italy but grown only as ornamental plants in England and not eaten there or in the U.S. at first. An encyclopedia of 1753 describes it as "a fruit eaten either stewed or raw by the Spaniards and Italians and by the Jew families of England." Introduced in U.S. as part of a program by Secretary of State Thomas Jefferson (1789), but not commonly eaten until after c.1830.

Alternative name love apple and alleged aphrodisiac qualities have not been satisfactorily explained; perhaps from Italian name pomodoro, taken as from adorare "to adore," but probably actually from d'or "of gold" (in reference to color) or de Moro "of the Moors." Slang meaning "an attractive girl" is recorded from 1929, on notion of juicy plumpness.