noun
tomato
tuh-MAH-toh
noun
1
The red, juicy fruit of the plant Solanum lycopersicum, used as a vegetable in cooking.
"She sliced a ripe tomato for the salad."
"The sauce is made from crushed tomatoes and garlic."
2
A shade of red similar to a ripe tomato.
"The walls were painted a bold tomato red."
3
An attractive woman (dated slang).
"The old detective novel described her as "quite a tomato.""
How to Use Tomato
Learner’s notesIn plain EnglishMost commonly the round, red garden fruit used as a vegetable; also a shade of red and, in old slang, a way to describe an attractive woman.
When to use it
The "attractive woman" sense is dated 1940s-50s slang and would sound old-fashioned or objectifying today.
Common pairings
ripe tomato
tomato sauce
cherry tomato
Word Forms
more tomato comparative, tomatoed past tense, tomatoes plural, tomatos singular, most tomato superlative
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Etymology
From Spanish "tomate," from the Classical Nahuatl word "tomatl."