ENGLISH
REFERENCE

tomato

n. · adj.
US //təˈmɑˌtoʊ// UK //təmˈɑːtəʊ// toma·to
  1. 1 the fruit (n.)
    A1 Beginner Cooking

    a round, soft, red fruit that you eat in salads or use to make sauces.

    the edible, pulpy fruit of the tomato plant, botanically a berry but treated as a vegetable in culinary contexts.

    Example

    She sliced a fresh tomato to put in her sandwich.

    Example

    The chef insisted on using heirloom tomatoes for the gazpacho to ensure a more complex flavor profile than standard supermarket varieties could provide.

    Pitfall
    I bought three tomatos.
    I bought three tomatoes.

    The plural of tomato is spelled with an 'e'.

  2. 2 the plant (n.)
    A2 Elementary

    the green plant that produces tomatoes.

    the herbaceous plant of the nightshade family that bears the tomato fruit.

    Example

    We planted three tomato plants in the garden this spring.

    Example

    The gardener staked the tomato plants early in the season to support the heavy clusters of fruit as they ripened.

  3. 3 a shade of red (n.)
    B2 Upper Intermediate

    a bright, warm red colour like a ripe tomato.

    a vibrant, warm shade of red resembling the skin of a ripe tomato.

    Example

    The walls of the kitchen were painted a bright tomato.

    Example

    The designer selected a bold tomato for the accent chairs to contrast with the muted grey tones of the living room.
  4. 4 attractive woman (n.)
    C2 Proficiency Slang American English Archaic

    an old-fashioned way to describe a pretty woman.

    a slang term for an attractive woman, now largely considered dated or sexist.

    Example

    In those old black-and-white movies, the hero might call a girl a 'hot tomato'.

    Example

    The hard-boiled detective novels of the 1940s frequently employed terms like 'tomato' to describe female characters, a usage that has since vanished from modern prose.

    Teacher's tip

    This sense is archaic and potentially offensive; learners should recognize it in old media but avoid using it in modern conversation.
  5. 5 colour (adj.)
    B1 Intermediate

    having a bright red colour.

    possessing the bright, warm red hue characteristic of a ripe tomato.

    Example

    She wore a tomato red dress to the summer party.

    Example

    The sunset turned the clouds a deep tomato red just before the light faded completely.
Origin

Variant of earlier tomate, from Spanish tomate, from Classical Nahuatl tomatl, from Proto-Nahuan *toma-tl. Compare tomatillo.

Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Last updated June 20, 2026