tomato
noun
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
Peter Burke, FOXNews.com, 20 May 2025
The court documents do not specify what was ordered, but the eponymous Whataburger includes an beef patty with mustard, tomato, lettuce, pickles and diced onion.
—Marni Rose McFall, MSNBC Newsweek, 19 May 2025
In the case of this burrito (and in general), try to also spring for fiber-rich extras like lettuce, tomato, and other veggies, according to Van Eck (onion is already included).
—Caroline Tien, SELF, 19 May 2025
And here came Patsy, who put bright white circles of fresh mozz, fresh tomato, and it was splashed around the pie, not ladled.
—Phillip Valys, Sun Sentinel, 17 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for tomato
Cite this Entry
“Tomato.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/tomato. Accessed 4 Jun. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
derived from Spanish tomate "tomato," from the name for this plant in the ancient language of the Aztecs
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