Disease spread quickly through the tomatoes in the greenhouse.
In the film, tomato is meant as brash old slang.
The kitchen chairs were painted tomato red.
Similar words
coral red
doll
tomato red
looker
carmine
Solanum lycopersicum
love apple
scarlet
vermilion
tomato plant
Meanings
Edible fruit
noun
food
neutral
The juicy fruit of a tomato plant, usually red when ripe and eaten raw or cooked as a vegetable.
Examples
She sliced a ripe tomato for the sandwich.
The sauce tastes brighter with fresh tomatoes.
He packed cherry tomatoes with his lunch.
Canned tomatoes form the base of the stew.
A green tomato can be fried before it ripens.
The salad needs another tomato.
Similar words
love apple
Tomato plant
noun
botany
neutral
The nightshade plant, commonly grown as an annual, that produces tomatoes.
Examples
A tomato grows best in warm, sunny weather.
The gardener tied the tomato to a stake.
Disease spread quickly through the tomatoes in the greenhouse.
Each tomato needs deep soil and steady watering.
She started her tomatoes from seed in March.
The tomato belongs to the nightshade family.
Similar words
tomato plant
Solanum lycopersicum
Bright red
adjective
color
neutral
Bright red or reddish orange, like the color of a ripe tomato.
Examples
The kitchen chairs were painted tomato red.
She chose a tomato-colored scarf.
A tomato shade warmed the poster design.
The lipstick has a bold tomato tone.
The awning was striped in cream and tomato.
He marked the urgent notes with a tomato highlight.
Similar words
tomato red
scarlet
vermilion
coral red
carmine
Dated slang for a woman
noun
people
slang
An old slang word for a woman, often an attractive woman, now dated and usually objectifying.
Examples
The old detective novel calls the singer a glamorous tomato.
That use of tomato sounds like 1920s slang.
The script keeps the dated line, "Who's the tomato?"
In the film, tomato is meant as brash old slang.
Modern editors often avoid tomato for a woman.
The glossary marks tomato as older slang.
Similar words
dame
doll
dish
looker
Etymology
From earlier English tomate, borrowed through Spanish tomate from Nahuatl tomatl. The later spelling was probably shaped by potato, and the older name love apple survived for a time.
FAQ
Comments & contributions
Know this word from another angle? Add a correction, a nuance, or a usage note. New posts go public after a quick review.
Newest
Top
Active
Contribution
Rustic Dove
Jul 9
US tomato paste is the thick concentrated stuff in a tiny can or tube. UK tomato puree often means that same thick thing, but US tomato puree is thinner, more like blended tomatoes. I have ruined one sauce by not checking this lol
2
Reply
Contribution
Quick Crane
Jul 1
Careful with tomato sauce in recipes, because this one travels badly. In the US it is normally the canned cooking ingredient, or maybe a pasta sauce if the context is Italian food. It is not the bottle you put on fries. In Australia, tomato sauce can be exactly that red table condiment, and some UK speakers use it that way too. Recipe translations get messy here fast.
5
Reply
Emerald Meerkat
Jul 9
yeah, in Sydney the packet can literally say tomato sauce while the staff still says ketchup sometimes
1
Contribution
Warm Capybara
Jun 28
Pron guide is US-ish: British usually to-MAH-to, American to-MAY-to. both fine, dont overthink the song