tome

1 of 2

noun

ˈtōm 

1

: book

especially : a large or scholarly book

2

: a volume forming part of a larger work

-tome

2 of 2

noun combining form

1

: part : segment

myotome

2

: cutting instrument

microtome

Synonyms

Noun

• book
• volume

Examples of tome in a Sentence

Noun

a long tome on European history

picked up a thick tome on the Roman Empire at a used book store

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

The film will be based on Walter Isaacson’s 2017 biography of Leonardo, a sprawling tome based largely on the polymath’s notebooks. —Sarah Kuta, Smithsonian Magazine, 16 May 2024

Shawn Lee wanders the bookshelves in the Jackson County Law Library’s downtown Kansas City location, pointing out weighty tomes commenting on law stretching back over the last century and beyond. —Nathan Pilling, Kansas City Star, 11 May 2024

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle French or Latin; Middle French, from Latin tomus, from Greek tomos section, roll of papyrus, tome, from temnein to cut; akin to Middle Irish tamnaid he lops, Polish ciąć to cut, and perhaps to Latin tondēre to shear

Noun combining form

Greek tomos

First Known Use

Noun

1519, in the meaning defined at sense 2

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Kids Definition

tome

noun

ˈtōm 

: a big thick book