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
• paperback

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

Stay in Lambertville to see an indie flick at the nearby Acme Screening Room (which hosts a Halloween film festival in mid-October), get lost among the rare and out-of-print tomes at Panoply Books, or go for the full diner experience at Liv & Charlie’s. —Ashlea Halpern, AFAR Media, 1 Aug. 2025

The tome, titled 107 Days, will be published by Simon & Schuster on Sept. 23. —Erik Hayden, HollywoodReporter, 31 July 2025

The tome traces the evolution of the Cup, from the initial race off the coast of England in 1851 to the latest 37th defender-versus-challenger contest held in October 2024. —Rachel Cormack, Robb Report, 18 July 2025

The 292-page tome published by Rizzoli will be sold in select bookstores starting Sept. 2. —Jennifer Weil, Footwear News, 11 July 2025

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

Rhymes for tome

• brome
• chrome
• comb
• combe
• crome
• dome
• acrosome
• aerodrome
• catacomb
• centrosome
• chromosome
• cytochrome

Podcast

Get Word of the Day delivered to your inbox!

Kids Definition

tome

noun

ˈtōm 

: a big thick book