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

Here, amid the shelves filled with natural history objets d’art, guests can while away an hour with a glass of chenin blanc and a tome on South Africa’s one-of-a-kind flora. —Jennifer Flowers, AFAR Media, 3 Apr. 2025

Sold at the Automobile Club de Monaco’s boutique, the oversized tome chronicles the event’s history and highlights. —Lane Nieset, Forbes, 14 Jan. 2025

And, of course, the application of a hero’s journey onto a single day where nothing really happens calls to mind another tome: Joyce’s Ulysses. —Grace Edquist, Vogue, 8 Jan. 2025

From tomes by landscape designers to paeans to floral fantasias by lifestyle gurus, these book releases will definitely get you in the mood for spring. —Blue Carreon, Forbes, 11 Mar. 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

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Kids Definition

tome

noun

ˈtōm 

: a big thick book