Pronunciation

How to pronounce “tomato

“tomato” is pronounced /təˈmeɪˌtoʊ/ (tuh-MAY-toh) in American English and /təmɑːtəʊ/ in British English, and /təˈmɑˌtoʊ/ is also accepted — 3 syllables, stressed on “at”.
The sound

Say “tomato” in 3 beats

Say it like this

tomato

/təˈmeɪˌtoʊ/

The voice you hear here is American; the British form is /təmɑːtəʊ/ (see the table below), and a British voice is available in the app's settings.

3 beats
  1. tom
  2. atmeɪstress
  3. otoʊ
IPA (American)
/təˈmeɪˌtoʊ/
IPA (British)
/təmɑːtəʊ/
Also accepted
/təˈmɑˌtoʊ/
Respelling
tuh-MAY-toh
Syllables
3 — tom-AT-o
Stress
Stress the second syllable: tom-AT-o. “at” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall away from it.
Part of speech
noun
Difficulty
Pro — the sounds are ordinary, the rhythm is where it slips
Accents

American and British are not the same here

American

/təˈmeɪˌtoʊ/

British

/təmɑːtəʊ/

No audio here: sayit’s voice is American, so a British button would play the American word. Read the transcription instead.

Meaning

What “tomato” means

  1. noun

    mildly acid red or yellow pulpy fruit eaten as a vegetable

  2. noun

    native to South America; widely cultivated in many varieties

Say it in a sentence

A ripe tomato from the garden tastes nothing like a shop one.
Sound by sound

The sounds inside this word

5 sounds, in the order you say them

Each sound has its own page: where the tongue goes, what it is usually confused with, and words to drill it on.

Questions

tomato”, answered

How do you pronounce “tomato”?

“tomato” is pronounced /təˈmeɪˌtoʊ/ (tuh-MAY-toh) in American English and /təmɑːtəʊ/ in British English, and /təˈmɑˌtoʊ/ is also accepted — 3 syllables, stressed on “at”. Build it as tom-AT-o, then run the second syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.

How many syllables does “tomato” have?

3: tom · at · o. The beat lands on the second, “at”.

Is “tomato” said differently in British English?

Yes. American English says /təˈmeɪˌtoʊ/ (tuh-MAY-toh); British English says /təmɑːtəʊ/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.

What does “tomato” mean?

As a noun: mildly acid red or yellow pulpy fruit eaten as a vegetable For example: “A ripe tomato from the garden tastes nothing like a shop one.” It carries 1 other sense as well — all of them said the same way.

Where is the stress in “tomato”?

Stress the second syllable: tom-AT-o. “at” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall away from it.

Practise this word

Now say “tomato” and see every sound

Record it once and sayit lines your audio up against the target sound by sound — what landed, what slipped, and what it sounded like instead.