tome
LowFormal, literary, academic
Definition
Meaning
A large, heavy book, especially one that is scholarly or academic.
Any voluminous book or a volume in a series, often implying dense content or significant size.
Linguistics
Semantic Notes
Often carries connotations of weightiness, both physical and intellectual; not typically used for light reading materials.
Dialectal Variation
British vs American Usage
Differences
No significant differences in meaning or usage between UK and US English.
Connotations
Similarly connotes a large, scholarly book in both variants.
Frequency
Slightly more common in British English due to historical literary traditions, but overall similar frequency.
Vocabulary
Collocations
Grammar
Valency Patterns
a tome on [subject]the tome of [author]tome in a seriesVocabulary
Synonyms
Strong
Neutral
Weak
Vocabulary
Antonyms
Phrases
Idioms & Phrases
- “a tome of wisdom”
- “weighty tome”
Usage
Context Usage
Business
Rarely used; may appear in publishing or book retail contexts.
Academic
Commonly used to describe scholarly books or volumes in academic writing.
Everyday
Infrequent; might be used descriptively or humorously for a large book.
Technical
Used in bibliography, library science, or literary criticism to refer to specific volumes.
Examples
By CEFR Level
- This tome is too heavy for me to carry.
- She read a tome about animals.
- The historian published a new tome on ancient Rome.
- I found an old tome in the attic.
- His latest tome delves into the complexities of quantum physics.
- The library's rare tome collection is invaluable for researchers.
- The seminal tome on linguistics has influenced generations of scholars.
- Critics hailed the author's tome as a magnum opus in literary criticism.
Learning
Memory Aids
Mnemonic
Think of 'tome' rhyming with 'home' – imagine a home filled with heavy books.
Conceptual Metaphor
KNOWLEDGE IS WEIGHT; A TOME IS A HEAVY CONTAINER OF INFORMATION.
Watch out
Common Pitfalls
Translation Traps (for Russian speakers)
- Confusion with Russian 'том' which means 'volume', but 'tome' in English specifically implies a large or scholarly book.
Common Mistakes
- Mispronouncing as /tɒm/ or /tuːm/
- Using it to refer to any book, regardless of size.
Practice
Quiz
What does 'tome' primarily refer to?
FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions
Primarily yes, it refers to books, especially large and scholarly ones, but it can metaphorically refer to any substantial written work.
In American English, 'tome' is pronounced as /toʊm/, rhyming with 'home'.
Typically, 'tome' connotes physical weight and size, so it's less commonly used for e-books, but it can be used figuratively for lengthy digital texts.
'Tome' comes from the Latin 'tomus', meaning a section or volume, derived from Greek 'tomos', meaning a piece cut off.
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