Word.ws English Dictionary

tomayto, tomahto

/təˈmeɪtoʊ təˈmɑːtoʊ/

tomayto, tomahto phrase: used to dismiss a correction to one's adherence to an alternative standard.

Phrase

tomayto, tomahto

  1. (idiomatic) Used to dismiss a correction to one's adherence to an alternative standard.
    • A: Then you hook the hose up to the bibcock, and you're done. B: You mean the sillcock. A: Tomayto, tomahto.
  2. (idiomatic) Used to dismissively suggest that a particular distinction is a distinction without a difference; used to express the assertion that two similar things are effectively the same, despite any trivial difference.
    • A: Then you revise the database record for that transaction, and you're done. B: You mean you replace the old record with a new one. A: Tomayto, tomahto.
    • "Tomayto, tomahto," she said, and Taylor laughed. So they ended on a good note.2009, N. B. Grace, Disney High School Musical: #1: Stories from East High Bind Up #1, Disney Press, →ISBN, page 78

tomayto, tomahto meaning in Persian

tomayto, tomahto in Persian

to suggest a distinction without a difference
چه کچل حسن، چه حسن کچل če kačal hasan, če hasan kačal

Examples of tomayto, tomahto in a sentence

  • “I withheld truth, but I did not lie.” “Tomayto, tomahto.”2014, C.E. Murphy, Shaman Rises, Harlequin, →ISBN, page 282:
  • “Okay, then, how about Michael?” “Tomayto, tomahto.” Kacie sighed in disappointment.2017, Cheryl Etchison, From the Start: An American Valor Novel, HarperCollins, →ISBN, page 15:

Synonyms of tomayto, tomahto

Forms of tomayto, tomahto

alternative formtomato, tomato
alternative formtomayto tomahto

Origin of tomayto, tomahto

Uses the American English and British English pronunciations of the word tomato. Allusion to George Gershwin's song "Let's Call the Whole Thing Off": "You like tomato (/təˈmeɪtə/) and I like tomato (/təˈmɑːtə/)".

Questions about tomayto, tomahto

What does tomayto, tomahto mean?
Tomayto, tomahto means used to dismiss a correction to one's adherence to an alternative standard.
What is tomayto, tomahto in Persian?
Tomayto, tomahto in Persian is چه کچل حسن، چه حسن کچل (če kačal hasan, če hasan kačal). See Tomayto, tomahto meaning in Persian.
How do you use tomayto, tomahto in a sentence?
“I withheld truth, but I did not lie.” “Tomayto, tomahto.”
What part of speech is tomayto, tomahto?
Tomayto, tomahto is a phrase.
How do you pronounce tomayto, tomahto?
Tomayto, tomahto is pronounced /təˈmeɪtoʊ təˈmɑːtoʊ/.

Words near tomayto, tomahto in the dictionary

  1. tomauns
  2. tomax
  3. tomaxe
  4. tomaxes
  5. tomayto tomahto
  6. tomayto, tomahto
  7. tomb
  8. tomb bat
  9. tomb bats
  10. tomb raider
  11. tomb raiders

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: tomayto, tomahto (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

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Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: En-au-tomayto, tomahto.ogg.

Cite this entry: “tomayto, tomahto.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/tomayto%2C_tomahto. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.