tom

[tom]
noun
1.
the male of various animals, as the turkey.
2.
a tomcat.

Origin:
1755–65; generic use of Tom

Dictionary.com Unabridged

Tom

[tom] noun, verb, Tommed, Tom·ming.
noun
2.
a male given name, form of Thomas.
verb (used without object)
3.
( often lowercase ) to act like an Uncle Tom.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
Cite This Source Link To Tom
00:10
Tom is always a great word to know.
So is gobo. Does it mean:
an extraordinary or unusual thing, person, or event; an exceptional example or instance.
a screen or mat covered with a dark material for shielding a camera lens from excess light or glare.
Collins
World English Dictionary
tom1 (tɒm) [Click for IPA pronunciation guide]
 
n
a.  the male of various animals, esp the cat
 b.  (as modifier): a tom turkey
 c.  (in combination): a tomcat
 
[C16: special use of the shortened form of Thomas, applied to any male, often implying a common or ordinary type of person, etc]

tom2 (tɒm) [Click for IPA pronunciation guide]
 
n
(Austral), (NZ) a temporary supporting post
 
[from a specialized use of tom1]

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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Etymonline
Word Origin & History

Tom
familiar shortening of masc. proper name Thomas, used by late 14c. as a type of a nickname for a common man. Applied 17c. as a nickname for several exceptionally large bells. Short for Uncle Tom in the sense of "black man regarded as too servile to whites" is recorded from
1959. Tom Walker, U.S. Southern colloquial for "the devil" is recorded from 1833. Tom and Jerry is first attested 1828 in many extended senses, originally the names of the two chief characters (Corinthian Tom and Jerry Hawthorn) in Pierce Egan's "Life in London" (1821); the U.S. cat and mouse cartoon characters debuted 1940 in "Puss Gets the Boot." Tom Thumb (1570s) was a miniature man in popular tradition before P.T. Barnum took the name for a dwarf he exhibited.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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American Heritage
Idioms & Phrases

Tom

see every tom, dick, and harry; peeping tom.

The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.
Copyright © 1997. Published by Houghton Mifflin.
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Example sentences from the web
Tom grows into a vigorous and lusty, yet honest and kindhearted, youth.
On the way, tom is sneaking peeps at her uncovered breasts at which he has
  gazed earlier.
Tom and partridge come across a lame fellow in rags to whom tom gives a
  shilling.
After she quits the masquerade to return home, forbidding tom to follow her.
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