Transcription
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- US Pronunciation
- US IPA
- UK Pronunciation
- UK IPA
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- [tom tom]
- /tɒm tɒm/
- /tɒm tɒm/
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- US Pronunciation
- US IPA
-
- [tom tom]
- /tɒm tɒm/
Definitions of tom-tom word
- noun tom-tom a drum of American Indian or Asian origin, commonly played with the hands. 1
- noun tom-tom a dully repetitious drumbeat or similar sound. 1
- countable noun tom-tom A tom-tom is a tall narrow drum that is usually played with the hands. 0
- noun tom-tom a drum associated either with the American Indians or with Eastern cultures, usually beaten with the hands as a signalling instrument 0
- noun tom-tom a standard cylindrical drum, normally with one drumhead 0
- noun tom-tom a monotonous drumming or beating sound 0
Information block about the term
Origin of tom-tom
First appearance:
before 1685 One of the 48% oldest English words
First recorded in 1685-95, tom-tom is from the Hindi word ṭamṭam
Historical Comparancy
Parts of speech for Tom-tom
noun
adjective
verb
adverb
pronoun
preposition
conjunction
determiner
exclamation
tom-tom popularity
A pretty common term. Usually people know it’s meaning, but prefer to use a more spread out synonym. About 53% of English native speakers know the meaning and use word.
According to our data about 50% of words is more used. This is a rare but used term. It occurs in the pages of specialized literature and in the speech of educated people.