as in books
a set of printed sheets of paper bound together between covers and forming a work of fiction or nonfiction
picked up a thick tome on the Roman Empire at a used book store
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Recent Examples of tomes
Whitney, a formidable collector of vintage tomes and 19th- and 20th-century European painting, inherited many of the items in his rare book collection from his mother, the poet Helen Hay Whitney.
—
News Desk, Artforum, 21 Apr. 2026
This January, many such tomes on my shelves suddenly seemed to have offered all along nothing more than obfuscation, the opposite of illumination.
—Christine Smallwood, Harpers Magazine, 24 Mar. 2026
The canal house—formerly a biblical museum—responds in kind, with religious tomes replaced by a commanding bust of Darwin himself.
—Karen Burshtein, Time, 12 Mar. 2026
Some gravitate towards glossy fashion retrospectives; others prefer weighty interior design tomes or evocative travel volumes that capture a specific moment in time–the Italian coastline at the height of summer, for example.
—Hannah Coates, Vogue, 26 Feb. 2026
One of the world’s largest exhibitions of olden literature is gathering more than a hundred booksellers from across the globe to share their choicest wares — rare tomes, illustrations, maps, historical documents and random ephemera guaranteed to level-up your bookshelf and walls.
—John Metcalfe, Mercury News, 18 Feb. 2026
The philosopher Aristotle wrote tomes on morality and human behavior.
—Tara Sonenshine, Baltimore Sun, 9 Feb. 2026
Their selection of Florida-specific books, cookbooks, and coffee table tomes make the perfect present for friends and family.
—Meredith Lindemon, Southern Living, 9 Feb. 2026
The other 19% constitute freaks at the far end, who read 10 or more tomes.
—Brittany Allen, Literary Hub, 5 Jan. 2026
News Desk, Artforum, 21 Apr. 2026
This January, many such tomes on my shelves suddenly seemed to have offered all along nothing more than obfuscation, the opposite of illumination.
—Christine Smallwood, Harpers Magazine, 24 Mar. 2026
The canal house—formerly a biblical museum—responds in kind, with religious tomes replaced by a commanding bust of Darwin himself.
—Karen Burshtein, Time, 12 Mar. 2026
Some gravitate towards glossy fashion retrospectives; others prefer weighty interior design tomes or evocative travel volumes that capture a specific moment in time–the Italian coastline at the height of summer, for example.
—Hannah Coates, Vogue, 26 Feb. 2026
One of the world’s largest exhibitions of olden literature is gathering more than a hundred booksellers from across the globe to share their choicest wares — rare tomes, illustrations, maps, historical documents and random ephemera guaranteed to level-up your bookshelf and walls.
—John Metcalfe, Mercury News, 18 Feb. 2026
The philosopher Aristotle wrote tomes on morality and human behavior.
—Tara Sonenshine, Baltimore Sun, 9 Feb. 2026
Their selection of Florida-specific books, cookbooks, and coffee table tomes make the perfect present for friends and family.
—Meredith Lindemon, Southern Living, 9 Feb. 2026
The other 19% constitute freaks at the far end, who read 10 or more tomes.
—Brittany Allen, Literary Hub, 5 Jan. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for tomes
books
Noun
-
Part hopeful family drama, part epic survival tale, and part origin story of the American West, this fresh adaptation of Laura Ingalls Wilder’s iconic semi-autobiographical Little House books offers a kaleidoscopic view of the struggles and triumphs of those who shaped the frontier.—
Kate Erbland,
IndieWire,
14 May 2026
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Throughout the day, the museum shop highlights books and materials connected to Opal Lee’s life and work, adding another layer to the celebration.—
Shelby Stewart,
Essence,
14 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Tomes.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/tomes. Accessed 22 May. 2026.
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