Tomtate is a species of fish found in the western Atlantic Ocean. The word "tomtate" is spelled with the IPA phonetic transcription /ˈtɑm.teɪt/. This word is pronounced with a stressed "ta" sound, followed by an "m" sound and then a stressed "te" sound. The "a" sound is pronounced as the vowel sound in "father", while the "e" sounds are pronounced as the vowel sound in "get". The last "t" is pronounced with a soft or silent "e" at the end.
The word "tomtate" is derived from the Native American Timucuan language. It was originally recorded as "thomata" or "tomate", and later Anglicized to "tomtate". The Timucuans were a Native American tribe that inhabited the southeast coastal regions of what is now the United States, including Florida and Georgia. The term specifically refers to a type of fish known as Haemulon aurolineatum, but has gradually become more commonly associated with the fish's name rather than its original etymology.