Thompson

//ˈtɑmp.sən// name, noun

name, noun ·Moderate ·College level

Definitions

Noun
  1. 1
    A member of a Salish people of British Columbia.
  2. 2
    Ellipsis of Thompson submachine gun (“Tommy gun”). abbreviation, alt-of, ellipsis
Proper Noun
  1. 1
    A British surname transferred from the given name. countable

    "Police believe Mangione had been traveling around Pennsylvania in the days after Thompson was killed, from Philadelphia to Pittsburgh to Altoona, where he was recognized earlier Monday at a McDonald's restaurant."

  2. 2
    A British surname transferred from the given name.; A Scottish surname from Scottish Gaelic. countable, uncountable
  3. 3
    A placename:; A village in Bulgaria. countable, uncountable
  4. 4
    A placename:; A village and civil parish in Breckland district, Norfolk, England (OS grid ref TL9296). countable, uncountable
  5. 5
    A placename:; A city in Northern Manitoba, Canada. countable, uncountable
Show 14 more definitions
  1. 6
    A placename:; A rural municipality in Pembina Valley Region, Manitoba; in full, the Rural Municipality of Thompson. countable, uncountable
  2. 7
    A placename:; A number of places in the United States:; An unincorporated community in Bullock County, Alabama. countable, uncountable
  3. 8
    A placename:; A number of places in the United States:; An unincorporated community in Napa County, California. countable, uncountable
  4. 9
    A placename:; A number of places in the United States:; A town in Windham County, Connecticut. countable, uncountable
  5. 10
    A placename:; A number of places in the United States:; A minor city in Winnebago County, Iowa. countable, uncountable
  6. 11
    A placename:; A number of places in the United States:; An unincorporated community in Audrain County, Missouri. countable, uncountable
  7. 12
    A placename:; A number of places in the United States:; An unincorporated community in Jefferson County, Nebraska. countable, uncountable
  8. 13
    A placename:; A number of places in the United States:; A town in Sullivan County, New York. countable, uncountable
  9. 14
    A placename:; A number of places in the United States:; A city in Grand Forks County, North Dakota. countable, uncountable
  10. 15
    A placename:; A number of places in the United States:; A township and unincorporated community therein, in Geauga County, Ohio. countable, uncountable
  11. 16
    A placename:; A number of places in the United States:; A borough in Susquehanna County, Pennsylvania. countable, uncountable
  12. 17
    A placename:; A number of places in the United States:; An unincorporated community in Erin, Washington County, Wisconsin. countable, uncountable
  13. 18
    A placename:; A number of places in the United States:; A number of other townships in the United States, listed under Thompson Township. countable, uncountable
  14. 19
    An Interior Salish language spoken in British Columbia and formerly in Washington. countable, uncountable

Example

More examples

"Mrs. Thompson wants to conceal the fact that she is a millionaire."

Etymology

Variant of Thomson, from Tom + -son, originally meaning "son of Thomas". In some instances of people so named, a calque of Scottish Gaelic MacTamhais (“McTavish”); also an anglicisation of the Gaelic name MacTamhais, meaning "son of Thomas".

Related phrases

Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.