Shutterstock/Ninekas Tomatoes are both a vegetable and a fruit. The confusion arises because of the two different ways we define "fruit" — one is a scientific term and one is culinary. Even the Supreme Court has weighed in on whether tomatoes are actually fruits. No food straddles the line between fruit and vegetable more famously than the tomato. And while your elementary-school teacher or know-it-all friend may have informed you that tomatoes are technically fruits, the answer isn't so clear-cut.