prostitute?

Tom" meaning a prostitute is a slang term used in London UK

Another theory revolves round "tom" being an abbreviation of "tomboy", which used to carry a pejorative meaning of a bold or immodest woman, in contrast to today's sense of simply "boyish or boisterous girl".

Here are some relevant entries in Slang and Euphamism, A Dictionary, by Richard A. Spears, Signet Books, 1991:

Tom: a prostitute

Tomato: a prostitute (U.S. underworld, early 1900s)

Tomboy: a rude and sexually uncontrolled girl; a strumpet (Primarily British, 1500s - 1800s)

Tomrig: a girl or woman, especially one who is sexually loose (colloquial, early 1700s - 1900s)

Tom Tart: a sexually loose woman. Rhyming slang for "tart"

in the US a prostitute's client is called a john.

A Tom in the US is a black person trying to be white.

Never heard the term "Toms" in relation to prostitution...

I know the clients of prostitutes are called "Johns" in the USA...

the people who pay for the prostitutes services are called JOHNS

maybe because they give people the tom on for cash,

it is the oldest proffesion in the world and it wil survive longer than all other types of bussiness,

i fail to see the attraction personaly but there is some weird people out there you know.

thanks

they are called tricks..and the guys or wormen who buy them are johns not toms