Thomas Tew (died September 1695), also known as the Rhode Island Pirate, was a 17th-century English privateer-turned-pirate. He embarked on two major pirate voyages and met a bloody death on the second, and he pioneered the route which became known as the Pirate Round. Other infamous pirates in his path included Henry Avery and William Kidd.

It is frequently written that Tew had family in Rhode Island dating back to 1640, but it is not known where he was born. He may have been born in New England; another hypothesis suggests that he was born in Maidford, Northamptonshire before emigrating to the American colonies as a child with his family, although there is only a little circumstantial evidence for this. He lived at one time in Newport, Rhode Island. He is reported as being married with two daughters. According to one source, his wife and children all greatly enjoyed the New York City social scene after Tew became rich, but there is no supporting evidence for this.

In 1691, Tew moved to Bermuda. There is evidence that he was already reputed as a pirate at that time, but no modern historian has determined whether or not this reputation was earned. He may simply have engaged in privateering against French and Spanish ships. He was in close relations with fellow pirate Captain Richard Want, who was his closest ally. Want became Tew's first mate on his first pirate cruise, and sailed his own ship Dolphin alongside Tew's Amity on the second. Wikipedia