1
as in family name
a name shared by members of a family
judging from your surname, I'd guess that your family is Italian
Synonyms & Similar Words
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2
as in nickname
a descriptive or familiar name given instead of or in addition to the one belonging to an individual
"da Vinci" was Leonardo's surname but not his family name, Vinci being the town near Florence where the great artist was born
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
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Recent Examples of surname
Frank Vaisvilas, jsonline.com, 29 Oct. 2025
Baptista is Portuguese, and the baby’s name is a nod to her roots and her family surname.
—Sarah Scott, Parents, 29 Oct. 2025
Eunice Yoon,evelyn Cheng, CNBC, 20 Sep. 2024
An employee surnamed Lin who answered the phone at Gold Apollo but declined to provide her full name or title said the company did not directly fill the pager order from Hezbollah, and that BAC handles the vast majority of device sales from Middle Eastern customers.
—Stephanie Yang, Los Angeles Times, 18 Sep. 2024
See All Example Sentences for surname
Noun
Stickney is a southwest Chicago suburb, but many in Pamonicutt's family have the surname Wilbur on the Menominee Reservation in Wisconsin.
—Frank Vaisvilas, jsonline.com, 29 Oct. 2025
Baptista is Portuguese, and the baby’s name is a nod to her roots and her family surname.
—Sarah Scott, Parents, 29 Oct. 2025
Verb
The individual, surnamed Yang, declined to share his first name due to concerns about speaking with foreign media.
—Eunice Yoon,evelyn Cheng, CNBC, 20 Sep. 2024
An employee surnamed Lin who answered the phone at Gold Apollo but declined to provide her full name or title said the company did not directly fill the pager order from Hezbollah, and that BAC handles the vast majority of device sales from Middle Eastern customers.
—Stephanie Yang, Los Angeles Times, 18 Sep. 2024
See All Example Sentences for surname
Recent Examples of Synonyms for surname
Noun
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Everyone on both sides of my family has always used family names, which has been really important to me to continue only using family names with my children.—
Hannah Sacks,
PEOPLE,
4 Nov. 2025
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The term is used to describe the children of actors, singers, models and entrepreneurs who often benefit due to the connections and power of their family name.—
Sarah Sotoodeh,
FOXNews.com,
3 Nov. 2025
Noun
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Son of Spergy — the title is a nod to the nickname of Caesar’s father, gospel singer Norwill Simmonds — is the fourth album by the singer-songwriter.—
Trevor Anderson,
Billboard,
5 Nov. 2025
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The 22-year-old Scarberry said the shop is named after the nickname her friends gave her.—
Jason Dill
November 5,
Miami Herald,
5 Nov. 2025
Verb
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Despite creating the album in New York, it’s titled after Silo Park in Auckland.—
Jack Irvin,
PEOPLE,
6 Nov. 2025
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That home was loved enough to have its photograph framed and titled.—
Jack Beresford,
MSNBC Newsweek,
5 Nov. 2025
Noun
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The 6-month-old tabby joined Jon and Krista, who declined to share their last name, this summer.—
Idaho Statesman,
Idaho Statesman,
4 Nov. 2025
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Their younger sister is still living with Candice and Joe and has even taken their last name, Aleisha says.—
Chris Spargo,
PEOPLE,
4 Nov. 2025
Noun
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In fact, the term itself was an epithet throughout the founding era, a way to describe ignorant and easily deceived popular majorities, perpetually vulnerable to demagogues.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
28 Oct. 2025
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According to research from Copyleaks, an AI analysis firm that helps businesses and institutions navigate the shifting landscape of this emergent technology, a new trend has produced Sora videos of celebrities appearing to spew hateful racist epithets.—
Miles Klee,
Rolling Stone,
23 Oct. 2025
Verb
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The Philippines is no stranger to typhoons and Kalmaegi made landfall as the equivalent of a category 2 hurricane – the 20th named storm to impact the country this year, according to local officials.—
Helen Regan,
CNN Money,
6 Nov. 2025
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Two tipsters had told Carpenter that a man named Don Miller had stolen human remains and burial pieces from Native American graves along with other cultural artifacts from around the world.—
Domenica Bongiovanni,
IndyStar,
5 Nov. 2025
Verb
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For now, reports from multiple outlets say that the Princesses will keep their royal titles and will still be styled as Her Royal Highness.—
Lea Veloso,
StyleCaster,
8 Nov. 2025
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Her hair and makeup were styled to beauty queen perfection.—
Angel Saunders,
PEOPLE,
8 Nov. 2025
Verb
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Joe Carollo served two back-to-back terms and is now termed out.—
Miami Herald,
Miami Herald,
5 Nov. 2025
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The media generally termed that action a wildcat strike—meaning a strike without union authorization—but that term wasn’t a perfect fit, since the NBPA was not in opposition.—
Michael McCann,
Sportico.com,
31 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Surname.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/surname. Accessed 11 Nov. 2025.
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