name-check

1 of 2

noun

ˈnām-ˌchek 

variants or namecheck or name check

plural name-checks or namechecks or name checks

: a specific and usually public mention or acknowledgment of someone or something by name

It's not surprising that Chekhov gets a namecheck in Marion Bridge, which is playing in a superbly performed production through Aug. 25 at Hudson Village Theatre … . That Chekhov nod comes from boozy, disillusioned actress Agnes (Leni Parker), whose unsuccessful career has included appearing in plays by the Russian master …

—Jim Burke

[Marianne] Williamson began giving her talks in 1983 at the Philosophical Research Society on Los Feliz Boulevard (the nonprofit, which gets a name-check in McWilliam's chapter on the abundant flowering of Southern California occultism, is still in operation).

—Julia Wick

name-check

2 of 2

verb

variants or less commonly namecheck

name-checked also namechecked; name-checking also namechecking; name-checks also namechecks

transitive verb

: to mention or acknowledge (someone or something) specifically and publicly by name

… he is an avid collector of contemporary art, although he alone turns the pursuit to his singular ends in lyrics that knowingly name-check everyone from Jeff Koons to Jean-Michel Basquiat.

—Guy Trebay

"… I couldn't wait that long for another box of Shipley's," he said, name-checking the local doughnut shop that catered the event.

—Mara Gay

Last year, the show's fans successfully petitioned for McDonald's to bring back its limited-edition Szechuan sauce from 1998 after it was namechecked in an episode.

—Luke Morgan Britton

Examples of name-check in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Verb

Early manager Mike Appel had to twist his arm to speak with Time for a 1975 cover story, and Springsteen generally stayed far away from the partisan political fray, even when President Reagan tried to absorb some of his popularity by name-checking him on the 1984 campaign trail. —Andy Greene, Rolling Stone, 21 Oct. 2025

Again, the only alternative that Duffy name-checked was Blue Origin. —PC Magazine, 21 Oct. 2025

Trump wrote Monday in a Truth Social post, before name-checking the Golden State and slamming its Democratic governor, Gavin Newsom. —Judy Kurtz, The Hill, 30 Sep. 2025

Chilling Chambers is little more than half-hearted fan service that name-checks every maze in Scary Farm history on a crypt or gravestone. —Brady MacDonald, Oc Register, 19 Sep. 2025

The movie even name-checks Million Dollar Baby at one point — the path ahead is clear. —Joe Reid, Vulture, 6 Sep. 2025

Centre-back Virgil van Dijk also name-checked his fellow countryman after conceding two goals on the counter-attack in Friday’s opener. —Gregg Evans, New York Times, 20 Aug. 2025

But Vuletić says another Hollywood star was initially planned to get name-checked in that scene. —Georg Szalai, HollywoodReporter, 3 Sep. 2019

Word History

First Known Use

Noun

1972, in the meaning defined above

Verb

1986, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for name-check

• biotech
• bottleneck
• quarterdeck
• turtleneck
• zapotec
• aztec
• breakneck
• codec
• exec
• mixtec
• paycheck
• pinchbeck