nickname

play

noun nick·name \ ˈnik-ˌnām \

Definition of nickname

1 :a usually descriptive name given instead of or in addition to the one belonging to a person, place, or thing

2 :a familiar form of a proper name (as of a person or a city)

See nickname defined for English-language learners

See nickname defined for kids

Examples of nickname in a Sentence

His mother gave him the nickname “Winky” when he was a baby.
Earvin “Magic” Johnson got his nickname from the way he handled a basketball.

Recent Examples of nickname from the Web

Ronald’s friends and family knew him by the nickname Rone.

— hannah fry, Daily Pilot, "Retired barber was sane when he killed Newport Beach urologist, jury finds," 28 Aug. 2017
The cartoonish figure got his nicknames 'Rockstar Baba' and 'Guru of Bling' due to his bejewelled clothes and lifestyle.

— tara john, Time, "What to Know About India's 'Guru of Bling' Whose Rape Conviction Sparked Riots," 25 Aug. 2017
So much in fact that when family members attempted to give him a nickname, Nakos would have none of it.

— pat disabato, Daily Southtown, "Countdown to football: Mount Carmel ranked No. 5 in preseason," 21 Aug. 2017
The players will have their nicknames on the back of the jerseys and will be able to write the name of a person who was instrumental in their development on a patch on their sleeves as part of the promotion.

— lori riley, courant.com, "Wilfork, A Hero On And Off Field, Retires A Patriot," 9 Aug. 2017
Everybody seemed to have a nickname: Drain Pipe, Round Head, Big Kid.

— kristina goetz, The Courier-Journal, "Orphans come back to ‘The Home’ that took them in when no one else could," 20 July 2017
Since Wongchenko was already a nickname among friends, Lisa, a lawyer, and Matt, a scientist, took it as a way to honor both of their families.

— allie volpe, Glamour, "More Couples Are Combining Their Last Names and Creating New Family Identities," 18 July 2017
Nearly immediately, the speech accrued its own nickname: The Rant.

— vanityfair.com, "The Real Reason Jamie Dimon Went Berserk About America’s “Stupid Shit”," 17 July 2017
Aguilar said, using a nickname applied to people enrolled in the DACA program.

— matthew daly, The Seattle Times, "Guns, churches and immigrants: What’s in that spending bill?," 14 July 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'nickname.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of nickname

Middle English nekename additional name, alteration (resulting from misdivision of an ekename) of ekename, from eke eke, also + name name

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 15th century

See Words from the same year

nickname Synonyms

Synonyms

alias, byname, cognomen, epithet, handle, moniker (also monicker), sobriquet (also soubriquet), surname

Related Words

appellation, denomination, denotation, designation, label, tag, title; anonym, nom de guerre, nom de plume, pen name, pseudonym

nickname

verb

Definition of nickname

transitive verb

1 :misname, miscall

2 :to give a nickname to

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nicknamer

noun

See nickname defined for English-language learners

Recent Examples of nickname from the Web

FBI investigators nicknamed Adair the Snowbird Bandit, after the old folk who migrate to warmer climes for the winter.

— jeff maysh, Los Angeles Magazine, "The Cop Who Became a Robber," 22 Aug. 2017
Zach Woolfson and A.J. Pallagi took turns receiving top and runner-up scoring recognition as their Starter Division team nicknamed USF won a pair of games during recent action in the Cooper City Optimist Basketball League (CCOBL).

— Sun-Sentinel.com, "Starter Division duo share spotlight on the Cooper City youth basketball hardwood," 4 July 2017
Now scientists have finally identified the species, Razanandrongobe sakalavae (nicknamed Razana), as an enormous crocodile ancestor.

— annalee newitz, Ars Technica, "This giant crocodile was an apex predator 166 million years ago," 4 July 2017
Poipu Beach in Kauai While Oahu and Maui draw the most tourists of all the Hawaiian islands, Kauai, nicknamed the Garden Isle, has some of the state’s most picturesque beaches.

— amanda arnold, GQ, "These Are the Best Beaches in The World," 25 June 2017
He was nicknamed after Yogi Bear's sidekick Boo Boo.

— jeff jacobs, courant.com, "Weekley Joins Spieth To Make An Odd Final Pair, But A Fun One," 25 June 2017
But Spithill, who is not nicknamed Pitbull for nothing, kept scrapping and tacking and talking a good game, and he and his crewmates were finally rewarded with their first victory in this otherwise lopsided America’s Cup match.

— christopher clarey, New York Times, "Oracle Team USA Finally Breaks Through at the America’s Cup," 24 June 2017
New Hampshire’s rule, nicknamed Brandon’s Law, passed in the house 292-12 in May 2016.

— megan schellong, USA TODAY College, "Dress blues or cap and gown? Some schools make military grads choose," 14 June 2017
By comparison, the H-4 flying boat — nicknamed Spruce Goose and built by Howard Hughes in the 1940s — has a 320-foot (97.5-meter) wingspan and is just under 219 feet (67 meters) long.

— john antczak, The Seattle Times, "Enormous Stratolaunch aircraft rolled out for first time," 1 June 2017

First Known Use of nickname

1536

NICKNAME Defined for English Language Learners

nickname

play

noun

Definition of nickname for English Language Learners

: a name (such as “Moose” or “Lady Bird”) that is different from your real name but is what your family, friends, etc., call you when they are talking to you or about you

nickname

verb

Definition of nickname for English Language Learners

: to give (someone) a name that is not that person's real name : to give a nickname to (someone)

NICKNAME Defined for Kids

nickname

play

noun nick·name \ ˈnik-ˌnām \

Definition of nickname for Students

1 :a usually descriptive name used in addition to a person's given name

My brother had the nickname “Nosy.”

2 :a familiar form of a proper name

“Bill” and “Willie” are nicknames for “William.”

History for nickname

In the Middle Ages there was an English word ekename that meant “an extra name.” It was made of a word eke that meant “extra part” added to the word name. It started with a vowel, so an was used with this word instead of a. When an ekename was said fast, it sounded a bit like a nekename. As a result, some people thought the word started with n and began to pronounce it nekename. They did not know they were taking n away from an, adding it to ekename, and so making a new word. From this new word came the word nickname that we use now.