Definition of SOBRIQUET

Did You Know?

This synonym of nickname has the same meaning in modern French as it does in English. In Middle French, however, its earlier incarnation soubriquet referred to both a nickname and a tap under the chin. Centuries later, the connection between these two meanings isn't clear, but what is clear is that the "nickname" meaning of sobriquet was well established in French by the time English speakers borrowed the term in the mid-17th century - and was the only meaning that was adopted. In current English, the spelling sobriquet is most common, but soubriquet is also an accepted variant.

Examples of sobriquet in a Sentence

Baseball player Ty Cobb was also known by the sobriquet “The Georgia Peach.” tagged her with the sobriquet “peanut” because of her diminutive size

Recent Examples on the Web

Eventually taking her destiny into her own hands and adopting a sobriquet that expressed her life’s purpose, Sojourner Truth traveled the country telling the terrible truth of slavery. — Meghan Cox Gurdon, WSJ, "Children’s Books: Tales of Bravery and Brilliance," 8 Nov. 2018 Among his Tour colleagues Donald has earned the sobriquet Mr. Plod. — Harry Hurt, Town & Country, "T&C Profile: Luke Donald," 8 Apr. 2014 Exclusive but not elite, it was stigmatized with the sobriquet University of Spoiled Children. — Alex Bhattacharji, Town & Country, "Can USC Survive Scandal and Shed Its Spoiled-Kid Reputation Once and For All?," 10 July 2018 His first sobriquet was Prince Cartier, a twist on his last name, but also indicative of a budding interest in fashion and luxury brands. — Ben Detrick, New York Times, "Playboi Carti Conquers the Paris Runway," 29 June 2018 The group quickly received its own medieval sobriquet: the new Hansa League, a reference to the alliance of trading guilds that flourished along the shores of the Baltic and North Seas in the late Middle Ages. — Simon Nixon, WSJ, "Charlemagne to the Rescue," 22 June 2018 Now, Sadr is poised to assume a new sobriquet: kingmaker, after leading a political coalition to what appeared to be an early lead in national elections in Iraq. — Washington Post, "How Moqtada al-Sadr went from anti-American outlaw to potential kingmaker in Iraq," 14 May 2018 Bridgewater told the crowd, and one couldn’t have asked for a much more full-blooded expression of that sobriquet. — Howard Reich, chicagotribune.com, "Dee Dee Bridgewater embraces her Memphis soul," 2 June 2018 The Iroquois, who lived in Ontario and upstate New York, used the same sobriquet for the French-British boundary in the Seven Years’ War. — Porter Fox, Outside Online, "Exploring America's Forgotten Border," 1 June 2018

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