1
as in nickname
a descriptive or familiar name given instead of or in addition to the one belonging to an individual
richly deserved the cognomen of "Butterfingers"
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2
as in moniker
a word or combination of words by which a person or thing is regularly known
"Christopher Columbus" is the Latinized cognomen of the navigator who was known to his Spanish crewmates as Cristóbal Colón
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Recent Examples of cognomen
Part of the Tuscia — cognomen of lush forested Viterbo, crossed by the ancient Roman Francigena road and land of the Etruscans before that — Gradoli is also volcanic.
—
Susan H. Gordon, Forbes, 3 Sep. 2021
The cognomen, or surname, of the Oba is Ekpen-owa, or home leopard.
—NOLA.com, 1 Feb. 2021
Moore submitted dozens of wonderful, wondrous cognomens, including Mongoose Civique, Regina-rex, Aeroterre, Dearborn Diamanté and the deathless Utopian Turtletop.
—Dan Neil, WSJ, 20 Mar. 2020
Denmark, Iceland, Hungary and Saudi Arabia also enforce specific naming conventions where common American cognomens might not make the cut.
—Caroline Picard, Good Housekeeping, 26 Sep. 2017
Susan H. Gordon, Forbes, 3 Sep. 2021
The cognomen, or surname, of the Oba is Ekpen-owa, or home leopard.
—NOLA.com, 1 Feb. 2021
Moore submitted dozens of wonderful, wondrous cognomens, including Mongoose Civique, Regina-rex, Aeroterre, Dearborn Diamanté and the deathless Utopian Turtletop.
—Dan Neil, WSJ, 20 Mar. 2020
Denmark, Iceland, Hungary and Saudi Arabia also enforce specific naming conventions where common American cognomens might not make the cut.
—Caroline Picard, Good Housekeeping, 26 Sep. 2017
Recent Examples of Synonyms for cognomen
Noun
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One person helped by the nonprofit is Doña Chela, an undocumented 66-year-old woman who asked to be identified by her nickname.—
Andrea Castillo,
Los Angeles Times,
26 June 2025
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Young red mangroves trees, some with nicknames like Rosie, Penelope and Dingle, are being adopted and raised in backyard gardens, at restaurant host stands, beside bank teller windows and in school classrooms throughout Sanibel Island and the Fort Myers area.—
Christina Kelso,
New York Times,
24 June 2025
Noun
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The latter moniker was lifted from a Catholic high school that had been a local basketball powerhouse.—
Dan Greene,
New Yorker,
21 June 2025
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True to his moniker, the singer and harmonica player, who performs at noon on June 15, serves up a potent mix of traditional blues and Bollywood music.—
Randy McMullen,
Mercury News,
12 June 2025
Noun
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The racist epithets — including a swastika and N***** spray-painted onto the concrete walls surrounding the park — were reported to the Miami Police on Monday afternoon in what the community and police are calling a hate crime.—
Milena Malaver,
Miami Herald,
3 June 2025
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Barnyard epithets did not pepper the prepared speeches of most of Hegseth's predecessors.—
Tom Vanden Brook,
USA Today,
23 Apr. 2025
Noun
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Later at an event, Sawaya ran into Foreman, who asked him to reconsider applying, saying the hiring committee would try to keep his name out of the public eye.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
22 June 2025
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His name will be released by the Dallas County Medical Examiner’s Office after his family has been notified.—
Lillie Davidson,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
22 June 2025
Noun
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Huang, who asked to be identified only by her surname for fear of being targeted, had seen her original doctoral offer at Vanderbilt University rescinded after federal cuts to research and programs related to diversity, equity and inclusion.—
Sara Braun,
Fortune,
21 June 2025
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The family has requested that their surname be withheld from publication.—
Billal Rahman,
MSNBC Newsweek,
20 June 2025
Noun
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McCormack, one of the heroes of KU’s NCAA title game victory over North Carolina in 2022, averaged 10.5 points and 5.6 rebounds per game while playing for Alba Berlin (Germany) in the Euroleague this past season.—
Gary Bedore,
Kansas City Star,
26 June 2025
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Meta’s use of these titles is protected under copyright law’s fair use provision, San Francisco district judge Vince Chhabria ruled.—
Sharon Goldman,
Fortune,
26 June 2025
Noun
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The research nomenclature for AI hallucinations refers to the out-of-thin-air types as HK-, while the misses-the-boat are known as HK+.—
Lance Eliot,
Forbes,
3 Dec. 2024
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The Model 2 – nomenclature used by analysts to designate a low-cost Tesla – was supposed to be a revolutionary low-cost vehicle that used Tesla’s latest and greatest manufacturing technology to reduce production costs.—
Brooke Crothers,
Forbes.com,
8 June 2025
Cite this Entry
“Cognomen.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/cognomen. Accessed 3 Jul. 2025.
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