1
as in nicknames
a descriptive or familiar name given instead of or in addition to the one belonging to an individual
King Richard I of England was given the very laudatory epithet "the Lion-Hearted"
Synonyms & Similar Words
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2
as in insults
an act or expression showing scorn and usually intended to hurt another's feelings
the school has a strict ban against the use of offensive epithets
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of epithets
Just a few days earlier in California, a house that had been decorated with lights celebrating Chanukah was riddled with bullets, with the assailant having been heard to yell anti-Jewish epithets.
—
Rabbi Steve Roth, Sun Sentinel, 6 Jan. 2026
The doc has also earned the ire of Chase’s former Community co-star Yvette Nicole Brown, who firmly distanced herself from it and all attempts to reinvestigate Chase’s firing from the show amid accusations of hurling racial epithets.
—Seth Abramovitch, HollywoodReporter, 30 Dec. 2025
Even the epithets for the Kansas City Chiefs are built on divisional rivalry and that team’s long track record of success, not sneering dismissiveness.
—Nick Coltrain, Denver Post, 30 Nov. 2025
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
Then there was the woman who was Speaker of the House and would walk around talking to herself, screaming out epithets to imaginary people.
—Larry David, New Yorker, 28 Aug. 2025
Terrell represented a Black teenager who’d been expelled from a Los Angeles high school for punching a white referee during a football game after the referee allegedly had directed racial epithets at him.
—Peter Elkind, ProPublica, 27 Aug. 2025
At one point, tempers flared in the drive-thru lane as a driver in a pickup truck gave up and somehow managed to pull off a U-turn, precipitating a hangry window-down exchange of epithets with the car behind him.
—Robert Channick, Chicago Tribune, 15 Aug. 2025
Rabbi Steve Roth, Sun Sentinel, 6 Jan. 2026
The doc has also earned the ire of Chase’s former Community co-star Yvette Nicole Brown, who firmly distanced herself from it and all attempts to reinvestigate Chase’s firing from the show amid accusations of hurling racial epithets.
—Seth Abramovitch, HollywoodReporter, 30 Dec. 2025
Even the epithets for the Kansas City Chiefs are built on divisional rivalry and that team’s long track record of success, not sneering dismissiveness.
—Nick Coltrain, Denver Post, 30 Nov. 2025
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
Then there was the woman who was Speaker of the House and would walk around talking to herself, screaming out epithets to imaginary people.
—Larry David, New Yorker, 28 Aug. 2025
Terrell represented a Black teenager who’d been expelled from a Los Angeles high school for punching a white referee during a football game after the referee allegedly had directed racial epithets at him.
—Peter Elkind, ProPublica, 27 Aug. 2025
At one point, tempers flared in the drive-thru lane as a driver in a pickup truck gave up and somehow managed to pull off a U-turn, precipitating a hangry window-down exchange of epithets with the car behind him.
—Robert Channick, Chicago Tribune, 15 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for epithets
Noun
-
Herrington leads the recruiting, and encourages nicknames.—
Paige Williams,
New Yorker,
12 Jan. 2026
-
With his nightly mockery of the second-term leader, including a string of biting nicknames including Fiberace, Nostra-Dumbass, Count Flatula, and his most recent, Rant-a-Claus, the Jimmy Kimmel Live!—
Gil Kaufman,
Billboard,
22 Dec. 2025
Noun
-
Men sneered contemptuously at them, while teenagers used their names as insults.—
Mikhail Zygar,
Vanity Fair,
7 Jan. 2026
-
The Marty Supreme scene in question sees Shark Tank's Kevin O'Leary (in his first screen acting role), who plays businessman Milton Rockwell, physically punish Chalamet's Marty for several insults Marty deals Milton throughout the movie.—
Tommy McArdle,
PEOPLE,
5 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
That history includes the surnames Hazeltine, Wilcox, Turner, Norton, Woodall, Willis, Bowman, Warner, Greenlaw and many more.—
Cam Inman,
Mercury News,
7 Jan. 2026
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The Breakers, the new four-story, colonial-style, 425-guest-room hotel, reopened for the season the following year, and its guest register read like a roll call of the famous—and infamous—surnames of the Gilded Age.—
David Shaftel,
Travel + Leisure,
15 Nov. 2025
Noun
-
While soulful names, grandma/grandpa ones, and monikers with many vowels or inspired by numbers also made the trending list, the biggest influence on baby names in 2026 is the media parents are consuming, says Sophie Kihm, editor-in-chief of Nameberry.—
Anna Halkidis,
Parents,
30 Dec. 2025
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Kimchis 1 through 5 were monikers bestowed on them by US crew members in homage to the beloved Korean dish (and perhaps a reflection of a less culturally sensitive time).—
Gawon Bae,
CNN Money,
25 Dec. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Epithets.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/epithets. Accessed 19 Jan. 2026.
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