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
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
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Recent Examples of epithets
Use chapter titles or epithets to set up what’s coming.
—
Jd Barker, Rolling Stone, 25 Sep. 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
Jd Barker, Rolling Stone, 25 Sep. 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
-
Her son Kovey James often goes by KJ, while her daughter Quincy already has a handful of playful nicknames, like Q, Quinn and Quince.—
Valerie Mesa,
PEOPLE,
10 Oct. 2025
-
That information from customers was leaked in a full database, including customer’s names, mobile numbers, email addresses, license plate numbers, vehicle nicknames, and more.—
James Peckham,
PC Magazine,
6 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
Politico counted 251 instances of derogatory insults in the group chat, interspersed with logistical conversations about social media strategies and collecting votes.—
Matthew Kelly,
Kansas City Star,
15 Oct. 2025
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Walking away from a fight or turning the other cheek at someone hurling insults your way would be an insult to our own ego and pride.—
Ed Lavandera,
CNN Money,
11 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
Names can have a maximum of two first names and four surnames.—
Laura Sharman,
CNN Money,
14 Oct. 2025
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The trust also listed multiple women with Eastern European surnames as beneficiaries.—
Lily Mae Lazarus,
Fortune,
8 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
The common names of many of the poisonous Amanita mushrooms include foreboding monikers like death cap mushroom and destroying angel.—
Matt Kasson,
Popular Science,
15 Oct. 2025
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Winterstone has tattooed monikers on many celebs, including Teigen and Matt Damon, who has his wife's and daughters' first names on his right arm.—
Grace Gavilanes,
PEOPLE,
8 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Epithets.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/epithets. Accessed 20 Oct. 2025.
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