as in epithet
a descriptive or familiar name given instead of or in addition to the one belonging to an individual
his wavy hair earned him the nickname "Curly" early in life
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Recent Examples of nickname
Rachel Chang, Travel + Leisure, 22 Apr. 2025
The team, which played this season under the name Utah Hockey Club, is expected to announce a permanent nickname before the start of next season.
—Eben Novy-Williams, Sportico.com, 18 Apr. 2025
Jen Murphy, Robb Report, 19 Apr. 2025
By that time, the juke joint has also picked up four more employees: a drunken pianist nicknamed Delta Slim (Delroy Lindo), a field hand-slash-bouncer called Cornbread (Omar Benson Miller) and Bo and Grace Chao (Yao and Li Jun Li), a married couple who run the town’s grocery stores.
—Amy Nicholson, Los Angeles Times, 17 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for nickname
Noun
Literally speaking, that nickname might be correct since the lake's waters do flow out to the Atlantic Ocean.
—Rachel Chang, Travel + Leisure, 22 Apr. 2025
The team, which played this season under the name Utah Hockey Club, is expected to announce a permanent nickname before the start of next season.
—Eben Novy-Williams, Sportico.com, 18 Apr. 2025
Verb
Some of the planet’s largest golden dorado—nicknamed river tigers for their fight—push into the marshy maze of gin-clear channels, lagoons, and streams from October through April.
—Jen Murphy, Robb Report, 19 Apr. 2025
By that time, the juke joint has also picked up four more employees: a drunken pianist nicknamed Delta Slim (Delroy Lindo), a field hand-slash-bouncer called Cornbread (Omar Benson Miller) and Bo and Grace Chao (Yao and Li Jun Li), a married couple who run the town’s grocery stores.
—Amy Nicholson, Los Angeles Times, 17 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for nickname
Recent Examples of Synonyms for nickname
Noun
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This species has no fragrance; its lavender appellation simply acknowledges its flower color while its rosemary epithet indicates its seacoast habitat.—
Joshua Siskin,
Orange County Register,
22 Mar. 2025
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More than a decade after Breaking Bad ended, Aaron Paul still can’t escape his character’s signature epithet.—
John Russell,
People.com,
19 Mar. 2025
Noun
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In some ways, the moniker ‘hair stylist’ undermines Tom Smith’s artistry.—
Angelina Villa-Clarke,
Forbes.com,
23 Apr. 2025
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The America's Next Top Model creator said her name was a joint effort from her family after her mother simplified a moniker that the model’s grandmother had chosen.—
Angel Saunders,
People.com,
17 Apr. 2025
Verb
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Month-long preparations for the 50th anniversary of the end of the Vietnam war culminated on Wednesday, April 30, the date in 1975 that communist North Vietnam took over Saigon, then-capital of South Vietnam and renamed to Ho Chi Minh City.—
Nga Pham,
NPR,
30 Apr. 2025
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The organization was later renamed CORE (Community Organized Relief Effort) and continues to provide immediate aid and long-term recovery support to underserved communities around the world.—
Samantha Bergeson,
IndieWire,
29 Apr. 2025
Noun
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Emily, who didn't share her surname, lives in the Midwest with her 11 cats.—
Josh Hammer,
MSNBC Newsweek,
15 Apr. 2025
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Yes, his surname is definitely a little tribute to Jon.—
Alex Ritman,
Variety,
9 Apr. 2025
Verb
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In the course of the initiative, Nigel Jeffries, MOLA’s ceramics specialist, has come to believe that witch bottles may have not only been miscategorized but misnamed: these bottles were likely medical objects, rather than magical ones.—
Geoff Manaugh,
The New Yorker,
31 Oct. 2019
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In some cases, police and lawyers inflict further harm by misgendering and misnaming victims.—
Kristin Lam,
USA TODAY,
20 Nov. 2019
Verb
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Additionally, the home provides type not specified.—
Bay Area Home Report,
Mercury News,
1 May 2025
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The agency said chapters of the report underwent peer review but did not specify who reviewed it.—
Jen Christensen,
CNN Money,
1 May 2025
Verb
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The word conclave has gone from meaning simply a locked room in ancient Rome to denoting the very particular process by which a new Catholic pope is elected.—
Joe Hernandez,
NPR,
23 Apr. 2025
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Even among legal scholars, there is some confusion about the terms textualism and originalism -- both denoting methods of legal interpretation.—
Mary Katharine Ham,
National Review,
17 Apr. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Nickname.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/nickname. Accessed 6 May. 2025.
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