as in epithets
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 nicknames
Alia Shoaib, MSNBC Newsweek, 12 Sep. 2025
Colleagues described a popular chaplain with nicknames for the tiny patients and soothing words for their bleary-eyed parents.
—Hannah Allam, ProPublica, 10 Sep. 2025
In some cases, even affectionate nicknames or pet mishaps have shown up right alongside serious action items.
—Kurt Knutsson, FOXNews.com, 9 Sep. 2025
Armani’s mother Maria played a great role in his life and influenced his sense of fashion to the point that his two yachts bore her nicknames, Mariu and Maìn.
—Luisa Zargani, Footwear News, 4 Sep. 2025
Laurel, Conrad, Belly, and Jeremiah all call each other by nicknames.
—Bethy Squires, Vulture, 4 Sep. 2025
Osaka’s Labubus at Flushing Meadows have sported varying color schemes and nicknames, all decked out with shiny get-ups.
—Fortune, 2 Sep. 2025
Getty Images One of FC Bayern Munich’s nicknames is FC Hollywood.
—Zak Garner-Purkis, Forbes.com, 31 Aug. 2025
Players’ Weekend began in 2017 as a way to showcase the personality of players through custom apparel and bats, nicknames used by announcers and more.
—Sean Campbell, Sacbee.com, 17 Aug. 2025
Verb
Newsom's press office's X account has been regularly posting memes, snarky all-caps messages and using catchy nicknames for his opponents.
—Alia Shoaib, MSNBC Newsweek, 12 Sep. 2025
Colleagues described a popular chaplain with nicknames for the tiny patients and soothing words for their bleary-eyed parents.
—Hannah Allam, ProPublica, 10 Sep. 2025
In some cases, even affectionate nicknames or pet mishaps have shown up right alongside serious action items.
—Kurt Knutsson, FOXNews.com, 9 Sep. 2025
Armani’s mother Maria played a great role in his life and influenced his sense of fashion to the point that his two yachts bore her nicknames, Mariu and Maìn.
—Luisa Zargani, Footwear News, 4 Sep. 2025
Laurel, Conrad, Belly, and Jeremiah all call each other by nicknames.
—Bethy Squires, Vulture, 4 Sep. 2025
Osaka’s Labubus at Flushing Meadows have sported varying color schemes and nicknames, all decked out with shiny get-ups.
—Fortune, 2 Sep. 2025
Getty Images One of FC Bayern Munich’s nicknames is FC Hollywood.
—Zak Garner-Purkis, Forbes.com, 31 Aug. 2025
Players’ Weekend began in 2017 as a way to showcase the personality of players through custom apparel and bats, nicknames used by announcers and more.
—Sean Campbell, Sacbee.com, 17 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for nicknames
Noun
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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
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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
Noun
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Yuliia Kaveshnikova/Getty Images The new husband's last name is the same as u//Specken_zee_Doitch's first name, and because the couple have hyphenated each other's surnames, their last names are the same as u//Specken_zee_Doitch's full name.—
Alyce Collins,
MSNBC Newsweek,
10 Sep. 2025
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Many younger Red Sox weren’t in the majors, or even drafted in ‘19, the last time the league allowed players to replace their surnames with nicknames on the back of their Players’ Weekend jerseys.—
Gabrielle Starr,
Boston Herald,
16 Aug. 2025
Noun
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Lily, Loki, Max, Star, Oscar, Zelda, Pepper, Callie, Gus, Kitty, Olive, Olivia, Jack and Chloe, are among the other popular monikers.—
Liz O'Connell,
MSNBC Newsweek,
18 Aug. 2025
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Which of the following monikers did Benjamin Franklin NOT employ?—
Brittany Allen,
Literary Hub,
11 Aug. 2025
Noun
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This stands in contrast to many of the investment claims on social media, where people regularly post fake or falsified information under pseudonyms.—
Jeff John Roberts,
Fortune,
10 Sep. 2025
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The plaintiffs’ names in the lawsuit are pseudonyms to protect their identities and safety, attorneys said.—
Daniella Silva,
NBC news,
13 Aug. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Nicknames.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/nicknames. Accessed 18 Sep. 2025.
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