surname 1 of 2

Definition of surnamenext
1
as in family name
a name shared by members of a family judging from your surname, I'd guess that your family is Italian

Synonyms & Similar Words

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2
as in nickname
a descriptive or familiar name given instead of or in addition to the one belonging to an individual "da Vinci" was Leonardo's surname but not his family name, Vinci being the town near Florence where the great artist was born

Synonyms & Similar Words

surname

2 of 2

verb

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of surname
Noun
Borland and Abela, 31, hosted five different games that their families would play to decide their surname. Hannah Sacks, PEOPLE, 9 June 2026 For many fans outside Mexico, the surname Ochoa is synonymous with the World Cup. Los Angeles Times, 7 June 2026
Verb
The individual, surnamed Yang, declined to share his first name due to concerns about speaking with foreign media. Eunice Yoon,evelyn Cheng, CNBC, 20 Sep. 2024 An employee surnamed Lin who answered the phone at Gold Apollo but declined to provide her full name or title said the company did not directly fill the pager order from Hezbollah, and that BAC handles the vast majority of device sales from Middle Eastern customers. Stephanie Yang, Los Angeles Times, 18 Sep. 2024 See All Example Sentences for surname
Recent Examples of Synonyms for surname
Noun
  • The estate has a long, storied history under many family names, but in 1575, the Essenault family rechristened it by contracting their family name to Issan.
    Mike DeSimone, Robb Report, 17 June 2026
  • In sharp contrast to the first-generation members of the Frankfurt School, Habermas came from a petit-bourgeois, culturally conservative Protestant milieu, his family name going back to sixteenth-century Thuringian cobblers.
    Alex Ross, New Yorker, 15 June 2026
Noun
  • Despite its nickname, June's moon won't look red like a strawberry, according to the Old Farmer's Almanac.
    Julia Gomez, USA Today, 22 June 2026
  • Pitman kept both the plate and the nickname, reluctantly.
    Paige Williams, New Yorker, 22 June 2026
Verb
  • Her debut novel Felix Austria won the BBC Ukrainian Book of the Year award and was adapted into a film titled Devoted.
    Georg Szalai, HollywoodReporter, 16 June 2026
  • Eagle-eyed TikTokers quickly deduced that Franco's new account is only following two others — the official account for an upcoming film titled Love Meets in the Sunshine and Christian Guiton, the film's director.
    Ryan Coleman, Entertainment Weekly, 16 June 2026
Noun
  • McHale and Dempsey's characters are both Mark but have different last names.
    Derek Lawrence, Entertainment Weekly, 22 June 2026
  • The test showed 21 matches with my mother’s first husband’s last name.
    Eric Thomas, Sun Sentinel, 20 June 2026
Noun
  • The epithet is not a concession (the database of Trumpian apologies has yet to receive any inputs).
    Megan Garber, The Atlantic, 10 June 2026
  • Tape recordings played during the case also showed Fuhrman had used a racial epithet despite his testimony claiming to never have done so.
    Marc Ramirez, USA Today, 18 May 2026
Verb
  • Long before Kansas City prepared to host six matches in soccer’s global tournament, an Overland Park kid named Matt Besler gave the city its first taste of the World Cup stage.
    The Kansas City Star, Kansas City Star, 17 June 2026
  • Joshua’s contract also states White and Zuffa Boxing cannot be named promoters of the Fury bout, despite Al-Sheikh owning 60 per cent of the company.
    Chris McKenna, New York Times, 17 June 2026
Verb
  • Staud’s sale is full of summery dresses and separates, but this ditsy floral skirt is a favorite styled with a white button down and a bikini underneath.
    Aemilia Madden, Vogue, 18 June 2026
  • Easily style these pants with sneakers, ballet flats, sandals, or loafers.
    Caroline Hughes, Travel + Leisure, 17 June 2026
Verb
  • The latter are often associated with what might be termed the silovaya ideologiya—a security-state ideology that emphasises a strong state, the primacy of state interests over private interests, great-power status, and strict domestic order.
    Isaac Chotiner, New Yorker, 18 June 2026
  • Carollo was termed out of office at the end of last year.
    Miami Herald, Miami Herald, 9 June 2026

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Cite this Entry

“Surname.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/surname. Accessed 24 Jun. 2026.

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