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
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
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 nickname
Ryan Gaydos, FOXNews.com, 21 July 2025
Apparently, everything in the United States of America is operating at amazing and unprecedented levels of pure excellence, because the president has turned his attention to a topic that isn't quite vitally important for the enrichment and well-being of the nation's people: Sports team nicknames.
—Jim Reineking, USA Today, 21 July 2025
Ken Alltucker, USA Today, 30 July 2025
There are more than 25 of them in town, and (occasionally to the brand's dismay) almost all of them have a tongue-in-cheek nickname.
—Maggie Menderski, The Courier-Journal, 30 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for nickname
Noun
Cleveland was nicknamed the Blues in 1902, then the Napoleons and the Naps until 1915 when the organization changed the name to the Indians.
—Ryan Gaydos, FOXNews.com, 21 July 2025
Apparently, everything in the United States of America is operating at amazing and unprecedented levels of pure excellence, because the president has turned his attention to a topic that isn't quite vitally important for the enrichment and well-being of the nation's people: Sports team nicknames.
—Jim Reineking, USA Today, 21 July 2025
Verb
Some states turn to university mascots or nicknames when branding their Medicaid programs.
—Ken Alltucker, USA Today, 30 July 2025
There are more than 25 of them in town, and (occasionally to the brand's dismay) almost all of them have a tongue-in-cheek nickname.
—Maggie Menderski, The Courier-Journal, 30 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for nickname
Recent Examples of Synonyms for nickname
Noun
-
Tackett shouted racial epithets against Latinos at the driver before hurling a cup of hot coffee into their car, splashing the victim’s face, hands and the inside of his car, Oldoerp said.—
City News Service,
Oc Register,
25 July 2025
-
The two welders who had been spewing racist epithets at Pierre, the lawsuit said, began retaliating.—
Miami Herald,
Miami Herald,
7 July 2025
Noun
-
People didn’t necessarily identify themselves with a moniker or a label.—
Jason P. Frank,
Vulture,
28 July 2025
-
Anticipation for new music from the now-duo was extremely high, as it had been announced some time ago that the group was going to release music for the film under that moniker.—
Hugh McIntyre,
Forbes.com,
27 July 2025
Verb
-
The owners of the Beau, which opened May 16, decided to rename their restaurant-bar Witherby.—
Pam Kragen,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
23 July 2025
-
The two reunited in Polka Tulk Blues, along with Mythology guitarist Tony Iommi and drummer Bill Ward, renaming themselves Earth, then Black Sabbath in August 1969 after a 1963 Italian-French horror film starring Boris Karloff.—
Roy Trakin,
HollywoodReporter,
22 July 2025
Noun
-
They have been married since 1999, combining their previous surnames, True and Frost.—
Derek Lawrence,
EW.com,
29 July 2025
-
The new film’s title references the surname of Stiller’s character, Greg Focker.—
Rebecca Rubin,
Variety,
28 July 2025
Verb
-
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
-
In some cases, police and lawyers inflict further harm by misgendering and misnaming victims.—
Kristin Lam,
USA TODAY,
20 Nov. 2019
Verb
-
Advertisement Macron has not specified what territory France would recognize as being part of a Palestinian state.—
Callum Sutherland,
Time,
25 July 2025
-
The Supreme Court, without specifying its reason, did intervene on Thursday, upholding, at least temporarily the rights of individual voters to bring vote dilution and other enforcement challenges.—
Nina Totenberg,
NPR,
24 July 2025
Verb
-
On the Photos watch face, a personal favorite, the numerals denoting time can now be transparent.—
Andrew Gebhart,
PC Magazine,
31 July 2025
-
One old rule of thumb for airlines was that a Saturday night stay at the destination often denoted a leisure trip, which unlocked cheaper fare buckets.—
Zach Wichter,
USA Today,
10 July 2025
Cite this Entry
“Nickname.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/nickname. Accessed 7 Aug. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share