1
as in nickname
a descriptive or familiar name given instead of or in addition to the one belonging to an individual
richly deserved the cognomen of "Butterfingers"
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2
as in moniker
a word or combination of words by which a person or thing is regularly known
"Christopher Columbus" is the Latinized cognomen of the navigator who was known to his Spanish crewmates as Cristóbal Colón
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Recent Examples of cognomen
Part of the Tuscia — cognomen of lush forested Viterbo, crossed by the ancient Roman Francigena road and land of the Etruscans before that — Gradoli is also volcanic.
—
Susan H. Gordon, Forbes, 3 Sep. 2021
The cognomen, or surname, of the Oba is Ekpen-owa, or home leopard.
—NOLA.com, 1 Feb. 2021
Moore submitted dozens of wonderful, wondrous cognomens, including Mongoose Civique, Regina-rex, Aeroterre, Dearborn Diamanté and the deathless Utopian Turtletop.
—Dan Neil, WSJ, 20 Mar. 2020
Denmark, Iceland, Hungary and Saudi Arabia also enforce specific naming conventions where common American cognomens might not make the cut.
—Caroline Picard, Good Housekeeping, 26 Sep. 2017
Susan H. Gordon, Forbes, 3 Sep. 2021
The cognomen, or surname, of the Oba is Ekpen-owa, or home leopard.
—NOLA.com, 1 Feb. 2021
Moore submitted dozens of wonderful, wondrous cognomens, including Mongoose Civique, Regina-rex, Aeroterre, Dearborn Diamanté and the deathless Utopian Turtletop.
—Dan Neil, WSJ, 20 Mar. 2020
Denmark, Iceland, Hungary and Saudi Arabia also enforce specific naming conventions where common American cognomens might not make the cut.
—Caroline Picard, Good Housekeeping, 26 Sep. 2017
Recent Examples of Synonyms for cognomen
Noun
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The city bequeathed him a new nickname, borrowed from their greatest footballing son — ‘Kvaradona’.—
The Athletic UK Staff,
The Athletic,
13 Feb. 2025
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Loyal customers are known to call Tim Hortons by its nicknames — Timmie’s or Tim’s.—
Jason Dill,
Miami Herald,
12 Feb. 2025
Noun
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Of course, there are years ahead for Lexy and Jace to claim the artist moniker.—
Judy Holmes,
Twin Cities,
7 Feb. 2025
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The peak’s moniker has been disputed for more than 100 years.—
Bailey Berg,
AFAR Media,
5 Feb. 2025
Noun
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There have been racial epithets included in some of those.—
Ryan Morik,
Fox News,
7 Feb. 2025
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The rhetorical question was asked tongue-in-cheek, but the suggestion that this great showman could be given the epithet reserved for only the most one-dimensional players underlines his efficiency.—
Charlie Eccleshare,
The Athletic,
19 Jan. 2025
Noun
-
The eight phases of the moon, in order, are: New moon Waxing crescent moon First quarter moon Waxing gibbous moon Full moon Waning gibbous moon Last quarter moon Waning crescent moon What are the names of full moons throughout the year?—
Janet Loehrke,
USA TODAY,
11 Feb. 2025
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Rest assured, Hepburn’s legacy isn’t lost: A plaque out front bears the name of the Breakfast at Tiffany’s star.—
Abby Montanez,
Robb Report,
10 Feb. 2025
Noun
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The attorney refers to Danielle Hegseth, the former sister-in-law who was married to Hegseth’s brother and kept the surname, by her maiden name in his letter.—
Samantha-Jo Roth,
Washington Examiner - Political News and Conservative Analysis About Congress, the President, and the Federal Government,
22 Jan. 2025
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What to Know The NBI on Friday arrested a Chinese national with the surname Deng, and two male Philippine associates, called Besa and Fernande.—
Kristen Waggoner,
Newsweek,
22 Jan. 2025
Noun
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So to already be in that space with titles like that is pretty incredible.—
Jason Pham,
StyleCaster,
14 Feb. 2025
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Over July 2023-June 2024, Netflix users watched 3.28 billion hours of titles from Spain, just beaten by Korea (8.19 billion), but the second-best performance of any country outside the U.S., doubling French-language viewing, according to Omdia.—
John Hopewell,
Variety,
14 Feb. 2025
Noun
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The enduring legacy of racist, offensive terms in scientific nomenclature raises important questions about ethics in naming and the power of language in maintaining or dismantling colonial legacies.—
The Editors,
JSTOR Daily,
12 Dec. 2024
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The attack likely starts with either a phishing email link or attachment, although the researchers were unable to obtain the original email the nomenclature used in the filenames suggested income tax deduction and rebates as the bait.—
Davey Winder,
Forbes,
21 Dec. 2024
Thesaurus Entries Near cognomen
Cite this Entry
“Cognomen.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/cognomen. Accessed 21 Feb. 2025.
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