Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English homepage

Language: Old English
Origin: nama


1 noun
name1 S1 W1

of a person

[countable] what someone is called:
Her name is Mandy Wilson.
What's your name?
Can I have your last name?
She called him by his first name (=she used his first name when talking to him).
Please leave your full name (=complete name) and address with reception.
She didn't give (=say) her name.
I heard someone call (=say or shout) my name.
Sign your name (=write it) on the dotted line.
Can you put my name on the list?
It's a big school but the principal knows everyone by name (=can recognize everyone and address them by their name).
I knew him by name only (=I knew his name, but didn't know what he looked like).
under the name (of) something (=using a different name from your real name)
HH Munro wrote under the name Saki.
(go) by the name of something (=used to say that someone has or uses a particular name)
a young politician who went by the name of Tony Blair

of a thing or place

[countable] what a thing, organization, or place is called
name of
What's the name of the street?
The name of the company has changed.
name for
Edo was the ancient name for Tokyo.
The flower's common name (=name that is used by ordinary people, not its scientific name) is forget-me-not.


[singular] the opinion that people have about a person or organization [= reputation]:
He didn't want to do anything to damage the good name of the company.
The restaurant got a bad name for slow service.
They give the rest of the fans a bad name.
The company has a name for reliability.
make your name/make a name for yourself (=become famous for something)
He quickly made a name for himself in the Parisian art world.
clear your name (=prove that you did not do something bad or illegal)

famous person/company/product

[countable] informal a person, company, or product that is very famous or is known by many people
big/famous/household name
some of the biggest names in show business
It made the company into a household name (=a very well known person or thing).

call somebody names

to use unpleasant words to describe someone in order to insult or upset them:
The other kids used to call me names.
call somebody all the names under the sun (=use many unpleasant words)

in somebody's name/in the name of somebody

a) if something is in someone's name, it officially belongs to them or is for them to use:
The house is in my husband's name.
I've booked a table in the name of Steinmann.
b) formal as someone else's official representative:
I claim this land in the name of the King!

something has somebody's name on it

something that seems to be appropriate for or deserved by a particular person:
The match had England's name on it (=they will win it).

in the name of religion/freedom/science etc

using religion, freedom etc as the reason why something is done - used especially when you disapprove of what someone is doing:
cruel experiments on animals carried out in the name of science
the things people do in the name of love

have something to your name

informal to have or own something - used to emphasize that someone has very little or a lot of something:
He died without a penny to his name (=very poor).
He didn't have a qualification to his name.

the name of the game

informal the most important thing in a particular activity or situation:
Quality, that's the name of the game.

cannot put a name to something

spoken used to say that someone is not able to say what something is called:
I know the tune but I can't put a name to it.

take somebody's name in vain

to talk about someone without showing respect for them:
How dare you take the Lord's name in vain (=swear using a word such as 'God' or 'Jesus')?

in name only/alone

if a situation exists in name only, it does not really exist even though officially people say it does:
a democracy in name only
He was president in name only.

in all/everything but name

if something is true in all but name, it is really true, even though people do not officially say that it is true:
She was his wife in all but name.

somebody's name is mud

informal used to say that people are angry with someone because of something he or she has done - used especially humorously:
If anything goes wrong, your name will be mud.

➔ drag somebody's name through the mud

at drag1 (10), pen name


the name between your first and last name: middle name

all of the words of someone's name: full name


pen name
/pseudonym a name used by a writer
stage name
the name used by an actor
false name
, alias a name used especially by a criminal
under an assumed name
using a false name in order to hide your identity

common name
scientific name
the name used by scientists
a word or phrase used in technical contexts

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