christen

verb

chris·​ten ˈkri-sᵊn 

christened; christening ˈkri-sə-niŋ 

ˈkris-niŋ

transitive verb

1

a

: baptize sense 1

was christened when he was three months old

b

: to name at baptism

They christened the baby Anne.

2

: to name or dedicate (something, such as a ship) by a ceremony that often involves breaking a bottle of champagne

3

: name sense 1

The newspaper christened her as the reigning Queen of Tennis.

4

: to use for the first time

They christened the new ballpark with a win.

Synonyms

• baptize
• call
• clepe [archaic]
• denominate
• designate
• dub
• entitle
• label
• name
• nominate
• style
• term
• title

Examples of christen in a Sentence

He was christened when he was three months old.

They christened the baby Anna.

The politician was chosen to christen a new ship.

The newspaper has christened her as the reigning Queen of Tennis.

They christened the new ball park with a win.

Recent Examples on the Web

The energetic spokesman christened that revitalization by leading an opening day tasting and masterclass on the significance of assemblage. —Brad Japhe, Forbes, 2 Dec. 2024

Stark christened the home Casa Maranello after the location of the Ferrari factory in Maranello, Italy. Stark, who works alongside his wife Fiorenna, pays homage to his love of Ferrari through several design elements. —Emma Reynolds, Robb Report, 2 Dec. 2024

Once christened, black holes were taken seriously, both as objects that exist in reality and as places where reality ends. —Quanta Magazine, 25 Sep. 2024

The second episode, christening the crime drama’s regular Sundays-at-9 time slot, drew 1.6 million domestic cross platform viewers, outperforming Episode 1’s premiere night by 17%. —Matt Webb Mitovich, TVLine, 17 Oct. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Middle English cristnen, from Old English cristnian, from cristen Christian, from Latin christianus

First Known Use

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Kids Definition

christen

verb

chris·​ten ˈkris-ᵊn 

christened; christening ˈkris-niŋ 

-ᵊn-iŋ

1

: baptize sense 1

2

a

: to name at baptism

christened the baby Robin

b

: to name or dedicate in a ceremony like that of baptism

christen a ship