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
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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
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
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Recent Examples of surname
Martha Ross, The Mercury News, 7 Mar. 2025
As reported by the Daily Mail and by People, the official surname for the British royal family, including for Meghan and Harry, is Mountbatten-Windsor.
—Martha Ross, The Mercury News, 7 Mar. 2025
Chris Lau, CNN, 9 May 2023
The Chengdu police used social media on Wednesday to report that a 39-year-old man surnamed Chen was arrested on suspicion of opening a casino.
—Patrick Frater, Variety, 22 Nov. 2023
See All Example Sentences for surname
Noun
Similarly, Harry’s cousins, Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie, used the surname York, after their father, Prince Andrew, the Duke of York.
—Martha Ross, The Mercury News, 7 Mar. 2025
As reported by the Daily Mail and by People, the official surname for the British royal family, including for Meghan and Harry, is Mountbatten-Windsor.
—Martha Ross, The Mercury News, 7 Mar. 2025
Verb
Gansu authorities said the suspect, surnamed Hong, was questioned in the city of Dongguan in southern Guangdong province on May 5.
—Chris Lau, CNN, 9 May 2023
The Chengdu police used social media on Wednesday to report that a 39-year-old man surnamed Chen was arrested on suspicion of opening a casino.
—Patrick Frater, Variety, 22 Nov. 2023
See All Example Sentences for surname
Recent Examples of Synonyms for surname
Noun
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In an interview published on Monday, Markle spoke to People magazine about the special significance behind their family name.—
Stephanie Nolasco,
Fox News,
4 Mar. 2025
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Meghan Markle is opening up about the Sussex family name.—
Rachel Burchfield,
People.com,
4 Mar. 2025
Noun
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Monday Night Brewing Garden Co. The vibe: In line with its nickname, the outside of Garden Co. has a beer garden feel, complete with numerous picnic tables and fire pits.—
McKenzie Rankin,
Axios,
10 Mar. 2025
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Swisher was referring to Trump’s derisive nickname for Warren, Pocahontas, last aimed at her during his address last Tuesday night.—
Jill Goldsmith,
Deadline,
8 Mar. 2025
Verb
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Big business from the year included a second season of Peter Capaldi-starring Apple TV+ series Criminal Record and a first greenlight from Netflix, a drama about the death of Rachel Nickell titled The Witness.—
Max Goldbart,
Deadline,
11 Mar. 2025
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Phoenix Pictures is backing the feature, titled Joseph Merrick, which will be produced by Kate Cohen, Mike Medavoy and David Dobkin.—
Borys Kit,
The Hollywood Reporter,
11 Mar. 2025
Noun
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Your ‘girl’ Mindy doesn’t know your last name is Sussex?—
Ashley Hume,
Fox News,
8 Mar. 2025
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Approximately 146 million Americans do not have a passport, and approximately 69 million married women in the U.S. have a last name that does not match their birth certificate.—
William Lambers,
Newsweek,
7 Mar. 2025
Noun
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The reply of my friend and hunting companion was one of those quaint, rasping epithets which only a cowman can manage when everything has gone wrong.—
Frank C. Hibben,
Outdoor Life,
27 Feb. 2025
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There were reports of death threats, along with racial epithets, directed at him.—
Louisa Thomas,
The New Yorker,
16 Feb. 2025
Verb
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No other player has been named MVP unanimously more than once.—
Kurt Badenhausen,
Sportico.com,
19 Mar. 2025
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The Hundreds co-founder has been named vp of creative for the Americas at Disney Consumer Products.—
Danielle Directo-Meston,
The Hollywood Reporter,
19 Mar. 2025
Verb
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Her wavy hair is styled to showcase bauble earrings.—
Natasha Gural,
Forbes,
15 Mar. 2025
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Price upon publish date of this article: $360 Silk Laundry Deco Rouleau Dress $400 Buy Now at nordstrom This 100-percent silk masterpiece can be styled from day to night and all over again, by virtue of the fact that slip dresses will never not be en vouge.—
Stacia Datskovska,
WWD,
15 Mar. 2025
Verb
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In Mexico, López Obrador was termed out of office last year.—
Graham Underwood,
arkansasonline.com,
17 Mar. 2025
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Israel is trying to pressure Hamas to accept new ceasefire terms In an effort to pressure Hamas to agree to those terms, Israel is blocking all aid supplies to Gaza, including food, fuel and electricity, which humanitarian aid groups have condemned as depriving civilians of basic necessities.—
Daniel Estrin,
NPR,
12 Mar. 2025
Articles Related to surname
Cite this Entry
“Surname.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/surname. Accessed 23 Mar. 2025.
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