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eponym
From Wiktionary, the free dictionary
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English
Alternative forms
Etymology
From Latin eponymus, from Ancient Greek ἐπώνῠμος (epṓnŭmos), from ἐπί (epí, “upon, epi-”) + ὄνυμα (ónuma, “name”) + -ος (-os, suffix forming adjectives and nouns). Equivalent to epi- + -nym.
Pronunciation
Noun
eponym (plural eponyms)
- A person who gave or supposedly gave their name to a people, place, institution, etc.
- Synonym: namesake
- Something that is named after a person.
- Synonym: namesake
- (sometimes proscribed) A name taken from a person, a namesake toponym, term, etc.
- Alexandria is an eponym, taken from its founder Alexander the Great.
- 2004, Bill Sherk, 500 Years of New Words, →ISBN:
- [Mesmer] lives on today as the root of the eponym mesmerize.
- 2015, Robert B. Taylor, What Every Medical Writer Needs to Know, →ISBN:
- For their dubious contribution to literature, Doctor Bowdler and Henrietta were recognized with the eponym bowdlerize[.]
- 2023 June 19, Rachel E. Gross, “Should Medicine Still Bother With Eponyms?”, in The New York Times, →ISSN:
- An eponym was once considered medicine’s highest honor. Like monuments to great generals, they paid tribute to medicine’s most brilliant minds, ensuring their names would live on in perpetuity.
- (loosely, sometimes proscribed) A name or term derived from any proper noun, inclusive of places, brands, etc.
- (archaic) Synonym of epitome, a person taken as a symbol or quintessential representative of some trait, school, etc.
- Rockefeller became the very eponym of wealth.
- (archaic) Synonym of epithet, a distinguishing title.
- It was only posthumously that Julian was distinguished with the eponym "Apostate".
Coordinate terms
- antonomasia (using an eponym as an example of some quality)
Derived terms
Related terms
Translations
person's name that has given rise to the name of something
|
word formed from a person’s name
|
See also
References
- “eponym”, in OneLook Dictionary Search.
- “eponym, n.”, in OED Online
, Oxford: Oxford University Press, launched 2000.
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Czech
Pronunciation
Noun
eponym m inan
Declension
Declension of eponym (hard masculine inanimate)
Further reading
- “eponym”, in Příruční slovník jazyka českého (in Czech), 1935–1957
- “eponym”, in Slovník spisovného jazyka českého (in Czech), 1960–1971, 1989
- “eponym”, in Internetová jazyková příručka (in Czech), 2008–2025
- “eponym”, in Nový encyklopedický slovník češtiny online (in Czech), 2012–2020
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Slovak
Pronunciation
Noun
eponym m pers
- eponymous archon
- Synonym: eponymos
- eponym (a person who gave their name to something)
Declension
Further reading
- “eponym”, in Slovníkový portál Jazykovedného ústavu Ľ. Štúra SAV [Dictionary portal of the Ľ. Štúr Institute of Linguistics, Slovak Academy of Science] (in Slovak), https://slovnik.juls.savba.sk, 2003–2025
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Swedish
Noun
eponym c
Declension
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