1
as in nickname
a descriptive or familiar name given instead of or in addition to the one belonging to an individual
King Richard I of England was given the very laudatory epithet "the Lion-Hearted"
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2
as in insult
an act or expression showing scorn and usually intended to hurt another's feelings
the school has a strict ban against the use of offensive epithets
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Recent Examples of epithet
Each side tended to call the other side a bevy of ugly epithets.
—
Lance Eliot, Forbes, 22 Oct. 2024
Neither of them soiled themselves on stage, neither of them said a racial epithet.
—Leah Feiger, WIRED, 2 Oct. 2024
In contrast, Trump appointee Amy Joan St. Eve, a white woman, dissented and downplayed the negative consequences of the racial epithets used against the couple.
—Paul M. Collins Jr., The Conversation, 3 Oct. 2024
An unidentified Gettysburg College student accused of carving a racial epithet on the chest of a teammate is no longer enrolled at the Pennsylvania liberal arts college, the school said over the weekend.
—Dennis Romero, NBC News, 24 Sep. 2024
See all Example Sentences for epithet 
Lance Eliot, Forbes, 22 Oct. 2024
Neither of them soiled themselves on stage, neither of them said a racial epithet.
—Leah Feiger, WIRED, 2 Oct. 2024
In contrast, Trump appointee Amy Joan St. Eve, a white woman, dissented and downplayed the negative consequences of the racial epithets used against the couple.
—Paul M. Collins Jr., The Conversation, 3 Oct. 2024
An unidentified Gettysburg College student accused of carving a racial epithet on the chest of a teammate is no longer enrolled at the Pennsylvania liberal arts college, the school said over the weekend.
—Dennis Romero, NBC News, 24 Sep. 2024
See all Example Sentences for epithet
Recent Examples of Synonyms for epithet
Noun
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His work garnered him a few nicknames, more followers and a nice pay bump.Kaycee Sloan, The Enquirer, 6 Nov. 2024
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However, because its peculiar shape was reminiscent of a clothes iron, the Flatiron nickname quickly stuck.Elizabeth Fazzare, Architectural Digest, 5 Nov. 2024
Noun
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There was also the larger error of anointing Harris without political competition — an insult to the democratic process that handed the nomination to a candidate who, as some of us warned at the time, was exceptionally weak.Bret Stephens, The Mercury News, 7 Nov. 2024
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But what garnered the most attention were a comedian’s insults of Puerto Rico, Trump’s violent rhetoric about a political opponent and a comment about women.Rebecca Picciotto, CNBC, 3 Nov. 2024
Noun
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Editor's note: The attribution in this story was updated to reflect that Stroh is the legal surname of Jordan Stroh Ouellette.Alexandria Burris, The Indianapolis Star, 14 Nov. 2024
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Women who don't want to lose their surnames sometimes hyphenate them with their fiancés'.Gordon G. Chang, Newsweek, 31 Oct. 2024
Noun
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The moniker is derived from a manipulation of Japanese folklore that became popular following the 2011 earthquake and tsunami in eastern Japan that led to the Fukushima nuclear plant meltdown, Frable said.Karen Garcia, Los Angeles Times, 21 Nov. 2024
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That moniker — inspired as much by Gerwig’s thoughtful reflection on girlhood as sweeping support for pop stars like Taylor Swift and Beyoncé — would have seemed premature if it had actually been followed by the election of the first U.S. woman president in 2024.Alison Foreman, IndieWire, 20 Nov. 2024
Noun
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And people take her sarcasm and her tone very seriously.Lily Ford, The Hollywood Reporter, 22 Nov. 2024
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In the height of the singer-songwriter era, when earnest autobiographical confessions were prized as tokens of authenticity, Newman’s use of sarcasm and unlikable protagonists was an act of literary radicalism in pop music.David Hajdu, The Atlantic, 23 Oct. 2024
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Cite this Entry
“Epithet.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/epithet. Accessed 30 Nov. 2024.
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