eponym

From Wiktionary, the free dictionary
Jump to navigation Jump to search

English[edit]

English Wikipedia has an article on:
Wikipedia
WOTD – 18 November 2006

Alternative forms[edit]

Etymology[edit]

From Latin eponymus, from Ancient Greek ἐπώνῠμος (epṓnumos), from ἐπί (epí, “upon, epi-”) + ὄνυμα (ónuma, “name”) + -ος (-os, “forming adjectives and nouns”). Equivalent to epi- + -nym.

Pronunciation[edit]

  • IPA(key): /ˈɛpənɪm/
  • Audio (US)(file)
  • Audio (AU)(file)

Noun[edit]

Examples

eponym (plural eponyms)

  1. A person who gave or supposedly gave their name to a people, place, institution, etc.
    The Greeks and Romans tended to credit nearly every location and ethnicity to a legendary eponym, Hellas to Hellen, Rome to Romulus, Egypt to Aegyptus, etc.
    Similar to the Greek eponymous archons and Roman consuls, the names of the annually appointed Assyrian limus were used for their years in office and they are accordingly also known as eponyms.
  2. (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.
  3. (archaic) Synonym of epithet, a distinguishing title.
    It was only posthumously that Julian was distinguished with the eponym "Apostate".
  4. (sometimes proscribed) A name taken from a person, a namesake toponym, term, etc.
    • 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[1], →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.
    Alexandria is an eponym, taken from its founder Alexander the Great.
  5. (loosely, sometimes proscribed) A name or term derived from any proper noun, inclusive of places, brands, etc.
    "Tangerine" is an eponym in reference to Tangier... The unflattering eponym "shanghai" derived from the behavior of American shippers, not the Chinese themselves...

Hyponyms[edit]

Derived terms[edit]

Related terms[edit]

Coordinate terms[edit]

  • antonomasia (using an eponym as an example of some quality)

Translations[edit]

See also[edit]

References[edit]

Swedish[edit]

Noun[edit]

eponym c

  1. eponym

Declension[edit]

Declension of eponym 
Singular Plural
Indefinite Definite Indefinite Definite
Nominative eponym eponymen eponymer eponymerna
Genitive eponyms eponymens eponymers eponymernas
Retrieved from "https://en.wiktionary.org/w/index.php?title=eponym&oldid=79403038"