street name

American  

[street neym] / ˈstrit ˌneɪm /

noun

1. a familiar or slang name of a narcotic drug.

   A street name for phencyclidine is “angel dust.”

2. Stock Exchange. an arrangement in which a broker holds securities in their own name instead of in the name of the customer, especially for convenience in executing transfers and in pledging for borrowing in margin accounts.

   Stocks held in street name are insured up to $500,000 by the federal government against fraud or financial failure of the brokerage company.

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Etymology

Origin of street name

First recorded in 1830–40 for the stock exchange sense, and in 1965–70 for the narcotic drug sense

Example Sentences

Historians say the street name was part of Workman’s overall effort to entice residents from the Midwest and East Coast.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 21, 2026

Yarl mixed up the street name of the house where he was sent to pick up his siblings.

From Seattle Times • Apr. 29, 2024

The dispatcher coaxed her to provide the street name where she last saw them.

From Washington Times • Oct. 13, 2023

The addresses given for these "entrepreneurs" are sometimes real, sometimes just a general street name or unlikely dwellings, such as an empty building lot in Morocco or a religious meeting hall in rural France.

From BBC • Sep. 13, 2023

We know Mom is hiding somewhere in our old neighborhood, but we don’t even have a street name.

From "South of Somewhere" by Kalena Miller