drop names

Idioms  

1. Refer to important persons as acquaintances in order to impress the listener. For example, Her habit of dropping names made everyone very skeptical about her veracity. [Mid-1900s]

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Example Sentences

He could drop names as carelessly as country singers drop g’s, and, as the walls of his trophy room attested, he had some big names to drop — though he was devoted to friends from the old neighborhood in Brooklyn he’d meet Saturdays for breakfast at Nate & Al’s.

From Los Angeles Times

While Pritchard didn’t drop names or directly criticize McMillan, he did discuss what he is looking for.

From Seattle Times

The "Wrecking Ball" singer didn't drop names in her post.

From Fox News

But instead of pretending to be from the Internal Revenue Service, mystery shopping scams might drop names of big name retailers, such as Walmart, Target or Best Buy.

From Seattle Times

At the time he was employed as a music critic, and he’d casually drop names like Snoop Dogg and Dr. Dre, saying they were important musicians.

From Los Angeles Times