Dictionary.com
definitions

appellative

[ uh-pel-uh-tiv ]
/ əˈpɛl ə tɪv /
|
SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR appellative ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a descriptive name or designation, as Bald in Charles the Bald.
a common noun.

adjective

designative; descriptive.
tending toward or serving for the assigning of names: the appellative function of some primitive rites.
pertaining to a common noun.

RELATED WORDS

appellation, moniker, designation, title, epithet, cognomen, tag, handle, nickname

Nearby words

  1. appellant,
  2. appellate,
  3. appellate division,
  4. appellation,
  5. appellation contrôlée,
  6. appellatively,
  7. appellee,
  8. appellor,
  9. append,
  10. appendage

Origin of appellative

1375–1425; late Middle English (< Middle French) < Late Latin appellātīvus. See appellate, -ive
Related formsap·pel·la·tive·ly, adverbap·pel·la·tive·ness, noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for appellative

British Dictionary definitions for appellative

appellative

/ (əˈpɛlətɪv) /

noun

an identifying name or title; appellation
grammar another word for common noun

adjective

of or relating to a name or title
(of a proper noun) used as a common noun
Derived Formsappellatively, adverb
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Word Origin and History for appellative

appellative

adj.

mid-15c., from Latin appellativus, from appellat-, past participle stem of appellare (see appeal). As a noun, attested from 1590s.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper