family name
Americannoun
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family names
plural
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the hereditary surname of a family.
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a given name frequently used in a family.
noun
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a surname, esp when regarded as representing the family honour
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a first or middle name frequently used in a family, often originally a surname
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of family name
First recorded in 1690–1700
Compare meaning
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
While trying to distance himself from one person who shares his family name, when it comes to his actual family, Patel has plenty of jokes of being too close to them.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 8, 2026
"If I were to sacrifice that family name, it would be a betrayal of everything my mother has done for me."
From BBC ● Aug. 20, 2026
They ultimately changed their surname to match their wife’s, deciding that sharing one family name mattered more than preserving their own.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 12, 2026
The paternal great-grandmother of goalie Matt Turner fled religious persecution in Lithuania, with his Jewish ancestors changing their family name from Turnovski to Turner when they arrived at Ellis Island.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 15, 2026
A few carts, with well-rested horses, clucked by us quickly, leaving only a glimpse of the prominent family name painted across the back of the carriage.
From "Salt to the Sea" by Ruta Sepetys
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
