family name
noun
the hereditary surname of a family.
family names
-
pluralof family name.plural
The grammatical form denoting more than one person, place, thing, or idea.
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.
The Bible had belonged to Cliff's father, who had written the family names inside its pages and would gather his children every Sunday after lunch to read a chapter aloud.
From BBC ● Apr. 4, 2026
Mr. Tuck traces the family names of people who lived in Pompeii and Herculaneum to these and other nearby towns where they had not existed before A.D.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 2, 2026
And presenting Black characters whose family names predate the Declaration of Independence is practically unheard of.
From Salon ● Aug. 11, 2025
"So, mosaic variants in cells function like family names in people."
From Science Daily ● Apr. 16, 2024
But the rest of me is already leaving, the rest of me is already gone. family names There's James, Joseph, Andrew, Geneva, Annie Mae, William, Lucinda, David, Talmudge, my grandmother says.
From "Brown Girl Dreaming" by Jacqueline Woodson
