first name
noun
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first name
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first-name
first-nameadjectiveof or relating to one's first, or given, name; familiar; intimate.
first name
1 Americannoun
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first names
plural
first-name
2
American
[furst-naym, furst-naym]
/ ˈfɜrstˌneɪm, ˈfɜrstˈneɪm /
adjective
verb (used with object)
first-named,
first-naming
first name
British
noun
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of first name1
Middle English word dating back to 1200–50
Origin of first-name2
First recorded in 1300–50
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.
See Examples For:
"It's quite disconcerting," said one who gave only his first name, Louis, when he found his line closed.
From Barron's ● Oct. 21, 2026
An unemployed former hotel employee who gave her first name as Oumy said as she marched on the weekend that she no longer believed in the government's promises.
From Barron's ● Oct. 20, 2026
There is even a word for it: “namjooning,” a play on the singer’s first name, Namjoon.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 30, 2026
“In Britain in the 1960s a first name was known as a ‘Christian’ name,” he writes.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 27, 2026
“Is Inkling your first name or your last?”
From "Invisible Inkling" by Emily Jenkins
The credibility of these lawyers earns their appeals special attention from the court, and the justices know many of them on a first-name basis.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 5, 2026
He says he made several visits to A&E during attacks, to the point he was known on a first-name basis.
From BBC ● Aug. 23, 2026
For decades, Graham was on a first-name basis with world leaders and among the most plugged-in Beltway insiders regardless of who occupied the White House.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 14, 2026
She’s a diminutive talent on a first-name basis with South Carolina coach Dawn Staley.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 19, 2025
Why are we suddenly on a first-name basis?
From "Monster" by Walter Dean Myers
Jefferson is the first-named of the 12 authors on the paper, but it appears from the text that he had relatively little to do with it.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 24, 2023
So commanding in character and performance was Marshall that even the supremely self-confident Franklin Roosevelt deferred to him, never first-named him.
From Time Magazine Archive
Thorez chummily first-named the ambassador: "We are all friends, aren't we, Alex, and brothers?"
From Time Magazine Archive
The most vigorous action so far has been the application by the first-named for an injunction against the New York Sugar Exchange.
From Time Magazine Archive
We have found the eggs of the first-named as early as the closing days of March.
From Wild Spain (Espa?a agreste) Records of Sport with Rifle, Rod, and Gun, Natural History Exploration by Walter J. Buck
"I don't see how you do it," he said one day when two old friends were first-naming each other.
From Time Magazine Archive
Watch John Connally attempting to prove what an amiable fellow he is by jovially first-naming Mike Wallace all through the 60 Minutes program in which Wallace skillfully cuts him up.
From Time Magazine Archive
The public saw him as a reserved, almost gentle man who quietly repelled intimacy; even first-naming Franklin Roosevelt invariably called him "General."
From Time Magazine Archive
Too quick first-naming is like stepping into that critical distance within which an animal will attack a trespasser.
From Time Magazine Archive
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