in the name of

Idioms  

1. By the authority of, as in Open up, in the name of the law! [Late 1300s]

2. On behalf of, as in She made a donation in her daughter's name . [Late 1300s]

3. ; . With appeal to, as in In the name of God, stop that noise! or What in heaven's name are you doing? [c. a.d. 900]

4. Under the designation of, as in They burned witches at the stake in the name of piety . [Late 1300s]

5. Under the possession or ownership of, as in The certificate of ownership was rightfully in my name . [Mid-1900s]

6. in one's own name . On one's own behalf, as in Mary signed the check for John in her own name . [Late 1800s]

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Example Sentences

Blanche said the informants were secretly paid from a series of bank accounts in the name of fake organizations and the funds were loaded onto prepaid cards.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 22, 2026

Incidentally, "royal" appears just once in the press releases - in the name of the Melbourne children's hospital the Sussexes' visited at the start of the tour.

From BBC • Apr. 18, 2026

Members come and go, styles evolve with the times and tools available, but wherever Reznor and Ross are gathered in the name of elegant brutality, the band can follow anywhere.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 12, 2026

It’s a big part of what enables scholars, the public, to access these documents about decisions that were made in the name of the American people.

From Slate • Apr. 9, 2026

What in the name of everything fishy was that?

From "The Boy Who Met a Whale" by Nizrana Farook

Related Words

• through