in the name of
Idioms-
By the authority of, as in Open up, in the name of the law! [Late 1300s]
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On behalf of, as in She made a donation in her daughter's name . [Late 1300s]
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; . 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]
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Under the designation of, as in They burned witches at the stake in the name of piety . [Late 1300s]
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Under the possession or ownership of, as in The certificate of ownership was rightfully in my name . [Mid-1900s]
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in one's own name . On one's own behalf, as in Mary signed the check for John in her own name . [Late 1800s]
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.
Students will still apply to the institution they choose and degrees will be awarded in the name of Kent or Greenwich.
From BBC ● Sep. 7, 2026
Every hard-earned dollar put down in the name of “Coyote vs. Acme” also goes toward ensuring that “Looney Tunes,” as a property, survives.
From Salon ● Aug. 30, 2026
Philanthropist Herbert Wertheim paid a record price at auction for a Ferrari Luce sports car in the name of charity.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 19, 2026
An age, it bears adding, when X and Meta—Facebook and Instagram’s corporate owner—no longer emphasize stalwart moderation guardrails in the name of reducing “censorship” on their platforms.
From Salon ● Aug. 6, 2026
“It is written in the name of Rabbi Yaakov, not Rabbi Meir,” Danny said quietly, in Yiddish.
From "The Chosen" by Chaim Potok
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.
