middle name

American  

noun

• middle names
  plural

1. the part of a person's name occurring between the first and family names, as a second given name or a maternal surname.

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middle name British  

noun

1. a name between a person's first name and surname

2. a characteristic quality for which a person is known

   caution is my middle name

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• middle names
  plural

Etymology

Origin of middle name

An Americanism dating back to 1825–35

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

middle name

Stella's daughter, Caitlin-Rose, and Bob's daughter Caitlin, whose middle name is Rose, both set off for school and never came home.

From BBC ● Mar. 27, 2026

Fernanda asked to be identified by only her middle name because of her immigration status.

From Salon ● Mar. 24, 2026

“Even minor changes, such as to a middle name or abbreviation, can cause processing issues,” says Elizabeth Young, director of tax practice at the American Institute of CPAs.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 20, 2026

Mama added that my middle name would be May, to honor his mother.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 10, 2026

“Maybe we can talk about my messed-up parental issues after I’ve learned your middle name, for example.”

From "A Very Large Expanse of Sea" by Tahereh Mafi