2 entries found for nickname.
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nickname[1,noun] nickname[2,verb]

Main Entry: ¹nick·name
Pronunciation: nik-nm
Function: noun
Etymology: Middle English nekename "an additional name," from the phrase an ekename (misunderstood as being a nekename), from eke "something added on" and name "name"
1 : an often descriptive name (as "Shorty" or "Tex") given in addition to the one belonging to an individual
2 : a form of a proper name (as "Billy" for "William") used by family or friends
Word History The Middle English word eke meant "something added on." An ekename was therefore an added name given to a person or place. Many people who heard the phrase "an ekename," however, thought they were hearing "a nekename." Because of that confusion over the course of many years, the word ekename became nekename. Later changes in spelling have given us the modern word nickname.