Word.ws English Dictionary

first name

first name noun: the first element of a full name, particularly when it could also be surname in East Asian and other cultural traditions.

Noun

first name (plural first names)

  1. The first element of a full name, particularly when it could also be surname in East Asian and other cultural traditions.
    • In a structure typical for East Asia cultures, first names are usually used as family names. It usually identifies that person is a one of the members of a group (typically a family or clan) who have a common family name.
  2. Synonym of given name, particularly when it forms the first element of a full name.
    • Imagine a country where children do nothing but play until they start compulsory schooling at age seven. Then, without exception, they attend comprehensives until the age of 16.[…]Children address teachers by their first names. Even 15-year-olds do no more than 30 minutes' homework a night.2013 July 19, Peter Wilby, “Finland's education ambassador spreads the word”, in The Guardian Weekly, volume 189, number 6, archived from the original on 02 Feb 2014, page 30
    Synonyms:
    given name, particularly when it forms the first element of a full name

first name meaning in Tamil and Malayalam

first name in Tamil

ஒருவருக்கு இடப்பட்ட பெயர், சூட்டப்பட்ட பெயர், முதற்பெயர்

first name in Malayalam

forename, Christian name, given name
ഒരാളുടെ പ്രഥമനാമം, സ്വന്തം പേര്, പേര്, ആദ്യപേര്, പള്ളിയിലിട്ട പേര്

Synonyms of first name

  • given name
  • particularly when it forms the first element of a full name

Forms of first name

pluralfirst names

Origin of first name

From Middle English firste name, first nam, equivalent to first + name.

Words formed from first name

Questions about first name

What does first name mean?
First name means the first element of a full name, particularly when it could also be surname in East Asian and other cultural traditions.
What is first name in Tamil?
First name in Tamil is ஒருவருக்கு இடப்பட்ட பெயர், சூட்டப்பட்ட பெயர், முதற்பெயர். See First name meaning in Tamil.
What part of speech is first name?
First name is a noun.
What is the plural of first name?
The plural of first name is first names.

Words near first name in the dictionary

  1. first minister
  2. first ministers
  3. First Month
  4. first mover
  5. first movers
  6. first name
  7. first names
  8. First Nation
  9. First Nation band
  10. First Nation bands
  11. First Nationer

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: first name (page history and authors); first name (Tamil Wiktionary) (page history and authors); first name (Olam, E.K. Kurup corpus) (dataset and license). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

Last updated:

Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: En-uk-first name.ogg.

Cite this entry: “first name.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/first_name. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.