Meanings
plural epithets
- A term used to characterize a person or thing.
She would lean her head for hours on Beatrice's shoulder, only now and then applying to her some childish and endearing epithet.
1831, L[etitia] E[lizabeth] L[andon], chapter VII, in Romance and Reality. […], volume III, London: Henry Colburn and Richard Bentley, […], →OCLC, page 130 - A term used as a descriptive substitute for the name or title of a person.
- An abusive or contemptuous word or phrase.
Politico reported that epithets appeared more than 251 times.
2025 October 15, David W. Chen, Megan Mineiro, “Republicans Face Fallout From Racist and Homophobic Texts”, in The New York Times, New York, N.Y.: The New York Times Company, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 17 Oct 20253 more examples
Part of this process was the elaboration of new terms for the Jew, especially the increasingly popular epithet “kike”.
2006, Eric L. Goldstein, The Price of Whiteness: Jews, Race, and American IdentityCounterprotesters shouted epithets as they walked by, but the opposing groups kept it nonviolent.
2025 January 15, Linda Feldmann, “Outside the DC jail, where Jan. 6 rage and devotion live on”, in The Christian Science Monitor, archived from the original on 24 Jan 2025Her book includes an incisive discussion of misogyny on the New Right. [Laura K.] Field notes how “gynocracy” and “the longhouse” have become overwrought MAGA epithets for an unbearably feminized and pluralist society.
2025 December 17, Jennifer Szalai, “The Intellectuals Fueling the MAGA Movement”, in The New York Times Book Review, New York, N.Y.: The New York Times Company, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 17 Dec 2025 - biologyA word in the scientific name of a taxon following the name of the genus or species. This applies only to formal names of plants, fungi and bacteria. In formal names of animals the corresponding term is the specific name.
present singular third person epithets · participle present epitheting · participle past epitheted · past epitheted
Synonyms & antonyms
nounA term used as a qualifier of the name of a deity in order to designate said deity in a particular aspect or role.
nounA term used as a descriptive substitute for the name or title of a person.
More synonyms by meaning
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
- Proto-Indo-European*h₁ep-
- Proto-Indo-European*h₁éps
- Proto-Indo-European*h₁épi
- Proto-Hellenic*epí
- Ancient Greekἐπί (epí)
- Ancient Greekἐπῐ- (epĭ-)
- Proto-Indo-European*dʰeh₁-
- Proto-Indo-European*dʰédʰeh₁ti
- Ancient Greekτῐ́θημῐ (tĭ́thēmĭ)
- Ancient Greekἐπιτίθημι (epitíthēmi)
- Ancient Greekἐπίθετος (epíthetos)
- Ancient Greekἐπίθετον (epítheton)
- Latinepitheton
- Middle Frenchépithète
- Englishepithet
From Middle French épithète, from Latin epithetum, epitheton, from Ancient Greek ἐπίθετον (epítheton, “epithet, adjective”), the neuter of ἐπίθετος (epíthetos, “additional”), from ἐπιτίθημι (epitíthēmi, “to add on”), from ἐπι- (epi-, “in addition”) + τίθημι (títhēmi, “to put”) (suf. possibly related to title in the sense of "ascribed appellation") (from Proto-Indo-European *dʰeh₁- (“to put, to do”)). Doublet of epitheton.
More words from Middle French, Latin, Ancient Greek
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Ancient Greek ἐπίθετον, ἐπίθετον
- ἐπίθετον (epítheton)term used to characterize a person or thing
- ἐπίθετον (epítheton)term used as a descriptive substitute for the name or title of a person
Arabic صِفَة, صِفَة
- صِفَة (ṣifa)term used to characterize a person or thing
- صِفَة (ṣifa)term used as a descriptive substitute for the name or title of a person
Bulgarian епитет, прякор
- епитет (epitet)term used to characterize a person or thing
- прякор (prjakor)term used as a descriptive substitute for the name or title of a person
- ругатня (rugatnja)abusive or contemptuous word or phrase
Catalan epítet, epítet
- epítetterm used to characterize a person or thing
- epítetterm used as a descriptive substitute for the name or title of a person
- epítetabusive or contemptuous word or phrase
Chinese Mandarin 稱號 /称号, 綽號 /绰号
- 稱號 /称号 (chēnghào)term used to characterize a person or thing
- 綽號 /绰号 (chuòhào)term used to characterize a person or thing
- 修飾語 /修饰语 (xiūshìyǔ)term used to characterize a person or thing
Czech epiteton
- epitetonterm used to characterize a person or thing
Danish epitet, tilnavn
- epitetterm used to characterize a person or thing
- tilnavnterm used as a descriptive substitute for the name or title of a person
- skældsordabusive or contemptuous word or phrase
Dutch toenaam, epitheton
- toenaamterm used to characterize a person or thing
- epithetonterm used to characterize a person or thing
- epithetonterm used as a descriptive substitute for the name or title of a person
- scheldnaamabusive or contemptuous word or phrase
- schimpnaamabusive or contemptuous word or phrase
- epithetonword in the scientific name of a taxon following the name of the genus or species
Esperanto epiteto
- epitetoterm used to characterize a person or thing
Finnish mainesana, epiteetti
- mainesanaterm used to characterize a person or thing
- epiteettiterm used to characterize a person or thing
- epiteettiterm used as a descriptive substitute for the name or title of a person
- liikanimiterm used as a descriptive substitute for the name or title of a person
- haukkumanimiabusive or contemptuous word or phrase
- lajinimiword in the scientific name of a taxon following the name of the genus or species
- alalajinimiword in the scientific name of a taxon following the name of the genus or species
French épithète, épithète
- épithèteterm used to characterize a person or thing
- épithèteterm used as a descriptive substitute for the name or title of a person
- épithèteabusive or contemptuous word or phrase
German Beiwort, Epitheton
- Beiwortterm used to characterize a person or thing
- Epithetonterm used to characterize a person or thing
- Attributterm used to characterize a person or thing
- Beinameterm used to characterize a person or thing
- Beiwortterm used as a descriptive substitute for the name or title of a person
- Beinameterm used as a descriptive substitute for the name or title of a person
- Spitznameterm used as a descriptive substitute for the name or title of a person
- Schimpfwortabusive or contemptuous word or phrase
- Schimpfnameabusive or contemptuous word or phrase
- Epithetonword in the scientific name of a taxon following the name of the genus or species
Greek επίθετο
- επίθετο (epítheto)term used to characterize a person or thing
Hungarian jelző, epitéta
- jelzőterm used to characterize a person or thing
- epitétaterm used to characterize a person or thing
Italian epiteto, epiteto
- epitetoterm used to characterize a person or thing
- epitetoterm used as a descriptive substitute for the name or title of a person
- epitetoabusive or contemptuous word or phrase
- epitetoword in the scientific name of a taxon following the name of the genus or species
Japanese 渾名, あだ名
- 渾名term used to characterize a person or thing
- あだ名 (adana)term used to characterize a person or thing
Korean 형용사구, 수식어
- 형용사구 (hyeong'yongsagu)term used to characterize a person or thing
- 수식어 (susigeo)term used to characterize a person or thing
- 별칭 (byeolching)term used as a descriptive substitute for the name or title of a person
Latvian epitets, epitets
- epitetsterm used to characterize a person or thing
- epitetsterm used as a descriptive substitute for the name or title of a person
Norwegian Bokmål epitet, epitet
- epitetterm used to characterize a person or thing
- epitetword in the scientific name of a taxon following the name of the genus or species
Persian صفت, گواسه
- صفت (sefat)term used to characterize a person or thing
- گواسه (govâse)term used to characterize a person or thing
Polish epitet, epitet
- epitetterm used to characterize a person or thing
- epitetterm used as a descriptive substitute for the name or title of a person
- epitetabusive or contemptuous word or phrase
Portuguese epíteto
- epítetoterm used to characterize a person or thing
Romanian epitet
- epitetterm used to characterize a person or thing
Russian эпи́тет, эпи́тет
- эпи́тет (epítet)term used to characterize a person or thing
- эпи́тет (epítet)word in the scientific name of a taxon following the name of the genus or species
Spanish epíteto, epíteto específico
- epítetoterm used to characterize a person or thing
- epíteto específicoword in the scientific name of a taxon following the name of the genus or species
Swedish epitet
- epitetterm used to characterize a person or thing
Tamil அடைமொழி, அடைமொழி
- அடைமொழி (aṭaimoḻi)term used to characterize a person or thing
- அடைமொழி (aṭaimoḻi)term used as a descriptive substitute for the name or title of a person
- வன்சொல் (vaṉcol)abusive or contemptuous word or phrase
Ukrainian епі́тет
- епі́тет (epítet)term used to characterize a person or thing
Cite this entry
epithet. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/epithet
“epithet.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/epithet. Accessed November 3, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “epithet,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/epithet.
Source: epithet on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.