Meanings
nelson1
Nelson2
plural Nelsons
- countableuncountableA surname originating as a patronymic.
- countableuncountableA male given name transferred from the surname.
1 more example
Africans of my generation - and even today - generally have both a Western and an African name. Whites were either unable or unwilling to pronounce an African name, and considered it uncivilized to have one. That day, Miss Mdingane told me that my new name was Nelson. Why she bestowed this particular name upon me I have no idea. Perhaps it had something to do with the great British sea captain Lord Nelson, but that would only be a guess.
1994, Nelson Mandela, Long Walk to Freedom - A placename
- countableuncountableA suburb of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.
- countableuncountableA locality in the Bega Valley council area, south-eastern New South Wales, Australia.
- countableuncountableA small fishing town in Victoria, Australia.
- countableuncountableA city in British Columbia, Canada.
- countableuncountableA city and region of New Zealand, named after Horatio Nelson.
- countableuncountableA town and civil parish in Pendle borough, Lancashire, England.
- countableuncountableA village and community in Caerphilly borough, Wales (OS grid ref ST1195).
- countableuncountableAn unincorporated community in Shelby County, Alabama.
- countableuncountableAn unincorporated community in Butte County, California.
- countableuncountableA small city in Pickens County and Cherokee County, Georgia.
- countableuncountableA village and township in Lee County, Illinois.
- countableuncountableA township in Cloud County, Kansas
- countableuncountableA township in Kent County, Michigan.
- countableuncountableA minor city in Douglas County, Minnesota.
- countableuncountableA minor city in Saline County, Missouri.
- countableuncountableA township in Watonwan County, Minnesota.
- countableuncountableA minor city, the county seat of Nuckolls County, Nebraska.
- countableuncountableA census-designated place in Clark County, Nevada.
- countableuncountableA town in Cheshire County, New Hampshire.
- countableuncountableA town in Madison County, New York.
- countableuncountableAn unincorporated community in Durham County, North Carolina.
- countableuncountableA township in Barnes County, North Dakota
- countableuncountableA township in Portage County, Ohio.
- countableuncountableAn unincorporated community in Choctaw County, Oklahoma.
- countableuncountableA township in Tioga County, Pennsylvania
- countableuncountableAn unincorporated community in Mecklenburg County, Virginia.
- countableuncountableAn unincorporated community in Boone County, West Virginia.
- countableuncountableA town and village therein, in Buffalo County, Wisconsin.
Origin
nelson · noun
Cricket sense: origin disputed; supposedly from the belief that Lord Nelson had one eye, one arm and one leg. Wrestling sense: Back-formation from full nelson.
Full word history & related roots →Nelson · proper noun
From Middle English Neil + -son and Nell + -son. * In the United States, also an Anglicisation of North Germanic (Scandinavian) surnames such as Nilsen, Nielsen, and Nilsson, equivalent to "son of Nicholas".
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Chinese Mandarin 納爾遜 /纳尔逊
- 納爾遜 /纳尔逊 (Nà'ěrxùn)male given name
Korean 넬슨
- 넬슨 (nellseun)male given name
Portuguese Nélson
- Nélsonmale given name
Rhymes & wordplay
Rhymes with nelson
All rhymes →Cite this entry
nelson. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/nelson
“nelson.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/nelson. Accessed November 2, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “nelson,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/nelson.
Source: nelson on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.