aptronym

aptronym

      a name that fits some aspect of a character, as in Mr. Talkative and Mr. Worldly Wiseman in John Bunyan (Bunyan, John)'s The Pilgrim's Progress or Mrs. Malaprop (malapropism) in Richard Brinsley Sheridan (Sheridan, Richard Brinsley)'s play The Rivals. The term aptronym was allegedly coined by the American newspaper columnist Franklin P. Adams (Adams, Franklin Pierce), by an anagrammatic reordering of the first letters of patronym (to suggest apt) to denote surnames that suit the occupation of the name's bearer (such as Baker for a baker). Both aptronym and the synonymous euonym are rarely encountered.

* * *


Universalium. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Нужна курсовая?

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Aptronym — An aptronym is a name aptly suited to its owner. Fictional examples of aptronyms include Mr. Talkative and Mr. Worldly Wiseman in John Bunyan s The Pilgrim s Progress (1678), and the principal cast of the Mr Men (1971).A related phrase is… …   Wikipedia

  • aptronym — noun A name that is aptly suited to its owner. Speck also turns out to be a shopkeeper whose small town mentality finds a reflection in his aptronym: Speck in German meaning bacon, he is the local butcher concerned with selling his merchandise… …   Wiktionary

  • aptronym — name that suits its owner Names for Names …   Phrontistery dictionary

  • aptronym — An appropriate name for someone or something …   Grandiloquent dictionary

  • aptronym — /ˈæptrənɪm/ (say aptruhnim) noun a name that reflects the job, hobby, character, etc., of the person so named, such as Mr Green for a gardener. Also, aptonym. {apt + r + onym, modelled on synonym} …  

  • Nominative determinism — is a comparatively recent term for the theory that a person s name can have a significant role in determining key aspects of job, profession or even character. It was a commonly held notion in the ancient world. Synonyms and/or related concepts… …   Wikipedia

  • -onym — The suffix onym, in English and other languages, means word, name, and words ending in onym refer to a specified kind of name or word, most of which are classical compounds. For example, an acronym is a word formed from the initial letter or… …   Wikipedia

  • Charlie Twissell — Personal information Full name Charles Herbert Twissell Date of birth 16 December 1932 ( …   Wikipedia

  • Westeros — is one of the three continents described in George R. R. Martin s fantasy series A Song of Ice and Fire . It is loosely based on medieval Europe. WorldGeographyThe story of A Song of Ice and Fire takes place mainly on the continent of Westeros.… …   Wikipedia

  • Neologism — For Wikipedia policy on neologisms, see Wikipedia:Avoid neologisms. A neologism (  /niːˈ …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”