Meaning & use
epithet
A descriptive word or phrase attached to a name or used to characterize someone, sometimes contemptuous or abusive.
See it in a sentence
The tabloid hurled every epithet imaginable at the disgraced politician.
Historians still use the epithet 'the Great' when referring to Catherine II of Russia.
A note on using this word
In everyday use epithet often implies an insulting term, but formally it can be a neutral descriptive title attached to a name.
Words with a similar meaning
nicknamedescriptor
Choose a synonym to suit the sentence. Meanings can overlap without being identical.
Make it your own
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