middle name
English
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middle name¹
Where it comes from
First recorded from Harvardiana in 1835.
noun middle names
- A name between the first given name and the family name or surname; a second or subsequent given name. I go by David but it's my middle name; my full name is William David Mason.
- A trait, activity, or action closely associated with or aptly describing a person. Think twice about playing for cash because "Poker" is her middle name.
middle name²
Where it comes from
Historically in the Spanish colonial era of the Philippines, the Spanish naming customs traditionally displayed the full name as:
: first name + second name + father's surname + Spanish y (“and”) + mother's surname
During the US colonial era of the Philippines, the US naming custom took effect where the mother's maiden name is used as a middle + name, which displayed the full name as:
: first name + second name + middle name (“mother's surname before marriage”) + last name (“father's surname”)
noun middle names
- One's mother's maiden name. Juan Rico Martinez dela Cruz III is my full name, where Martinez is my middle name, but people just call me "JR".
Translations
Every language
noun name between given name and surname
| Español | segundo nombre |
|---|---|
| 한국어 | 미들네임 mideulleim |
| 日本語 | ミドルネーム midoru nēmu |
| 中文 | 中間名字 /中间名字 zhōngjiān míngzi |
| Português | nome do meio |
| Français | deuxième prénom, patronyme |
| Deutsch | zweiter Vorname, Zwischenname, Zweitname, Mittelname |
| Русский | второ́е и́мя vtoróje ímja, сре́днее и́мя srédneje ímja, о́тчество ótčestvo |
| Tiếng Việt | tên đệm, tên lót |
noun figuratively a trait, activity, or action closely associated with or aptly describing a person
| Español | apellido, segundo nombre, apodo |
|---|
Talk about this word "middle name." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/middle%20name. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. middle name. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/middle%20name "middle name." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/middle%20name.Cite this
@misc{middle_name_2026,
title = {middle name},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/middle%20name},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
