(~s, naming, ~d)
Frequency: The word is one of the 700 most common words in English.
1.
The ~ of a person, place, or thing is the word or group of words that is used to identify them.
‘What’s his ~?’—‘Peter.’...
I don’t even know if Sullivan’s his real ~...
They changed the ~ of the street.
N-COUNT: usu with poss
2.
When you ~ someone or something, you give them a ~, usually at the beginning of their life.
My mother insisted on naming me Horace.
...a man ~d John T. Benson...
VERB: V n n, V-ed
3.
If you ~ someone or something after another person or thing, you give them the same ~ as that person or thing.
Why have you not ~d any of your sons after yourself?
VERB: V n after n, also V n for n
4.
If you ~ someone, you identify them by stating their ~.
It’s nearly thirty years since a journalist was jailed for refusing to ~ a source...
One of the victims of the weekend’s snowstorm has been ~d as twenty-year-old John Barr.
VERB: V n, V n as n
5.
If you ~ something such as a price, time, or place, you say what you want it to be.
Call Marty, tell him to ~ his price.
= state
VERB: V n
6.
If you ~ the person for a particular job, you say who you want to have the job.
The England manager will be naming a new captain, to replace the injured David Beckham...
When the chairman of Campbell’s retired, McGovern was ~d as his successor...
Early in 1941 he was ~d commander of the Afrika Korps.
VERB: V n, be V-ed as n, be V-ed n, also V n as n, V n n
7.
You can refer to the reputation of a person or thing as their ~.
He had a ~ for good judgement...
She’s never had any drug problems or done anything to give jazz a bad ~.
= reputation
N-COUNT: usu sing
8.
You can refer to someone as, for example, a famous ~ or a great ~ when they are well-known. (JOURNALISM)
...some of the most famous ~s in modelling and show business.
= star
N-COUNT: usu with supp, oft adj N
9.
see also assumed ~ , big ~ , brand ~ , Christian ~ , code ~ , first ~ , given ~ , maiden ~ , middle ~ , pet ~
10.
If something is in someone’s ~, it officially belongs to them or is reserved for them.
The house is in my husband’s ~...
A double room had been reserved for him in the ~ of Muller.
PHRASE: v-link PHR, PHR after v
11.
If someone does something in the ~ of a group of people, they do it as the representative of that group.
In the United States the majority governs in the ~ of the people...
PHRASE: PHR n, usu PHR after v
12.
If you do something in the ~ of an ideal or an abstract thing, you do it in order to preserve or promote that thing.
...one of those rare occasions in history when a political leader risked his own power in the ~ of the greater public good...
PHRASE: PHR n/-ing, usu PHR after v
13.
People sometimes use expressions such as ‘in the ~ of heaven’ or ‘in the ~ of humanity’ to add emphasis to a question or request.
What in the ~ of heaven’s going on?...
In the ~ of humanity I ask the government to reappraise this important issue.
PHRASE: PHR n, PHR with cl emphasis
14.
When you mention someone or something by ~, or address someone by ~, you use their ~.
He greets customers by ~ and enquires about their health.
PHRASE: PHR after v
15.
You can use by ~ or by the ~ of when you are saying what someone is called. (FORMAL)
...a young Australian, Harry Busteed by ~...
This guy, Jack Smith, does he go by the ~ of Jackal?
PHRASE
16.
If someone calls you ~s, they insult you by saying unpleasant things to you or about you.
At my last school they called me ~s because I was so slow...
They had called her rude ~s.
PHRASE: V inflects
17.
If you say that something is the ~ of the game, you mean that it is the most important aspect of a situation. (INFORMAL)
The ~ of the game is survival.
PHRASE
18.
If you make a ~ for yourself or make your ~ as something, you become well-known for that thing.
She was beginning to make a ~ for herself as a portrait photographer...
He made his ~ with several collections of short stories.
PHRASE: V inflects, oft PHR as n
19.
If you ~ ~s, you identify the people who have done something, often something wrong.
Nobody was prepared to risk prosecution by actually naming ~s.
PHRASE: V inflects
20.
If something such as a newspaper or an official body ~s and shames people who have performed badly or who have done something wrong, it identifies those people by ~.
The government will also ~ and shame the worst performing airlines.
PHRASE: Vs inflect
21.
You say you ~ it, usually after or before a list, to indicate that you are talking about a very wide range of things.
I also enjoy windsurfing, tennis, racquetball, swimming, you ~ it.
PHRASE