What does "antonomasia" mean?

The substitution of an epithet or title in place of a proper noun.

What is a synonym for "antonomasia"?

Common synonyms include: autonomasia, autonomasy, class, classification, family, figure of speech.

Pronounced //ˌæntənəˈmeɪʒə//.

//ˌæntənəˈmeɪʒə// noun

noun ·Rare ·Advanced level

Noun

1
The substitution of an epithet or title in place of a proper noun. countable, rhetoric, uncountable
2
substitution of a title for a name wordnet
3
Use of a proper name to suggest its most obvious quality or aspect. countable, rhetoric, uncountable
"Antonomasia proper names imparts From kindred, country, epithets, and arts."

"Antonomasia proper names imparts From kindred, country, epithets, and arts."

Borrowed from Latin antonomasia, Ancient Greek ἀντονομασία (antonomasía, “antonomasia”).

Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.