noun · 2 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot
Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.
Sound
Pronunciation
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UK:/ˈs(j)uː.də(ʊ).nɪm/
US:/ˈsu.də.nɪm/
US:/ˈsu.doʊ.nɪm/
US:Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
Australia:Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
CMU ARPABET:S UW1 D AH0 N IH2 M
Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.
1
noun
Meaning 1
A fictitious name (more literally, a false name), as those used by writers and movie stars.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Examples
The Reverend Charles Lutwidge Dodgson wrote "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland" under the pseudonym Lewis Carroll.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: anonym, byname, to-name
Antonyms: autonym, orthonym, alethonym
2
noun
Meaning 2
a fictitious name used when the person performs a particular social role
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: anonym, nom de guerre
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: name
Narrower terms: stage name, pen name, nom de plume
History
Etymology
Back-formation from pseudonymous, from French pseudonyme (“pseudonymous”, adjective), from Ancient Greek ψευδώνυμος (pseudṓnumos), from ψευδής (pseudḗs, “false”) and ὄνυμα (ónuma), a dialectal form of ὄνομα (ónoma, “name”). By surface analysis, pseudo- + -onym.
Across languages
Translations
99 source translations are retained for this English entry.
Afrikaans:
skuilnaam
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Albanian:
pseudonim
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Albanian:
emër i rremë
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Arabic:
اِسْم مُسْتَعَار
(ism mustaʕār)
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Armenian:
կեղծանուն
(keġcanun)
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Azerbaijani:
təxəllüs
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Belarusian:
псеўдані́м
(psjewdaním)
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Breton:
anv-pluenn
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Bulgarian:
псевдони́м
(psevdoním)
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Catalan:
pseudònim
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Chinese Mandarin:
假名
(jiǎmíng)
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Chinese Mandarin:
化名
(huàmíng)
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Chinese Mandarin:
筆名 /笔名
(bǐmíng)
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Chinese Mandarin:
藝名 /艺名
(yìmíng)
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Czech:
pseudonym
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Danish:
pseudonym
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Dutch:
pseudoniem
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Dutch:
schuilnaam
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Dutch:
deknaam
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Esperanto:
pseŭdonimo
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Esperanto:
kaŝnomo
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Estonian:
varjunimi
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Estonian:
pseudonüüm
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Finnish:
salanimi
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Finnish:
nimimerkki
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Finnish:
pseudonyymi
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
French:
pseudonyme
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
French:
nom de guerre
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Georgian:
ფსევდონიმი
(psevdonimi)
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
German:
Pseudonym
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Greek:
ψευδώνυμο
(psevdónymo)
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Gujarati:
તખલ્લુસ
(takhallus)
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Hindi:
छद्मनाम
(chadmanām)
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Hindi:
तख़ल्लुस
(taxallus)
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Hungarian:
álnév
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Icelandic:
höfundarnafn
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Icelandic:
dulnefni
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Icelandic:
leyninafn
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Ido:
pseudonimo
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Indonesian:
pseudonim
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Irish:
ainm bréige
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Irish:
ainm cleite
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Italian:
pseudonimo
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Japanese:
仮名
(kamei)
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Japanese:
偽名
(gimei)
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Japanese:
変名
(henmei)
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Japanese:
雅号
(gagō)
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Japanese:
筆名
(hitsumei)
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Japanese:
ペンネーム
(pennēmu)
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Japanese:
芸名
(geimei)
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Japanese:
武号
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Kazakh:
бүркеншік ат
(bürkenşık at)
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Kazakh:
лақап ат
(laqap at)
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Korean:
익명
(ingmyeong)
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Korean:
필명
(pilmyeong)
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Korean:
가명
(gamyeong)
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Central Kurdish:
زِڕناو
(zirrnaw)
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Northern Kurdish:
zirrnav
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Southern Kurdish:
زِڕناو
(zirrnaw)
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Latin:
pseudonymum
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Latvian:
pseidonīms
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Lithuanian:
slapyvardis
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Lithuanian:
pseudonimas
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Macedonian:
псевдони́м
(psevdoním)
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Norman:
nom-d'plieunme
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Norwegian Bokmål:
pseudonym
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Norwegian Bokmål:
psevdonym
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Norwegian Nynorsk:
pseudonym
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Norwegian Nynorsk:
psevdonym
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Iranian Persian:
نامِ مُسْتَعار
(nâm-e mosta'âr)
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Polish:
pseudonim
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Portuguese:
pseudónimo
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Portuguese:
pseudônimo
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Romanian:
pseudonim
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Russian:
псевдони́м
(psevdoním)
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Russian:
вы́мышленное и́мя
(výmyšlennoje ímja)
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Serbo-Croatian:
псеудо̀ним
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Serbo-Croatian:
pseudònim
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Sicilian:
psiudònimu
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Slovak:
pseudonym
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Slovene:
psevdonim
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Spanish:
seudónimo
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Spanish:
pseudónimo
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Swahili:
jina bandia
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Swedish:
pseudonym
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Thai:
นามแฝง
(naam-fɛ̌ɛng)
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Tibetan:
མིང་རྫུས་མ
(ming rdzus ma)
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Turkish:
mahlas
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Turkish:
psödonim
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Ukrainian:
псевдоні́м
(psevdoním)
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Urdu:
عَرْف
('arf)
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Urdu:
عُرْف
('urf)
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Urdu:
تَخَلُّص
(taxallus)
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Uzbek:
taxallus
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Vietnamese:
biệt hiệu
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Vietnamese:
bút danh
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Vietnamese:
tên chữ
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Vietnamese:
tên tự
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
Welsh:
ffugenw
— fictitious name (more literally, a false name)
