Monday, October 13, 2008

sobriquet

sobriquet \SO-brih-kay; -ket; so-brih-KAY; -KET\, noun:

A nickname; an assumed name; an epithet.

In addition to his notorious amours, he became distinguished for a turbulent naval career, particularly for the storms he weathered, thus bringing him the sobriquet "Foulweather Jack".
-- Phyllis Grosskurth, Byron: The Flawed Angel
At a small reception on the occasion of my twenty-fifth anniversary in this position, my good friend Izzy Landes raised a glass and dubbed me the Curator of the Curators, a sobriquet I have worn with pride ever since.
-- Alfred Alcorn, Murder in the Museum of Man
There was an omnivorous intellect that won him the family sobriquet of Walking Encyclopedia.
-- Eric Liu, The Accidental Asian

Sobriquet is from the French, from Old French soubriquet, "a chuck under the chin, hence, an affront, a nickname."

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