Pronounced: as it sounds, noun
Notes: Even if you know the word, it has an interesting history
Yesterday’s word
The word antonomasia means “the use of a proper name to designate a member of a class; also: the use of an epithet or title in place of a proper name
First usage
This word has been around sine the mid-1500s
Background / Comments
It came into English from Latin, but the word traces back to Greek; specifically from antonomazein (to call by a new name), which has as its base onoma (name). In sports, the second part of the definition is pretty common: “The Refrigerator” or “The Great One” are some of them. The first part would be more like calling someone a “Beau Brummell” or something along those lines.
Richard's Vocabulary Word-of-the-Day 