first name

English

Pronunciation

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Noun

first name (plural first names)

1. Synonym of given name, particularly when it forms the first element of a full name.
   • 2013 July 19, Peter Wilby, “Finland spreads word on schools”, in The Guardian Weekly, volume 189, number 6, page 30:

     Imagine a country where children do nothing but play until they start compulsory schooling at age seven. Then, without exception, they attend comprehensives until the age of 16. […] Children address teachers by their first names. Even 15-year-olds do no more than 30 minutes' homework a night.

Usage notes

Although first name is more common in all dialects of English, given name, personal name, etc. are increasingly preferred for clarity in multicultural contexts because of East Asian and other cultural traditions in which given names are placed after the surname instead of before it.

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