first name
 名
 Name n.
 1. The title by which any person or thing is known or designated; a distinctive specific appellation, whether of an individual or a class.
    Whatsoever Adam called every living creature, that was the name thereof.   --Gen. ii. 19.  
 What's in a name? That which we call a rose
 By any other name would smell as sweet.   --Shak.
 2. A descriptive or qualifying appellation given to a person or thing, on account of a character or acts.
    His name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.   --Is. ix. 6.
 3. Reputed character; reputation, good or bad; estimation; fame; especially, illustrious character or fame; honorable estimation; distinction.
    What men of name resort to him?   --Shak.
    Far above . . . every name that is named, not only in this world, but also in that which is to come.   --Eph. i. 21.
    I will get me a name and honor in the kingdom.   --1 Macc. iii. 14.
    He hath brought up an evil name upon a virgin.   --Deut. xxii. 19.
    The king's army . . . had left no good name behind.   --Clarendon.
 4. Those of a certain name; a race; a family.
    The ministers of the republic, mortal enemies of his name, came every day to pay their feigned civilities.   --Motley.
 5. A person, an individual. [Poetic]
    They list with women each degenerate name.   --Dryden.
 Christian name. (a) The name a person receives at baptism, as distinguished from surname; baptismal name; in western countries, it is also called a first name. (b) A given name, whether received at baptism or not.
 Given name. See under Given.
 In name, in profession, or by title only; not in reality; as, a friend in name.
 In the name of.  (a) In behalf of; by the authority of. “ I charge you in the duke's name to obey me.” --Shak. (b) In the represented or assumed character of. “I'll to him again in name of Brook.” --Shak.
 Name plate, a plate as of metal, glass, etc., having a name upon it, as a sign; a doorplate.
 Pen name, a name assumed by an author; a pseudonym or nom de plume. --Bayard Taylor.
 Proper name Gram., a name applied to a particular person, place, or thing.
 To call names, to apply opprobrious epithets to; to call by reproachful appellations.
 To take a name in vain, to use a name lightly or profanely; to use a name in making flippant or dishonest oaths. --Ex. xx. 7.
 Syn: -- Appellation; title; designation; cognomen; denomination; epithet.
 Usage: -- Name, Appellation, Title, Denomination. Name is generic, denoting that combination of sounds or letters by which a person or thing is known and distinguished. Appellation, although sometimes put for name simply, denotes, more properly, a descriptive term (called also agnomen or cognomen), used by way of marking some individual peculiarity or characteristic; as, Charles the Bold, Philip the Stammerer. A title is a term employed to point out one's rank, office, etc.; as, the Duke of Bedford, Paul the Apostle, etc. Denomination is to particular bodies what appellation is to individuals; thus, the church of Christ is divided into different denominations, as Congregationalists, Episcopalians, Presbyterians, etc.
 First a.
 1. Preceding all others of a series or kind; the ordinal of one; earliest; as, the first day of a month; the first year of a reign.
 2. Foremost; in front of, or in advance of, all others.
 3. Most eminent or exalted; most excellent; chief; highest; as, Demosthenes was the first orator of Greece.
 At first blush. See under Blush.
 At first hand, from the first or original source; without the intervention of any agent.
    It is the intention of the person to reveal it at first hand, by way of mouth, to yourself.   --Dickens.
 -- First coat Plastering, the solid foundation of coarse stuff, on which the rest is placed; it is thick, and crossed with lines, so as to give a bond for the next coat.
 First day, Sunday; -- so called by the Friends.
 First floor. (a) The ground floor. [U.S.] (b) The floor next above the ground floor. [Eng.]
 First fruit or First fruits. (a) The fruits of the season earliest gathered. (b) Feudal Law One year's profits of lands belonging to the king on the death of a tenant who held directly from him. (c) Eng. Eccl. Law The first year's whole profits of a benefice or spiritual living. (d) The earliest effects or results.
 See, Father, what first fruits on earth are sprung
 From thy implanted grace in man!   --Milton.
 -- First mate, an officer in a merchant vessel next in rank to the captain.
 First name, same as Christian name. See under Name, n.
 First officer Naut., in the merchant service, same as First mate (above).
 First sergeant Mil., the ranking non-commissioned officer in a company; the orderly sergeant. --Farrow.
 First watch Naut., the watch from eight to twelve at midnight; also, the men on duty during that time.
 First water, the highest quality or purest luster; -- said of gems, especially of diamond and pearls.
 Syn: -- Primary; primordial; primitive; primeval; pristine; highest; chief; principal; foremost.
 first name
      n : the name that precedes the surname [syn: given name, forename]