Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

what's-their-name

Word Rarity Common

Frequency: Zipf frequency 5.03 in modern English

Syllables: what's-their--name
IPA

25

Scrabble Score

14

Letters

4

Syllables

10

Unique Chars

Meaning

pron

A person whose identity is unknown or forgotten (especially when better-known to the listener).

Informal

noun

A passing acquaintance of no importance or relevance.

Derogatory; Informal

Example Sentences

"Near-synonyms: what's-their-face (what's-his-face, what's-her-face); whatchamacallhim, whatchamacallher; you-know-who; so-and-so; see also Thesaurus:what's-their-name"

Etymology

Univerbation of what's + their + name.

Usage

Inflected Forms

what's-their-names (plural) what'stheirname (alternative) whatstheirname (alternative) whatsename (alternative)

Phrases

:Category:English placeholder terms Placeholder name on Wikipedia.Wikipedia

Frequently Paired Words

thingy :Category:English placeholder terms Placeholder name on Wikipedia.Wikipedia

Synonyms

what's-their-face whatchamacallhim, whatchamacallher you-know-who so-and-so thingamabob thingamafuck thingum thingummy whatsisname whatshisname whasisname whatshername

Questions

What does what's-their-name mean?: A person whose identity is unknown or forgotten (especially when better-known to the listener).
Where does what's-their-name come from?: Univerbation of what's + their + name.

How to pronounce what's-their-name

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