Skip to main content
Glite Dictionary
🕵️ A false name 🏢 A business alias
assumed name

assumed name

6 6.3
A name someone uses instead of their real name to hide who they are
  • noun
  • /əˈsjumd neɪm/
translation icon : nombre supuesto
  • He adopted an assumed name to protect his privacy while writing his novels.
  • living under an assumed name
  • use an assumed name

Examples

  • He was a shadow who introduced himself to no one and lived under an assumed name.

    Fiction book (1996)

  • Goethe himself seems to have a sense of excitement as—traveling alone and under an assumed name—he jumped into the mail coach that would take him on the first leg of his own Italian journey in 1786.

    Academic text (2002)

  • If you are using an assumed name for your writing, purchase the domain that goes along with it.

    Blog text (31)

  • I'll have a suite reserved for you under an assumed name.

    Fiction book (1991)

  • Did you know your son was working for Hawthorne under an assumed name?

    The Big Fix (1978)

  • Now get them to Utah under assumed names, pronto.

    Blog text (24)

  • Their tickets had been purchased under assumed names with matching credit cards and passports provided by their contact.

    Fiction book (2001)

  • The couple's daughter attends Harvard University under an assumed name.

    Blog text (31)

  • He lives with his wife under an assumed name in an undisclosed location.

    Fiction book (1997)

  • Under an assumed name, Jack visited a therapist, a man with an imposing reputation and a sumptuous office in a midtown high-rise.

    Fiction book (1996)

Synonyms

alias
vsassumed name
64 7.0

A name a person uses instead of their real name to hide identity

is the exact same concept presented as the main entry
pseudonym
vsassumed name
32 7.7

A name a writer or singer uses instead of their real name

is broader, applying to any assumed personal name beyond creators
moniker
vsassumed name
  • Informal
27 7.4

A name or nickname people use for someone

is generally more deliberate, chosen to replace a real personal name
stage name
vsassumed name
19 3.6

A different name used publicly by an actor or musician

covers that use but also any adopted alternative outside performance contexts
pen name
vsassumed name
10 3.5

A name an author uses instead of their real name when publishing

is more general and not limited to writers or publishing use
false name
vsassumed name
9 3.9

A made-up name someone uses to hide who they are

is similar but can be adopted for nondeceptive reasons as well
nom de plume
vsassumed name
  • Literature
3 8.2

A name an author uses instead of their real name

is the same author practice but named in plain language here
fictitious name
vsassumed name
  • Formal
1 7.8

A name a business uses that is not its legal registered name

applies to individual personal naming, not corporate or business naming
anonym
vsassumed name
9.6

A name someone makes up and uses to hide who they are

is similar but used broadly for any assumed personal name
byname
vsassumed name
  • Archaic
8.6

A familiar name used instead of someone's real name

is more often chosen to hide identity rather than serve as a casual nickname

How Secret

false name
9 3.9
assumed name
6 6.3
alias
64 7.0
pseudonym
32 7.7
nickname
  • Informal
262 1.1

Surface Forms

assumed name singular
assumed names plural

Morphology

assumed + name

The meaning 'a name used instead of one's legal name' is directly derivable from combining 'assumed' (taken or adopted) with 'name' (a word identifying someone), so a learner who knows both words can infer it denotes an alias or trade name. This compositional pattern is common across languages and follows a transparent adjective + noun logic, making it accessible to a B1 learner.

Etymology

Assumed name comes from the image of a person putting on a name like a mask or costume. By taking an assumed name they hide who they really are, so it means 'a name used to conceal a person's true identity'.