to make a name for oneself
1
3.7
- idiom
- A promising fighter looking to make a name for himself.
Examples
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She worked hard in her career to make a name for herself as a skilled architect.
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I came to Adventure City to get away from them and make a name for myself.
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You wanna make a name for yourself.
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You made a name for yourself tonight!
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You make a name for yourself.
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My husband has worked very hard, Father, to make a name for himself in this area.
Fiction book (1999) -
There, he rapidly made a name for himself.
Academic text (1994) -
I'm about to make a name for myself here.
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But you have made a name for yourself, you're what this business is about.
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In Stockholm, he rapidly made a name for himself as a poet and critic.
Academic text (2000)
Synonyms
8
4.1
To get noticed for your work in an area, for example in art or business
1
4.8
Get recognition and success in a field
1
6.3
To begin to use your skills and get recognition
How Famous
1
3.7
78
2.4
Surface Forms
Morphology
make + a + name + for + oneself
The components 'make' + 'name' + 'for oneself' yield a plausible literal idea of 'creating a name/identity for oneself', so learners can partially infer a sense of gaining recognition; however, mapping 'name' to 'reputation' or 'fame' is a metaphorical extension not fully predictable from the parts. Cross-linguistic equivalents (e.g., French se faire un nom, Spanish hacerse un nombre) make the idiom somewhat accessible, but the precise sense 'become well-known' requires prior exposure.
Etymology
The phrase make a name for oneself may come from the image of a maker who would make their name known by putting it on their work so people knew who made it. So today make a name for oneself means 'to become well-known' because of your own work.