Associations to the word «Epithet»

Wiktionary

EPITHET, noun. A term used to characterize a person or thing.
EPITHET, noun. A term used as a descriptive substitute for the name or title of a person.
EPITHET, noun. An abusive or contemptuous word or phrase.
EPITHET, noun. (taxonomy) A word in the scientific name of a taxon following the name of the genus or species. This applies only to formal names of plants, fungi and bacteria. In formal names of animals the corresponding term is the specific name.

Dictionary definition

EPITHET, noun. A defamatory or abusive word or phrase.
EPITHET, noun. Descriptive word or phrase.

Wise words

The chief virtue that language can have is clearness, and nothing detracts from it so much as the use of unfamiliar words.
Hippocrates