How to Use family name in a Sentence

family name

noun
  • Her family name is Smith.
  • There is pride in the family name.
    — Evan Grant, Dallas Morning News, 7 Mar. 2026
  • The family named their Elf Elfis and has had him for five years.
    — Alisha Ebrahimji, USA TODAY, 19 Dec. 2017
  • Stan Jensen lives and farms on a road that carries his family name.
    — Luke Peterson, The Salt Lake Tribune, 9 Oct. 2021
  • The club championship board boasts its fair share of the family name, too.
    — Lee Cowan, CBS News, 3 May 2026
  • The draw of the family name has helped keep Kennedy’s campaign afloat.
    — Kim Geiger, chicagotribune.com, 15 Mar. 2018
  • Think of Simon and his beef with his dad and his hatred of his family name.
    — Ineye Komonibo, refinery29.com, 29 Dec. 2020
  • Laddy knew family names and half of the names of those in the neighborhood.
    — Charles Hammer, Kansas City Star, 26 Feb. 2025
  • In China, the share of women who pass down their family name is on the rise.
    — Michael Waters, The Atlantic, 27 Oct. 2021
  • The two grapes share a family name because the two grapes are related.
    — Gar Joseph & Marnie Old, Philly.com, 25 Jan. 2018
  • My family name on the back of the jersey, that’s very important to me.
    — Dan Woike, Los Angeles Times, 18 Feb. 2024
  • With the family name on the wine label, there is more pride and craft in the winemaking.
    — Liz Thach, Forbes, 2 June 2022
  • Charlotte went so far as to change the family name to Pickford.
    — Nancie Clare, Los Angeles Magazine, 20 Feb. 2018
  • The family name is kind of a big deal in Arlington.
    — Rick Mauch, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 17 Sep. 2025
  • Their family name can be found on walls at the city’s zoo, museums, and a library.
    — Will Yakowicz, Forbes, 26 Sep. 2021
  • The idea was to be focused on my family name, as it has been spelled at least four different ways.
    — Rica Cerbarano, Vogue, 17 Mar. 2022
  • Wooten used to be on the Beebe football staff, and the field carries his family name.
    — Wally Hall, Arkansas Online, 16 Jan. 2021
  • Aaluk is a family name for his wife and co-captain, Bernadette Adams.
    — Alex Demarban, Alaska Dispatch News, 11 Oct. 2017
  • Both of the missing headstones were engraved with the same family name.
    — USA TODAY, 6 Sep. 2019
  • Just like her brothers, Rani was given a family name.
    — Jessica Booth, PEOPLE, 28 Apr. 2026
  • The husband can take the wife’s name or the wife can take the husband’s name, but only one family name.
    — Isaac Chotiner, New Yorker, 10 Feb. 2026
  • The family names and histories of clans were familiar to all on all sides of the knife.
    — John Kass, chicagotribune.com, 7 June 2019
  • Yes, his family name carries more weight there, but shouldn’t Auburn get the same treatment?
    — al.com, 9 June 2019
  • Downstairs, his estranged wife plots the restoration of the family name.
    — Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 18 Mar. 2022
  • The family name was often a burden to Dom, rather than an asset.
    — Scott Ostler, San Francisco Chronicle, 5 Sep. 2021
  • Ibrahim, the high school student who asked that his family name not be used for his own safety, is no stranger to the turmoil.
    — Clair MacDougall, The Christian Science Monitor, 28 Jan. 2022
  • In fact, the Drive doesn't even include the tent stake puller at the center of the model family name.
    — New Atlas, 1 Mar. 2026
  • The play portrays her as the eldest of three daughters who had no brothers to carry on the family name.
    — Sarah Midkiff, refinery29.com, 4 July 2020
  • The Romney family name has been central to her career, to be sure, but not always in a good way.
    — Todd Spangler, Detroit Free Press, 26 Feb. 2024
  • The eight Ellington families named in the lawsuit are asking the court to void the notices.
    — Perry Stein, Washington Post, 21 May 2018

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'family name.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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