Polyonymous

Part of speech: adjective

Definitions

1. Characterized by an entity that is identified by multiple distinct names or labels
2. Describes something or someone known by several different names or titles
3. Pertaining to an individual or object that is referred to by various names rather than a single one

Etymology: "Polyonymous" is a plain formation built from Greek parts: "poly-", meaning "many", and "-onymous", from Greek "onyma", meaning "name". Put together, it describes something that carries many names. The Latinized form "polyōnymos" came from Greek, and English took the word by adding its "-ous" ending, the common suffix that turns a noun into an adjective, as in "famous" or "nervous." The word belongs to a family of name-words built on "-onym". Synonym, antonym, and pseudonym all share that Greek root, and a pseudonym is literally a "false name." Polyonymous fills the opposite slot: rather than one name standing in for a thing, many names attach to one person, place, or object. The source lists no earlier use, so the word's exact age in English is not recorded here, but its construction makes its meaning transparent to anyone who knows the parts.