Appellation, n.
Etymology: [L. appellatio, fr. appellare: cf. F. appellation. See Appeal.]
1. The act of appealing; appeal. [Obs.] Spenser.
2. The act of calling by a name.
3. The word by which a particular person or thing is called and known; name; title; designation. They must institute some persons under the appellation of magistrates. Hume.
Syn. -- See Name.
Shades of meaning
Fernald has no entry of its own for appellation; he lists it under name.
Where he writes about it:
Name in the most general sense, signifying the word by which a person or thing is called or known, includes all other words of this group; in this sense every noun is a name; in the more limited sense a name is personal, an appellation is descriptive, a title is official. — from name
In the phrase William the Conqueror, King of England, William is the man's name, which belongs to him personally, independently of any rank or achievement; Conqueror is the appellation which he won by his acquisition of England; King is the title denoting his royal rank. — from name
Designation may be used much in the sense of appellation, but is more distinctive or specific in meaning; a designation properly so called rests upon some inherent quality, while an appellation may be fanciful. — from name
When scientists name an animal or a plant, they give it a binary or binomial technical name comprising a generic and a specific appellation. — from name
Antonyms
none given