nickname

noun

1. A familiar, invented name for a person or thing used instead of the actual name of the person or thing, often based on some noteworthy characteristic.

   “"The Big Apple" is a common nickname for New York City.”

   “[…] Plato, who was named Aristocles after his grandfather, but received from his gymnastic master the nickname Πλάτων (from πλάτυς, broad), which practically superseded his real name.”

   “He excelled with the arbalest steel crossbow, winning the nickname the Arbalestier and joined Bahriyya regiment, the crack soldiers who defeated the Crusaders and became known as the Turkish Lions and the Islamic Templars.”

2. A familiar, shortened or diminutive name for a person or thing.

   “My name is Jonathan, but I go by my nickname, Johnny.”

verb

1. (transitive)To give a nickname to (a person or thing).

   “Gerald, nicknamed "Jerry", was usually a very cheerful person.”

   “He was nicknamed Chemical Ali by Iraqi Kurds, who also called him the Butcher of Kurdistan”