entry
nominal
/ˈnɑmɪnəl/Of names; existing in name only
From Latin nomen / nomin- (name) + O.English / Germanic name (name).
from Latin nominalis "pertaining to a name or names,"
from Latin nominalis "pertaining to a name or names,"
Word Ancestry
from Latin nominalis "pertaining to a name or names,"
from Latin nominalis "pertaining to a name or names,"
A name is one of those tiny things that can somehow run the whole show. Romans had nomen, a plain little word for “name,” and from it they built nominalis, a neat adjective for anything concerning names; by the mid-1400s English had borrowed it as nominalle. Then the meaning slipped in two directions at once: first toward grammar, where it points to nouns and noun-like forms, and later toward the sneaky idea of something that exists only on paper or in title. That’s why nominal sits beside cousins like nominative, nominate, and denomination, all hanging around the same family reunion of naming. And because English loves a twist, we also get the sarcastic modern sense of “tiny,” as in a nominal fee—just enough money to keep the word from being honest about how little it is. The whole thing is a reminder that a name can be grand, trivial, or fake; nominal is what happens when language puts a little label on something and then wonders whether the thing is really there.
The Story
A name is one of those tiny things that can somehow run the whole show. Romans had nomen, a plain little word for “name,” and from it they built nominalis, a neat adjective for anything concerning names; by the mid-1400s English had borrowed it as nominalle. Then the meaning slipped in two directions at once: first toward grammar, where it points to nouns and noun-like forms, and later toward the sneaky idea of something that exists only on paper or in title. That’s why nominal sits beside cousins like nominative, nominate, and denomination, all hanging around the same family reunion of naming. And because English loves a twist, we also get the sarcastic modern sense of “tiny,” as in a nominal fee—just enough money to keep the word from being honest about how little it is. The whole thing is a reminder that a name can be grand, trivial, or fake; nominal is what happens when language puts a little label on something and then wonders whether the thing is really there.
Modern Usage
In SpaceX/fandom slang, used to mean excellent, perfect, or awesome
Popularized by: Internet meme culture and SpaceX launch commentary
Notable References
- Urban Dictionary entries describing 'going nominal' as doing well
- SpaceX launch chatter
Kin & Kindred
From 'nomen / nomin-'·name
Derived Terms
English words from this root
From 'name'·name
Derived Terms
English words from this root