Dean
Language: English
Part of speech: name
Pronunciation: ipa: /diːn/
rhymes: -iːn
homophone: dean
Forms: form: Deans
Etymology: The surname or given name is of multiple origins, depending on context:
* As an English surname, from Middle English dene (“valley”).
* Also as an English surname, from the noun dean. Cognate to Deacon.
* Also as an English surname, from the personal name Deyne, a rhyming form of Reynald (see Reginald).
* As an Irish surname, variant of Deane.
* As a Scottish surname, from Dean Castle in Kilmarnock, itself from the noun meaning valley.
* Old English Dene (“Dane, Norseman”)
* Hebrew דין (“law, judgment”) and Arabic دين (“way of life, creed”)
Senses: glosses: A title afforded to a dean.
glosses: A habitational surname from Middle English from Middle English dene “valley”.
examples: text: On the normier part of the spectrum are liberal influencers like Dean Withers and Harry Sisson, who have transferred the “debate me, bro” spirit of early YouTube to TikTok Live.
ref: 2025 March 17, Andrew Marantz, “The Battle for the Bros”, in The New Yorker, →ISSN, archived from the original on 17 Mar 2025:
glosses: A male given name transferred from the surname or originating as an occupation derived from the title.
glosses: A placename:
Any of various villages and hamlets in England:
A village and civil parish in Cumberland, Cumbria, previously in Allerdale borough (OS grid ref NY0725).
glosses: A placename:
Any of various villages and hamlets in England:
A hamlet in Lynton and Lynmouth parish, North Devon district, Devon (OS grid ref SS7048).
glosses: A placename:
Any of various villages and hamlets in England:
A hamlet in Trentishoe parish, North Devon district, Devon (OS grid ref SS6245).
glosses: A placename:
Any of various villages and hamlets in England:
A hamlet in West Down parish, North Devon district, Devon (OS grid ref SS5042).
glosses: A placename:
Any of various villages and hamlets in England:
A hamlet in Sixpenny Handley and Pentridge parish, east Dorset (OS grid ref ST9715).
glosses: A placename:
Any of various villages and hamlets in England:
A hamlet in Bishop's Waltham parish, Winchester district, Hampshire (OS grid ref SU5619).
glosses: A placename:
Any of various villages and hamlets in England:
A hamlet in Sparsholt parish, Winchester district, Hampshire (OS grid ref SU4431).
glosses: A placename:
Any of various villages and hamlets in England:
A locality between Water and Weir, Rossendale borough, Lancashire (OS grid ref SD8525).
glosses: A placename:
Any of various villages and hamlets in England:
A hamlet in Spelsbury parish, West Oxfordshire district, Oxfordshire (OS grid ref SP3422).
glosses: A placename:
Any of various villages and hamlets in England:
A hamlet in Cranmore parish, Mendip district, Somerset (OS grid ref ST6744).
glosses: A placename:
Synonym of Dean Village, Edinburgh, Scotland.
synonyms: word: Dean Village
word: Edinburgh
word: Scotland
glosses: A placename:
A small township in the Shire of Hepburn, central Victoria, Australia.
glosses: A placename:
A small community in the Musquodoboit Valley, Nova Scotia, Canada.
glosses: A placename:
A number of places in the United States:
An unincorporated community in Monterey County, California.
glosses: A placename:
A number of places in the United States:
An unincorporated community in Appanoose County, Iowa.
glosses: A placename:
A number of places in the United States:
A ghost town in Lander County, Nevada.
glosses: A placename:
A number of places in the United States:
A township and village therein, in Cambria County, Pennsylvania.
glosses: A placename:
A number of places in the United States:
A minor city in Clay County, Texas.
Derived terms: Dean and Shelton
East Dean
Forest of Dean
Wendover Dean
West Dean
Westdean
Related terms: Dane
Deane